Did you eat a banana this morning?
The average American eats 10 pounds of bananas a year which helps account for bananas being one of the most important food crops on Earth. Bananas are reputed to help lower blood pressure and reduce the risks of some cancers, asthma, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and digestive problems. Potassium and fiber are key to these claims but according to Medical News Today, bananas provide a variety of vitamins and minerals including Vitamin B6, Manganese, Vitamin C, Magnesium, Folate, Riboflavin, Niacin, Vitamin A and Iron.
Pretty good for 110 calories of fat-free, cholesterol-free and sodium-free goodness in a cheerful yellow package.
Speaking of packaging, did you open your banana by cutting through the stem end? Incorrect! According to Slate.com, Monkeys peel bananas from the bottom, and you should too. The process is simple: Flip the banana upside down, use the stem for a handle, pinch the bottom until the peel splits, and then—voila—you’re ready to remove the peel. There is some controversy about this method, as primate expert Katherine Milton says monkeys don’t eat bananas in the wild and if they did, they would take a big bite right out of the middle, skin and all.
Bananas are big business and a difficult crop to grow and get to market. The unblemished bananas you see stacked in the grocery store are an agricultural and shipping miracle, delivered and available 365 days a year. “Bananas are one of the most consumed and cheapest fruits worldwide: they are the most traded fruit and the fifth most traded agricultural product. The global export value of the banana trade was estimated to be US $8 billion in 2016, with a retail value between $20 and 25 billion”, according to Banana link UK a British industry website. Bananas are the No. 1 item sold at Walmart, not potato chips or Coca Cola — the banana.
Grown in 150 countries, mostly within 30 degrees north and south of the equator, banana plants produce 105 million tons of fruit per year. No such thing as a banana tree – banana plants are tall herbs related to ginger — they can grow to 45 feet tall and have a succulent, not woody trunk. The plants have to be propped to support the fruit. Bananas hang from large stalks called bunches which are comprised of “hands” which radiate out from the stalk. The “hands” are divided into the clusters of bananas you see in the store. While growing, banana stalks are often covered with polyethylene bags to protect them from wind, insects and birds and to maintain optimum temperature.
Although there are more than 1,000 varieties of banana, the plantation-grown Cavendish bananas like the one on your counter are grown on genetically identical plants. This lack of diversity leaves them susceptible to disease. There is concern about a fungus, Panama disease which is heading toward South America where 80% of the world’s bananas are grown. A similar disease wiped out the Gros Michel or the Big Mike banana which was the forerunner of today’s more disease resistant Cavendish.
Bananas grow from a rhizome and it takes 9-12 months from planting to harvest fruit.
After nine months, “the bananas are harvested while still green. At the packhouse they are inspected and sorted for export. Buyers of fruit in the UK want unbruised bananas and so very high standards are set. If the bananas do not meet these standards they are usually sold locally at a much lower price. The fruit is then transported to ports to be packed in refrigerated ships called reefers, (Belafonte’s Day-Oh comes to mind), bananas take between six and twelve days to get to the UK/Europe). In order to increase shelf life, they are transported at a temperature of 13.3 degrees C, (56 Fahrenheit) and require careful handling in order to prevent damage. Humidity, ventilation and temperature conditions are also carefully monitored in order to maintain quality. When the bananas arrive at their destination port, they are first sent to ripening rooms (a process involving ethylene gas) and then sent to the shops.”
Welcome, little banana!
I can’t think too long about bananas without remembering some great Chico restaurants — the Kramore Inn, (Park Avenue, 1976-2007) made the best dessert crepes with bananas and chocolate. Perche Non! the gelato shop on Second Street made stellar banana waffles, and my favorite treat to carry to the car on the way home from the Silver Dollar Fair was a chocolate-covered banana.
This will never duplicate the Kramore Inn’s Chocolate Banana Crepe, but if reading this has set up a yearning, here’s how to satisfy it.
