No monkey business: These recipes with bananas are insanely tasty

Whether as an easy afternoon snack or an easy prank, everyone seems to appreciate bananas. The so-called “monkey food” is actually full of great vitamins & minerals, making it a nice handheld vessel for your daily intake of fruit. 

However, preparing them is usually a hassle. There seems to be so few recipes for bananas and you can only eat so much banana bread. That said, you need to vow to do something with the overripe bananas on your counter – that way, you won’t feel as bad when you toss ‘em in the trash! 

Luckily, we swung through the internet to find some great new recipes with bananas that’ll take this fun shaped fruit to the next level, so grab your saucepans and let’s get cooking! 

Healthy Banana Oatmeal Pancakes 

This first recipe is a quick and easy breakfast for those whof may be trying to stay fit or just need new ideas on how to rework the classic breakfast dish. 

Ingredients 

• 2 ripe bananas
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup oats
• Mix-ins and toppings of your choice (vanilla, cinnamon, berries, nuts, etc.)

Instructions 

1. Preheat a skillet on low heat.
2. Mix the bananas, eggs, and oats together in a blender on low speed.
3. Grease your skillet with cooking spray, oil, or butter. Then, pour the batter onto your prepared skillet (about 1/6 of the batter for each pancake). The smaller the better, as these pancakes don’t hold together quite as well as regular pancakes.
4. Allow the pancakes to cook through on one side before flipping. If you are using any mix-ins like walnuts or blueberries, you can push them into the uncooked side of the pancakes before flipping. We don’t recommend mixing them with the batter because they are more likely to fall apart.
5. Flip & cook the other side until done; repeat for the rest of the batter.
6. Serve with syrup, butter, peanut butter or your favorite pancake toppings.

Banana Thai Curry 

If you prefer savory recipes over sweet ones, this surprising bananas dish is for you. This dish combines the sweetness of the bananas with delicious curry spices to make an incredible dinner. Our mouths are watering just thinking about it. . . 

Ingredients 

• 1 cup sugar snap peas
• 2 Tbsp oil, divided
• 3 bananas
• ½ cup diced onion
• 1 Tbsp fresh grated ginger
• 2 Tbsp Thai red curry paste
• 1 14-oz can coconut milk 
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp chili garlic sauce
• 1 cup red lentils
• To serve: rice

Instructions 

1. Prepare rice according to instructions on the package. Clean sugar snap peas and set aside.
2. Slice bananas into ½ inch thick rounds. Heat 1 Tbsp of oil in a large wok over medium/high heat and add the bananas. Cook until lightly browned, about three minutes on each side. Remove bananas and set aside.
3. To the same wok add remaining 1 Tbsp of oil, heating to medium. Add the onion, ginger, and curry paste, cooking until the onion is soft, about three minutes.
4. Add coconut milk broth, soy sauce, and chili garlic paste. Bring to a gentle simmer, then add lentils. Cook until lentils are soft, about five to seven minutes.
5. To serve, spoon rice into serving bowls, followed by curry. Top with sugar snaps and a few banana slices.

Chocolate chip banana bars 

This last recipe with bananas will have you moving the banana bread over when it comes time for dessert. This sweet treat with both bananas and chocolate will kick any sugar craving to the curb. 

Ingredients 

• 5 very ripe bananas
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup oil, any type
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 eggs
• 1 3/4 cup flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup mini chocolate chips, divided

Instructions 

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 15×10.5 pan with non-stick spray.
2. Peel bananas and mash well. 
3. Stir in brown sugar, oil, milk and eggs until combined. 
4. Add in dry ingredients and stir. Fold in 1/2 the chocolate chips.
5. Spread the batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle remaining chips on top. 
6. Bake eighteen-twenty-two minutes, until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. 
7. Cool completely and cut into squares. Yields twenty four bars. 

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Have any other fun recipes with bananas you want to share? Drop them below in the comments! After all, monkey see, monkey do!