GO BANANAS!

Bananas are great for giving you potassium which your body uses for fuel.
They are good eating if you have high blood pressure,
if you need energy, & come in their own perfect container!

When your bananas are (in your opinion) PERFECT,
put them in the refrigerator to stop the ripening process.
The skins will darken but the bananas will be perfect inside for 4-5 days.

When your bananas are getting those beautiful brown spots
they are BEGGING to be made into banana bread or muffins!
Peel the banana & squeeze it into a ziplock bag.
Press all the air out of the zip lock & then squoosh the banana flat in the bag.
Zip it tight & pop it into the freezer.
It won't turn brown while it's frozen.

When I peel bananas, I don't like to touch the banana.
Okay, I know this is a weird thing about me but humor me.
So if you pull back on the stem & peel off one wide strip of peel,
you can then hold the part of the banana that is still IN the peel in your hand.
Slice the exposed banana lengthwise; crosswise with a table knife along the open part.
Don't use a sharp knife on this, promise me!
The banana pieces will drop into a bowl or pie crust without you touching them.

Time for my 3 favorite banana recipes!

Banana Cream Pie
Into a graham cracker or Oreo cookie crust, cut up 4-5 "perfect" bananas.
In a 2 quart bowl, whisk together 1 cup milk (nonfat is okay)
with a box of Jello brand white chocolate instant pudding.
(I don't use banana pudding because it has artificial banana flavoring.
I realize the white chocolate flavor is artificial too but it lets the banana flavor come through.
I would rather taste the bananas!)
When the pudding begins to thicken,
pour over all the bananas in the crust making sure to cover all of them.
Top with Cool Whip or real whip cream.
Grate a Hershey bar on top of the whipped cream.
Refrigerate for about 30 minutes then EAT IT!

Fruit Smoothies with banana
In a blender, add 2 frozen bananas
(or 2 fresh ones with a few ice cubes)
1 cup milk
1 Tablespoon of vanilla
an 8 second squeeze of honey from a honey bottle
(squeeze it & count "one Mississippi, two Mississippi", up to 8 Mississippis)
1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg

Plus add any or all of the following:
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
1/2 cup vanilla ice cream
1/2 cup plain or vanilla yogurt

Blend until creamy.
Taste with a spoon to see if it's sweet enough.
If not, add a couple more squeezes of honey, Honey!

Banana Bread or Muffins
1/3 cup canola oil
2 eggs
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup plain or vanilla yogurt
1 Tablespoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 3/4 cups flour
2 mashed bananas
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup hot water.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine all ingredients & mix with a fork just until blended.
Put into paper-lined muffin pans or a greased loaf pan.
Bake muffins for about 20 minutes.
Bake the loaf about 45 minutes.
Test with a toothpick to see if it's done.
Slather on butter & EAT the bread with someone you love & say YUM at the same time.