Friends from World Over,
What??? Banana peel? You heard it right my friends. Banana peel is a good thing to eat! Peels often contain a lot of nutrients and fiber, and can often be eaten! So, while the peel of a durian may be regretfully relegated to the compost pile, you can (and should!) eat peels of bananas, potatoes, apples, kiwis, etc. In fact, often the parts closest to the peel contain the highest nutrients, e.g. the layers of onion closest to the peel contain the highest amount of prebiotic fibre – excellent for your gut health! So when using fruit and veggies, either include the peel, or cut as closely as you can to the peel!
Big But: as long as they are organic or low in pesticides!
Quick note: I understand that it is difficult and expensive to buy organic all the time. So what I do is… give it my best shot based on information that I have! “Best effort basis!” For a quick guide on what foods you must absolutely buy organic and which ones are naturally not grown with a lot of pesticides, check out the Environmental Working Group’s Clean 15 and Dirty Dozen. This list is updated annually.
Okay, back to banana peels! You can do your own research on the internet about this, but here’s just one tidbit:
“The flesh is high in vitamins B-6 and B-12, magnesium and potassium, but also contains some protein and fiber. In general, the peels of fruits contain additional nutrients and fiber that complement the inside flesh. The peels of apples, oranges and kiwis are good examples and more commonly eaten in Western countries, although banana peels seem to be better appreciated in India and Southeast Asia.”
Source: Livestrong Website
So, what are you waiting for? Try this super simple Baked Sweet Potato and Squash recipe with banana peel. So start off, cut the peel really small, so that you give yourself some time to get used to the texture and taste.
Ingredients
- 1 medium leek, chopped up (you can probably use more than you think!)
- 1 medium sweet potato, chopped small
- 1 medium butternut squash (or any squash that cooks similarly), chopped in the same size as the sweet potato
- The peel of 1 banana, chopped small
- A drizzle of olive oil (use a high quality one)
- Salt and rosemary, for taste
Method
- Put all chopped veggies in a baking tray
- Heat oven to 200 degree Celcius
- Drizzle some olive oil over all of them, and toss!
- Sprinkle some salt and rosemary on top
- Bake for approximately 20 minutes!
- You done!!!
Open up your taste buds, my loves!
Peace,
Daisy
