How to Easily Recycle Over-Ripe Bananas and Save Yourself Money!

We enjoy eating bananas at my house. That’s why I always make sure there’s a bunch in the fruit bowl. Sometimes, though, they get overlooked. I don’t know if we get tired of them, or if they just get forgotten when I buy other fruit. Whatever the case, with bananas being 59 cents a pound, they’re just too costly to throw out when they turn brown. Read this informative article and learn how to easily recycle over ripe bananas and save yourself money!

Once a banana begins to get brown spots on it, it’s considered to be “over ripe” in our house. You couldn’t even pay any of my family to eat it, because we don’t find the taste appealing. But, if you take that same banana and hide it in a recipe, we’ll cheerfully scarf it down! Recycling bananas reminds me of hiding Peas. No one in my house likes Peas except me. Anytime I set a bowl of Peas on the dinner table, I get scowls and sneers. Yet, if I hide those Peas in Tuna Casserole, my family happily eats them. Go figure…

1. Recycle Bananas By Making Fruit Smoothies
One of the easiest and most refreshing ways to recycle over ripe bananas is to use them to make Fruit Smoothies. If you don’t already have a favorite Smoothy recipe, we like this one: simply place 2 over ripe bananas, 1 cup of skim milk, (or 1 cup of orange juice), and a handful of fresh, cleaned strawberries into your blender. Blend the ingredients up until it’s smooth, and enjoy a healthy drink!

2. Freeze Over Ripe Bananas for Future Use
Another way to recycle over ripe bananas so you don’t waste the money you spent on them, is to freeze them until you’re ready for use. You can freeze them whole right in their peels, or peel them and freeze them that way. I prefer to peel them and freeze them 2 at a time in a container, or store them in a freezer bag.

When you’re ready to use the over ripe bananas, simple defrost them in your microwave oven.

3. Over Ripe Bananas Add Tenderness to Beef Roasts
My sister-in-law is an avid cook. She knows all kinds of tricks, especially when it comes to cooking meat and poultry to tender perfection. One of her favorite tips- next to pouring a can of Pepsi Cola over a beef roast prior to baking- is to place a peeled banana in the pan beside a roast before she slides it in the oven. Her roasts are always tender and juicy, so I assume this trick works. And no, you can’t taste the banana.

4. Bake and Cook and Recycle Over Ripe Bananas
If I decide to make something in order to recycle any over ripe bananas we have, our favorite recipe is Banana Nut Bread with molasses in it. You can also use up those bananas by baking or cooking muffins, cakes, fritters, pancakes or pudding. Ah! The delicious sacrifices we have to make to save money!

5. Recycle Over Ripe Bananas And Make a Facial Mask
You’ve tried using all those beauty masks for your dry skin at the drug store. Now, why not try a more natural approach to beautifying and moisturizing your face? Another way to use over ripe bananas is to make a facial mask with them. Mash up a banana in a bowl. Beat in a couple tablespoons of plain yogurt and a tablespoon of honey until the mixture is fairly smooth. Apply the mixture to your face and allow it to set about 15 minutes. Then, rinse it off with cool tap water. Pat your face dry with a soft towel.

6. Birds and Other Wildlife Love Over Ripe Bananas
And finally, you can recycle over ripe bananas by giving them to the wildlife. Don’t peel the bananas, but punch several holes in the skins. Place them high up in the crooks of tree branches away from your house, and the birds, butterflies, wasps and bees will love you for the sweet treat!