This morning we were at the local PCYC markets and I was filled with excitement to see a big pile of green cooking bananas at one of the stalls. As I was filling bag after bag with green banana's, I was getting some pretty strange looks and overheard a few people saying 'they're very green, they'll never ripen'. Cooking banana's aren't something you regularly find in your local supermarket and are quite often confused for unripe cavendish banana's. Whilst they look very similar, they're completely different. This very versatile fruit can be made into all sorts of savoury dishes and tastes a lot like potato but shouldn't be eaten raw. They can be sliced and put into stews, used as mashed potato, made into crackers, made into a gluten and grain free flour and loads more. The other wonderful thing about cooking banana's is that they're grainfree, low GI and can be used in a nightshade free, autoimmune paleo or regular paleo diet.
This is my favourite cracker/chip recipe. The first time I made these, I was blown away by the flavour. Like most people, I was expecting a banana and coconut flavoured cracker but I was completely wrong. This crackers taste just like a crispy potato chip and never last long in our house. Unfortunately these crackers won't work with regular banana's but be sure to keep an eye out for some cooking banana's next time you're at the markets. This recipe was inspired by this recipe.
This is my favourite cracker/chip recipe. The first time I made these, I was blown away by the flavour. Like most people, I was expecting a banana and coconut flavoured cracker but I was completely wrong. This crackers taste just like a crispy potato chip and never last long in our house. Unfortunately these crackers won't work with regular banana's but be sure to keep an eye out for some cooking banana's next time you're at the markets. This recipe was inspired by this recipe.
Crispy Green Banana (cooking banana) crackers
3 large green cooking banana's (approx 2 cups pureed)
1/3 cup coconut oil
1-2 teaspoons of herbamare salt
Fill a sink with hot water and place unpeeled banana's in it to soak for about 5 minutes. This will help with peeling but you may still need to use a knife to peel back the skin. Cut banana's into chunks and place them in a food processor or thermomix and blend until quite smooth (like hummus). I find this takes about 1-2 minutes in the thermomix or a high speed blender but may take up to 5 minutes in a regular blender. Add coconut oil and a few pinches of herbamare and continue to blend until well combined. Line a large tray with baking paper and preheat the oven to 180 Degrees Celsius. Spoon mixture into the middle of a baking tray and carefully spread the mixture evenly using a knife or spatula until it covers the whole tray. Place in the oven and cook for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and using a knife or pizza cutter,make cuts in dough. Return to oven and cook for a further 60 minutes. At this stage, your crackers may be crispy and ready but I often find that I need to flip mine over and cook for another 10 minutes.
3 large green cooking banana's (approx 2 cups pureed)
1/3 cup coconut oil
1-2 teaspoons of herbamare salt
Fill a sink with hot water and place unpeeled banana's in it to soak for about 5 minutes. This will help with peeling but you may still need to use a knife to peel back the skin. Cut banana's into chunks and place them in a food processor or thermomix and blend until quite smooth (like hummus). I find this takes about 1-2 minutes in the thermomix or a high speed blender but may take up to 5 minutes in a regular blender. Add coconut oil and a few pinches of herbamare and continue to blend until well combined. Line a large tray with baking paper and preheat the oven to 180 Degrees Celsius. Spoon mixture into the middle of a baking tray and carefully spread the mixture evenly using a knife or spatula until it covers the whole tray. Place in the oven and cook for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and using a knife or pizza cutter,make cuts in dough. Return to oven and cook for a further 60 minutes. At this stage, your crackers may be crispy and ready but I often find that I need to flip mine over and cook for another 10 minutes.