How I deal with overripe bananas and reduce food waste in my house!
This is the main fruit that can be a food waste challenge for me. Apparently, my family only like to eat bananas that have literally just turned from green to yellow. It seems that during this very short window, they are perfect for the Butler family to consume. Sadly, a minute after this, they are no longer fit for consumption and are destined for the bin!
As a result, I have completely given up buying bananas in my bid to reduce food waste. However, last week my eldest complained of leg cramps and I remembered that bananas are rich in potassium and good for prevent cramps (I actually don’t know if this is an old wives tale or if it’s actually true!?). So, I bought 3 bananas which, surprise surprise, never got eaten and were turning black rapidly!
The solution? Banana bread of course!
Here is my simple recipe which takes about 10 minutes to make and 1 hour to bake. It’s particularly delicious straight out of the oven and great for school lunchboxes. 3 bananas saved from this year's food waste stats!
Banana Bread Recipe
Preheat the oven to 170 Celsius
Ingredients:
120g butter (soft)
150g brown sugar
300 g bananas (around 3 bananas)
2 eggs
80g yoghurt
½ tsp vanilla extract
250g plain flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
¼ tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp all spice
Method:
1. Cream the butter and sugar with a hand mixer until pale and creamy.
2. Add the bananas, eggs, yoghurt and vanilla and beat well until fully combined.
3. Stir in the flour, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon, all spice and salt until everything is well mixed.
4. Transfer the mixture to a large loaf tin (e.g. 24cm x 13cm) lined with parchment paper or greased.
5. Sprinkle 1 tbsp of brown sugar on the top (not essential but highly recommended!)
6. Put it in a preheated oven at 1700C for 1 hour. After the first 30 minutes, cover the top with brown paper to prevent it burning (especially if you have sprinkled the sugar on top!).
7. After 1 hour, take it out and test it by gently inserting a knife/skewer in the centre and making sure it comes out clean.
8. Once baked, let it cool for about 10-15 minutes.
9. In the unlikely event that there are any leftover, you can slice it and store it in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer.
Zero Waste Recipe Notes:
Butter - You can use salted or unsalted butter. If using unsalted butter, then add ¼ tsp of salt. If using salted butter you can leave out the added salt, if you like.
Sugar - I usually use light brown sugar but white sugar, or whatever sugar you have in stock, will be fine.
Bananas - You can use less banana if you don’t have 3 bananas and maybe add a little extra yoghurt to make sure it’s not too dry. If I have a single banana going black, I put it into the freezer and when I have 3 ready to use, I make this banana bread
Spices - You can use any combination of cinnamon, all spice or nutmeg – use what you have on hand rather than buying more.
Storage - Store it in an airtight container in the fridge and it will last well.
Freezer - You can slice and freeze it for later use.
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