Banana | Z's Cup of Tea

Who’s looking forward to seeing Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland? I am! I’ve been looking forward to seeing it is since last year when the first promotional photos were released. Now, it’s only a matter of two days!

These instant “ice creams” are fruit-based and are dairy-free, the only ingredients are fruits, frozen or fresh or a combination thereof. The key ingredient is frozen banana. The banana must be frozen to act as a base and is what gives the “ice cream” its thick, smooth consistency, otherwise it will just be a smoothie. Whether the other fruit is fresh or frozen doesn’t matter. This is best done with a hand blender in a container. Once made, it’s best that this is eaten immediately! It shouldn’t be stored in the freezer for a prolonged period of time (unless under controlled temperatures), or for at least a very short duration (about 10-15 minutes); otherwise it hardens like regular melted ice cream hardens when refrozen. The sweetness of the “ice cream” is determined by how sweet the fruit is that’s used. You can use just fruit (no additional liquid), or use a small amount of almond, soy, or rice milk, or water. The instant “ice creams” pictured were made with only fruit, without any additional liquid.

Aside from these combinations, you may choose any fruit to go with the frozen banana. Use as much fruit as you like with the frozen banana. For the Red Queen instant “ice cream”, use frozen banana and strawberries; for “Absolutely Alice”, frozen banana and blueberries. A White Queen version could also be made by using just frozen banana.

Serves 1 to 2

Ingredients:

Frozen banana chunks (1 banana)
Fresh or frozen strawberries, in chunks or slices or fresh or frozen blueberries
Almond, soy, or rice milk, or water (optional)

Method:

Put the frozen banana and berries in a container that is big and deep enough so that the hand blender doesn’t splatter. Add a small amount, about 1/4 to 1/2 cup depending on amount of fruit, of almond, soy, rice milk, or water, if using. The milk or water should be below the fruit level, otherwise it will just be a milkshake.
Carefully blend the fruit with the hand blender until the banana chunks begin to break down and become a smooth, thick consistency. Blend until all the ingredients have turned into this consistency and there aren’t any lumps or chunks of fruit. It will be very thick.
Unplug hand blender and serve in bowls or small glasses. Eat immediately. Enjoy!

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Banana Pancakes

These pancakes are really simple and easy to make, requiring only fresh, ripe bananas and eggs. Making these pancakes for the first time may not be perfect: as the batter doesn’t really have anything to bind to, like pancakes that use a kind of flour, sometimes it can be a bit messy but either way they taste delicious all the time. Due to this sometimes messy nature, it did take more than one try to get the pancakes perfect for the photo shoot (above). Regarding amount, a general rule of thumb is to use half the amount of eggs as bananas, i.e. 12 bananas and 6 eggs, or 9 bananas and 5 eggs. For servings, generally a batter made of 4 bananas and 2 eggs will make 8 to 16 pancakes, depending on size of pancakes, serving at least 4 people (4 pancakes per person and also depending on appetite). In addition to being a good breakfast food, these pancakes also make a great snack hot or cold!

Ingredients

2 ripe bananas
1 egg
Virgin or extra virgin coconut oil, for frying

Method

Heat pan over medium heat, add coconut oil (about 1 or 2 tablespoons). Peel and mash bananas by hand with a fork. Transfer to a bowl and mix in eggs, also by hand.
When you can smell the coconut oil, test the heat by adding a drip of batter or water in the pan. If it sizzles, add a small amount of batter for each pancake. (You may add the batter before this stage, however it’s better to cook the pancakes in this way when the pan is this hot.) Make sure the edges of the pancake are firm before attempting to flip, and carefully slide the flipper underneath and flip. Pancake colour will gradually golden as the pan becomes hotter, so the first pancakes may be lighter in colour than later ones. This is fine. As you continue to cook the pancakes, you may turn down the heat a little. Be sure to add more coconut oil if necessary, a little at a time; if there is excess grease, pat the pancakes with paper towel, or rest on a plate with paper towel and flip on to either side accordingly.
Once all the pancakes are done, turn off heat and remove pan from element. Serve and enjoy!

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