What to Make With Overripe Bananas: 8 Recipes Beyond Banana Bread

Those brown-speckled bananas sitting in the fruit bowl may look past their best, but they are often at their most useful in the kitchen. As bananas ripen, starches break down into simpler sugars, making the fruit softer and sweeter. That is exactly what many recipes need. Instead of throwing them away or automatically making another loaf of banana bread, use them in pancakes, frozen desserts, smoothies, muffins and even breakfast treats. Overripe bananas can also be frozen for later use, making them one of the easiest foods to rescue from the edge of the bin.