Chocolate-Hazelnut and Banana Crêpes
Master pastry chef Jacques Torres likes to fill basic crêpes with this combination of bananas and homemade Nutella. To streamline this banana-luscious dessert use purchased crepes, (Safeway), and a jar of Nutella, skip to steps two and three, sprinkle with sliced almonds and serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. If you want to make your own crepes, the recipe follows. Makes eight filled crepes.
Homemade Nutella ingredients:
- 1⁄2 cup blanched hazelnuts
- 1⁄2 cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons Dutch-process cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoons nonfat dry milk powder, such as Carnation
- 1 teaspoons vegetable oil
For the finished crepes:
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 8 cooked crêpes
- 4 bananas, halved crosswise
Instructions for Nutella: In a 10-inch skillet, heat the hazelnuts with ¼ cup of the sugar over medium-high, and cook, stirring, until the sugar melts and coats the nuts, about eight minutes. Pour the nuts onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and let cool. Transfer the nuts to a blender and add the remaining sugar, the cocoa powder, milk powder, and oil. Blend until a coarse paste forms, scraping down the sides as needed (you should have ¾ cup).
Instructions for the finished crepes: Heat a 12-inch nonstick crêpe pan or skillet over medium-high. Add ¼ tablespoon of the butter and swirl the pan to coat the entire surface. Add one crêpe to the pan and quickly spread 3 tablespoons of the hazelnut paste over one half of the crepe. Fold the crepe in half to cover the filling and lets cook until golden, 1 minute.
Thinly slice one half of a banana into coins and arrange the coins in the middle third of the crêpe. Lift both folded edges of the crêpe and fold them over the bananas, forming a cone. Serve immediately, and then repeat with the remaining crepes, hazelnut paste, and bananas to make 7 more crêpes.
Crêpes
Master pastry chef Jacques Torres gave us his recipe for basic crêpes, which get a rich, nutty flavor from brown butter in the batter. The recipe works equally well for sweet or savory preparations; try filling them with ham, egg, and cheese or bananas and homemade Nutella. Makes eight crepes. Time: 30 minutes.
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 1⁄2 cups water
- 2 1⁄4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1⁄2 cup skim milk
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1 1⁄2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 1⁄2 teaspoons sugar
- Vegetable oil, for greasing
Instructions: In a small skillet, heat the butter over medium-high until it smells nutty and turns golden in color, about four minutes. Pour the butter into a blender along with the water, flour, milk, egg yolks, salt, and sugar, and blend until smooth. Pour the batter into a bowl (you should have four cups).
Heat a 12-inch nonstick crêpe pan or skillet over medium-high heat and using a crumpled paper towel, grease the pan lightly with oil. Using a ladle, pour ½ cup of the batter in the center of the pan, quickly swirling to pan to coat the entire surface with batter, and cook, without touching, for 2 minutes.
Using an offset spatula, carefully flip the crêpe and cook one minute more. Transfer the crêpe to a plate and repeat making crêpes with the remaining batter until you have eight crêpes total.
Bananas Foster/Bananas flambé
Another favorite easy and fun to make for a special dessert like Valentine’s Day. Created in 1951 at the legendary Brennan’s restaurant in New Orleans to honor Richard Foster, a friend of the restaurant and local businessman, this boozy, buttery concoction of caramelized bananas flambeed in rum sauce became a dining-out classic. Serves four.
Ingredients:
- 1 1⁄2 cups light brown sugar
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1⁄2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 stick cinnamon, broken in half
- 6 underripe bananas, halved lengthwise, and then halved crosswise
- 3⁄4 cup dark rum
- Vanilla ice cream, for serving
Instructions: Heat sugar, butter, salt and cinnamon in a 12-inch skillet over medium-low heat, and cook, stirring, until sugar dissolves in butter. Add bananas, and cook, stirring gently, until soft, about 10 minutes. Add rum, and using a match or lighter, ignite to flambé, and cook until flame dies out. The alcohol burns off, but the drama remains! To serve, spoon bananas and sauce over scoops of vanilla ice cream in bowls.
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