Turn those overripe banana's into delicious snacks!

If you're anything like me, most of the time your banana's turn overripe and you find yourself throwing them away or putting them into the freezer. More often than not, I put mine into the freezer with the intention to eventually make some delicious recipes.

I have made countless recipes with overripe banana's that were still fresh, and a dozen or more with frozen overripe banana's (and they are just as good).

Some great benefits to eating overripe banana's: easier to digest (especially right after a hard workout as these little guys covert into sugars for easier and quicker absorption), it relieves heartburn (acts as an antacid), Vitamin B6 help reduce PMS and muscle soreness and these are high in iron and fibre which have plenty of benefits!

Okay - now to the good stuff! Here are two of my favorite recipes that are quick and easy for refuelling snacks for during the day or after a workout:

Banana Bread! (always a classic)

Ingredients

• 3 medium ripe bananas (3 bananas yield ~1 1/2 cups)

• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

• 1 whole egg (or sub 1 chia or flax egg)*

• 3 Tbsp coconut oil, melted

• 1/4 cup organic cane sugar (if sugar-free, omit and increase syrup/honey)

• 1/4 cup packed organic brown sugar (if sugar-free, omit and increase syrup/honey)

• 2-3 Tbsp maple syrup (or sub honey. Increase to ⅓ cup if no sugar)

• 3 1/2 tsp baking powder

• 3/4 tsp sea salt

• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

• 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk (or other dairy-free milk)

• 1 1/4 cup almond meal

• 1 1/4 cup all purpose flour (gluten-free if needed)

• 1 1/4 cup oats

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (176 C) and line a 9×5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper.

2. Mash banana in a large bowl. Add all ingredients through almond milk and whisk vigorously to combine. Last add almond meal, gluten free flour blend and oats and stir.

3. Bake for 1 hour – 1 hour 15 minutes. When ready, it should feel firm and be crackly and golden brown on top.

4. Let cool completely before cutting or it will be too tender to hold form.

5. Serve with butter and honey or as is. Store leftovers in a covered container for up to a few days. Slice and freeze for longer term storage.

You can never go wrong with Banana Bread, but for me, I love a good muffin! Here is a recipe I've adapted from a few times, but here's the original recipe:

Banana Oat Muffins

INGREDIENTS

wet ingredients

• 1 cup + 2 tablespoons mashed banana (approx. 2–3 bananas)

• ¼ cup melted coconut oil

• ¼ cup pure maple syrup

• ¼ cup coconut sugar

• 2 flax eggs (2 tablespoons ground flax + 6 tablespoons water, whisk together, set for 15 mins)

• ½ cup unsweetened non-dairy milk, room temperature

• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

dry ingredients

• 1 ¾ cups gluten free oat flour – if using homemade oat flour, make sure it’s very finely ground (not coarse)*

• 1 ¼ cups gluten free rolled oats

• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

toppings

• 2 tablespoons gluten free rolled oats (optional)

• 1–2 teaspoons coconut sugar (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F degrees. Line a 12-muffin pan with muffin liners. Set aside.

2. Peel bananas and add to a large mixing bowl. Using a pastry cutter or fork, mash bananas until smooth. Measure 1 cup + 2 tablespoons mashed banana—this is the amount you will use. Remove excess banana.

3. Add the coconut oil, maple syrup, sugar, flax eggs, milk and vanilla. Whisk until well incorporated.

4. Add oat flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Whisk together until just incorporated, making sure no flour patches remain.

5. Using a large scoop, scoop and drop batter evenly into prepared muffin pan—filling each cup about 3/4 of the way for a greater quantity of smaller muffins, or all the way to the top for a smaller quantity of big, domed-top muffins. I use this ice cream scoop for easy scooping. Optionally, sprinkle the tops of muffins with rolled oats and sugar.

6. Bake for 22-30 minutes. On the lower end for smaller muffins, on the higher end for large muffins. Mine took 29 minutes for 10 larger muffins.

Allow to cool on a cooling rack for about 1 hour. Lift on and enjoy!

I have adapted from this recipe to make protein muffins, I've added chocolate chips, blueberries, nuts/seeds or omitted the sugars.

These are great go-to's if you're on the go, working from home or need a little snack in between meals! Enjoy!!

Bread - Minimalist Baker

Muffins - Beaming Baker

2 great gluten free bakers I follow