To avoid discarding overripe bananas, mash and add lemon juice (mix well) and put into the freezer to use for making cakes or breads at a later date. The lemon juice will help them from turning dark. If you do not have lemon juice, any citric juice like orange juice will work to keep the color light. The bananas can then be thawed and baked the same manner that you would have used them prior to baking. It is handy if you feeze them in the quantity that your favorite recipe requires. Often banana breads and cakes call for buttermilk or lemon juice to activate the baking soda, and now you will already have it in the bananas and can skip adding it at the time of baking. If the recipe calls for buttermilk or sourmilk, you can use sweet milk (regular milk that you are using for drinking that has not been soured).

Creative Cooking
By
Lydia Critchley
For class information, click on the “Calendar” icon and contact me at creativecook@creativecookingbylydia.com for details.