This recipe is dedicated to everyone out there who have over ripe bananas sitting and staring at you in the fruit basket.We all (except hubby dear) eat banana in our house. But the minute you see the brown spots on the peels nobody wants them. Then they start sitting there day after day begging for some attention.

This happens every other week in our house and I desperately needed a way to use them.I can't simply throw food. I get it from my mom, I guess.

This hunt for a recipe to use the mushy bananas in our house, got me to this banana bread.Yummm

Its tasty, everyone loves it, healthy too if you use a portion of wheat flour in it.

You can reduce the sugar to an extend, because the bananas have their role to play, which makes this bread again healthy.All in all its a win win. I get to use the over ripe bananas, kids get a yummy snack,even the banana hater hubby likes them. What more can you ask for ;)

So no more unattended mushy bananas, easy to put together , lets get going :)

Banana bread

By Nikki
Adapted from here

Ingredients

• Banana:3-4 nos (over ripe ones)
• All purpose flour: 2 cups
• Butter: 1/2 cup
• Sugar: 3/4 cup
• Salt: 1/2 tsp
• Vanilla essence: 1 tsp
• Egg: 2 eggs
• Baking soda: 1 tsp

Instructions

1. Peel the bananas and put them in a mixing bowl. Mash it really well with a fork.Add the butter and sugar and mix well.Add eggs one at a time, mixing well in between. Add the vanilla essence.
2. Sift together the dry ingredients, ie; flour, salt and baking soda.
3. Add the dry ingredients to the banana mixture in two batches, mixing well in between.
4. Pour it into to a 5x9 loaf pan and bake for 55-60 min, until a tester inserted into the middle of the bread comes out clean.

P.S: If you want the kiddos to eat them, pour the batter into a muffin pan and present it as banana muffin.Stir in some chopped nuts of your choice, you have banana nut muffin. Top it with some streusel :)

Banana nut muffin...with a crunchy topping

what do you do with those over ripened bananas? I'm always out of options when i think of getting rid of the over ripened bananas...i like my banana just ripe....no more ..no less...even my li'l one enjoys hers the same way...usually we buy only a few at time, so that we don't have to worry about the over ripened ones...
was looking for ideas to use them, and happened to see this muffin recipe...which actually called for these over ripened bananas...bingo...there you go :)

and the crunchy topping.....an added bliss to the muffins...i have had these crunchy toppings in the store bought ones n have always wondered what they are...and here it is...a crowd pleaser...

You'll need:
For the muffin:
All purpose flour: 1 1/2 cups
Baking Soda: 1 1/2 tsps
Salt: 1/4 tsp
Nutmeg powder: 1/8 tsp
Over ripened bananas: 4 nos
Chopped and roasted walnut or pecan: 1 cup
White sugar: 1/2 cup
Egg: 1 large
Vanilla extract: 1/2 tsp
Butter: 1/2 cup (1 stick, softened)
Milk: 1/4 cup

For the topping:
All purpose flour: 2 tbsp
Cinnamon powder: 1/8 tsp
Butter: 1 tbsp
Brown sugar: 1/3 cup

How to make:


Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Line a standard 12 cup muffin tin with paper muffin cups or grease with butter.
In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, salt and nutmeg powder.
In a small bowl, mash two bananas with a fork, so that they still have a texture.Set it aside.
In another bowl, mash the remaining two bananas along with the sugar using an electric mixer.
Add butter, milk, egg and vanilla extract and beat it together until its completely incorporated, scraping down the sides using a spatula as and when needed.
Add the dry ingredients mixture to this in batches and mix just until its well incorporated.
Fold in the chopped nuts and the reserved mashed bananas to this.
For the topping, in a small bowl, mix the flour, cinnamon powder and sugar. Cut in the butter to this mixture, until it resembles coarse corn meal.
Pour the batter into the prepared muffin cups using an ice cream scoop. Sprinkle the top of muffins with the prepared topping.
Bake in the middle rack of the oven for about 18-20 min ,until the muffins turn golden brown or when the tester inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean.
Let the muffin tray cool on the wire rack for a few minutes, before you indulge yourself in those delicious yummy muffins...
Serve it hot...the best way to enjoy them, enjoy a few crunchy crumbs on the top first....and then dive into the muffin...yummm

Pazham pori /Ethakka appam (Banana fritters)

When ever I make pazham pori, my li'l sis comes to my mind. b'cos its her favorite.

My achachan(dad) used to get us mid morning snacks when we are home (he still gets us those when go home for vacations)

He gets each of us our own favs.mine is dal vada, my li'l sis's is pazham pori.

Very yummy sweet snack,not much difficult to put together.

I have always felt that it tastes the best if we make it with fully ripened bananas.(when the peel turns almost black)

I get bananas these days for my li'l one, her fav breakfast mashed with cereal.

She loved this version of banana too.She claps when she likes things(being a 10 month old, i guess that is her only way of letting me know she wants more)

At the very first bite, she jumped and clapped...oh,yeah! she likes pazham pori

I hope, you too will like them :)

You'll need:


Banana: 2 nos (fully ripened)
All purpose flour: 2-3 tbsp
Sugar: 1tbsp
Salt: a pinch
Oil: as required for deep fry

How to make: 

Peel the bananas and cut them half.Slice each half lengthwise into 3-4 pieces.

Mix all purpose flour and enough water to make the batter. Add sugar and salt.

The consistency should be right enoguh to coat bananas when you dip them in the batter.

Heat oil in a pan. When the oil is bubbling hot, dip the banana pieces in the batter and deep fry them for 2-3 min on each side, until they turn golden brown. Drain them on a paper towel n enjoy it hot off the stove :)