Belated...... Thanks Bananas it's Friday

Fridays are my normal day for blogging about my Banana project, to make as many recipes using my favourite fruit as I possibly can.  However I had my ATOS medical yesterday, so decided it would be best to delay it.    Talking about my mental health problems and my IBS with a total stranger always leaves me feeling washed out afterwards.  

I admit my thought process is well..... unique.  I was starting to think I was running out of recipes using my beloved banana.  I didn't want to do the normal boring ones like smoothies......

That's when I had my Eureka moment.  If you can have banana's in a cold drink why not a hot one?

Discovered am not the only one to have the same idea.  Found a great recipe for Banana Hot Chocolate, which I adjusted to make dairy free.  Just swap the milk for you favourite dairy free milk substitute.   I halved the recipe to make 1 large mug of hot chocolate.  

I loved the taste of the banana in the hot chocolate, but it was a bit too thick for me.  I might have added too much mashed banana.  There's nothing more comforting than a warm milky drink on a cold day. 

There are few ways you can make the recipe.  

1. Add all the ingredients into a saucepan and gently heat.  Once warm enough to drink, blitz with a hand blender and pour into your mug.

2. Add all the ingredients into a jug and blend.  Pour into a saucepan and warm over a gentle heat till warm enough to drink.

3. Add all the ingredients into a bowl and blitz with a hand blender.  Then place over a saucepan of simmering water.

4. Add all the ingredients into a jug, heat in the microwave.  Then blitz with a hand blender and pour into a mug.

I've tried all of the above except the last one.  It's a hard one to test when you don't actually own a microwave.  

Ignore celebrity chef's, there is more than one way to make a recipe.  There's nothing wrong with trying different methods till you find the one that's easiest for you.

I prefer blending a cold milk mix before heating, as it's a lot safer.  I have a bad habit of burning myself.  Another thing to look out for is overheating the mix, the dairy free milk and banana could curdle.  Leaving a horrible texture in the mouth.  My solution is to heat in a bowl over a saucepan.  

Variations on a theme

- Instead of cocoa powder add coffee granules to make a banana latte instead

- Or simply add a little ground cinnamon to milky banana drink before heating.  

My personal favourite is the simple banana and cinnamon hot milk, as you get more of the banana taste mmmm

I really need to go and made myself one right now xxxx