These Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookies are Bananas (Literally)!
This classic fruit is well known across the world. Yellow, tasty, a bit mushy but the perfect fruit for ice cream, smoothies, shakes, pudding, pie, breakfast cereal, and so much more, bananas are one of life’s best treats.
And we here at Baked Smart Cookie are proud to include this amazing fruit as a key ingredient in our one-of-a-kind cookie. Full of essential nutrients and plenty of health benefits, bananas truly are a fruit like no other.
Let’s peel back the truth on bananas a bit.
A Bite of Banana History
Believed to be the world’s first fruit at around 10,000 years old, bananas originated in the region around the Malay Peninsula, Indonesia, the Philippines, and New Guinea. The fruit would eventually find itself traveling across the globe, landing in India, African, and Polynesia.
Of course, at that time, bananas were hardly what they are now. In those days, the fruit had many large seeds and only a bit of pulp. Between the 5th and 15th centuries, traders traveling across Asia and the Middle East began to share the fruit with others as they traveled west, eventually bringing bananas to Africa.
Over time, the fruit found its way to the New World when explorers arrived in the Caribbeans. However, the banana has been seen as exotic for most of its history, only becoming widely popular until the 20th century.
Bananas Taste Like…
Like many other fruits, the taste of a banana can change as it ripens. Unripe bananas (those with green peels) generally have a bland favor that can have a hint of grassiness to them. As a banana begins to ripen, its flavor profile begins to develop, growing in sweetness and flavor.
Ripened bananas can taste like a mix of melon and pineapple (minus the tartness), and as they grow yellow, they begin to taste sweeter because of higher sugar concentrations. In their final stage, as bananas begin to brown, they can begin to taste like a mix of vanilla and honey.
What Exactly is Under That Banana Peel?
Not only are bananas absolutely delicious, but they are also an excellent source of a variety of vitamins, minerals, and other essential nutrients. The nutritional facts of one medium-sized banana include:
- 89 calories
- 1.1 grams of protein
- 22.8 carbs
- 12.2 grams of sugar
- 2.6 grams of fiber
- 0.3 grams of fat
Alongside being great sources of fiber and healthy carbs, bananas are also a good source of:
- Potassium
- Vitamin B6
- Vitamin C
A Few Beautiful Banana Benefits
If you’re still looking for a reason to add bananas to your diet, then consider the following health benefits these amazing fruits offer:
- Healthy Heart - bananas are high in potassium, which makes them wonderful for heart health and normalizing blood pressure. Additionally, the antioxidant flavonoids found in bananas are believed to reduce the risk of heart disease.
- A Happy Tummy - green bananas contain plenty of resistant starch and pectin, which are vital sources of fiber and prebiotic nutrients that help support healthy gut bacteria.
- Breathe Easy - some studies have shown that there may be benefits for children with asthma. While more research needs to be conducted, initial studies suggest that it may prevent wheezing.
- The Miracle of Potassium - bananas are chock full of potassium, which is a critical vitamin that helps to move waste products in and out of cells. Potassium can even help reduce the effects of sodium on blood pressure and has been shown to lower the risk of developing kidney stones.
And these are only but a handful of benefits that bananas have been shown to provide.
Facts That Are Just Bananas
Are you ready for some banana facts? Sure you are:
- Bananas grow against gravity, giving it its world-famous curve.
- Bananas are made of 75% water.
- Bananas are the oldest fruit in the world!
- Bananas are the best fruit for vitamin B6, which helps with brain health.
- There are more than 1,000 varieties of bananas grown across 150 countries.
- India and China produce nearly 40 million tons of bananas per year.
- Bananas are actually considered to be berries!
- The inside of a banana peel can help with relieving itching and inflammation.
- Bananas and humans have about 60% genetic similarity.
Flavorful Bananas Baked Into Every Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookie
Did you know that our amazing cookies are vegan, non-GMO, peanut-free, and soy-free? In fact, they’re also baked with servings of four different vegetables and fruits, including bananas! If you’re looking for a delicious (and healthy) snack that is great for those little ones who just don’t like to eat their fruits or veggies, then search no further. Baked Smart Cookie is the perfect cookie for your whole family.
