When I decided that I wanted to highlight some of my favorite power foods I really had to start thinking and making a list as there’s so many of them. After consideration I figured where better to start than with a fruit that promotes strength and well-being, the banana! So here you go, this article is dedicated to one of my favorite fruits, bananas!
Go ahead punch in the numbers to your food calorie calculator and it will tell you that the average size banana peeled weighs in at around 170 calories. But that’s not the most exciting thing about the banana. These guys are a HEART HEALTHY food. Think about it, what’s one of the first solid foods a mother will offer her baby? If you were on a game show and you said pureed bananas you’d have gotten the top answer. They are fat, cholesterol AND sodium free to boot! A HIGH ENERGY vitamin packed food source containing 3 natural sugars and are also high in Vitamin C.
Here’s why I like them though. Bananas are rich in potassium, which is a mineral that promotes the building blocks of strong muscles. Speaking of potassium here’s a neat little trick. Have you every had an eye that is twitching involuntarily? Usually this happens because of a lack of potassium. When this happens grab a banana for a snack. That should get your body back on track and rid you of that annoying twitch. There’s also study’s out claiming that bananas may decrease the chance of stroke. Now if a bananas isn’t a power food than I don’t know what is!
Bananas are incredible. I love to put them on the top of my cereal in the morning. I absolutely LOVE banana splits, and they come in a natural packaging allowing you to throw them in your pocket and take them with you wherever you go. A while back I was watching one of those cooking shows that feature chefs dueling it out with an “uncommon” common ingredient and decided to start cooking more with bananas. I have a bunch of great banana recipes now in my cookbook but a favorite of mine isn’t cooked and tastes delicious. It’s the “Banana Coffee Smoothie” and they are fantastic in the morning as a pick me up before I go to work.
That’s not all you can do in the kitchen with a banana though. My wife makes a variety of frozen yogurts and her mango banana flavor is to die for. From banana pudding to the seemingly endless variations of banana bread there are so many ways sot enjoy the calories in a banana. Recently I started getting into South American cooking. They use so many different tropical ingredients found throughout South Americas different regions and sure enough the banana has found its way into South American cooking. Brazilian Brazed Chicken and Bananas take the cake though. This dish is an explosion of flavors that hits your pallet like a Mack truck.
Due to their unbelievable health benefits bananas are a fruit that should be in every household’s fruit basket. From awesome recipes to a quick and easy snack on the run, the calories in a banana will not only make you stronger they will lift you up and carry you through the rest of your day making them truly one of nature’s greatest power foods.
