11 Simple Recipes that Prove Bananas Are Your New Health Food Hack

Everyone is looking for that miracle food that both tastes great, is a versatile ingredient in several recipes, and is super healthy. This may sound like a dream, but you might actually need to look no further than that long, yellow fruit in your kitchen. These recipes will make bananas your new favorite health food.

Banana Chips

If you’re looking to make a simple, delicious snack and you have some bananas lying around, you can always make banana chips. They take seconds to prepare and only require that you cut them up into ¼ inch thick slices, dab them with a little lemon juice and pop them in the oven at 200F for an hour and a half.

Chocolate Banana Pudding

What should you do with old, brown bananas? Make this delicious AND healthy chocolate banana pudding, that’s what!  Make instant chocolate pudding then add mashed bananas and peanut butter for a guilt-free sweet treat.

Banana Oatmeal

Spruce up your morning oatmeal with banana.  Just add a sliced banana and cinnamon for oatmeal you will want to eat every day!

Banana PBJ Hotdog

The kids will go bananas for this delicious snack.  Put a peeled banana in a hotdog bun.  Then use peanut butter and jelly as the ketchup and mustard.  It’s so simple, yet so cute and creative!

Sautéed Banana and Yogurt

Another way to cook up bananas is to stick them in a frying pan with some PAM. Once all the banana circles become golden brown, they’re delicious as a topping to yogurt! The cooked bananas add some sweetness, but are still healthy.

Banana S’mores

Bananas can even be made delicious over a campfire! Keeping the peel on the banana cut a sliver down the side of the banana, removing a small wedge. Inside the crevice you have created you can add in chocolate chips, marshmallows, nuts or any other topping you like! Then, wrap the banana in foil, with the filling side face up and put them in the campfire for about five minutes. At the end you will have a healthier alternative to a s’more!

Banana Ice Cream

This is the perfect way to get your ice cream fix and use up any bananas you have that might be going brown! Just stick peeled bananas into the freezer, wait until they’re completely frozen, and then stick them in a blender until they begin to resemble the consistency of ice cream. For a less frozen mixture, add a dash of milk, or even water. To add some flavor you can also mix in other ingredients such as, chocolate powder, almond butter, vanilla or strawberries!

Egg Replacer

If you’re a vegan looking to make some alternatives to your favorite non-vegan foods, bananas are a great place to start! They work as an egg replacer to stick other ingredients together, so they’re a great substitute if you’re trying to make healthy, vegan desserts!

Banana Sushi

If you can’t wait an hour and half until snack time, banana sushi is another great snack alternative. Simply take a wrap, spread some of your favorite nut butter on it, stick a banana on it and roll it up. You can then cut it up into little bite sized sushi pieces!

Banana Pancakes

Pancakes aren’t exactly diet approved, but eggs and bananas? They’re all cool. Mix them together and stick them on a frying pan and the result is a surprisingly delicious, surprisingly spot on pancake. All you need is 1 banana and two eggs, blended or thoroughly mashed together and then poured onto a frying pan. From there you just cook them as you would a normal pancake!

Banana Crepes

If you are more of a crepe person than a pancake person, there’s still hope for you! Crepes can also be whipped up with bananas as a central ingredient. Just combine oats, cinnamon, almond milk, 2 eggs, and a banana in a food processor for the perfect crepe batter.

Chocolate Covered Frozen Bananas

This treat may lean on the slightly more unhealthy side, but is better for you than many desserts you might normally eat. Just cover a peeled banana in melted dark chocolate, add any additional nuts or toppings and freeze. Soon you’ll have a delicious snack waiting to be devoured!

Banana Zucchini Bread

If your seeking a more traditional banana dessert, but still want it to be healthy, there are many great alternatives to banana bread. Banana Zucchini bread is one of many healthy options and can be kept relatively low in fat and sugar. Combine flax seed, coconut oil, vanilla extract, flour, cinnamon, and baking powder with your banana and zucchini, then bake.

Smoothies

In case you haven’t noticed, bananas are the perfect smoothie ingredient. Bananas are the secret ingredient that will make any homemade smoothie a success. Frozen or unfrozen, one banana will make the perfect smoothie base. On top of it, add your other favorite fruits (or vegetables), some spinach or kale, a tablespoon of chia seeds and some almond milk!