Banana Peels – The Secret Ingredient You Never Knew You Were Throwing Away

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You’re wasting a delicious and healthy food every time you peel a banana and toss away the skin. Recent research has demonstrated that banana peels may be used to make baked goods that are on par with or even superior to those made with wheat flour, provided the peels are first blanched, dried, and milled into a flour.

Taste tests showed that customers were equally as satisfied with the tastes of their experimental items as they would have been with peel-free sugar cookies. You will also get an abundant supply of minerals and nutrients that assist prevent cancer. Sugar cookies used in the research had much more fiber, as well as potassium, and antioxidant chemicals because to the addition of banana peels.Too much banana peel flour, maybe due to the additional fiber, caused the cookies to turn out dark and hard. However, the cookies achieved a significantly more pleasing balance in texture when baked with flour containing 7.5% banana peel.

The products also maintained well for three months while stored at room temperature, which was a nice addition. The findings of the research only investigated the effects of adding banana peels to baked cookies, but they do imply that banana peel flour might be used in other baked goods such as breads, cakes, and pasta. For instance, research conducted on banana peel cake last year discovered that the yellow skin of the fruit adds a natural food color to the baked dish and a nutritious boost.

Similarly, a 2016 research indicated that replacing as little as 10% of wheat flour with banana peel flour may improve the protein, carbohydrate, and fat content of baked bread. The fruit’s skin is edible and provides a number of health benefits in addition to reducing waste. Banana peels contain many beneficial nutrients but are often discarded even though they account for around 40% of a banana’s total weight. Raw banana peels serve little use, that much is certain. However, they may be rather tasty if cooked properly. Due to their antioxidant and antibacterial characteristics, peels may even help items keep for longer.

Susan Kowal
Susan Kowal is a serial entrepreneur, angel investor/advisor, and health enthusiast.