Why Overripe Bananas Make The Best Milkshakes

Milkshakes never go out of style. These sweet, frozen drinks which came into fashion in the late 1800s are the perfect compliment to a cheeseburger and fries or as a treat on a hot summer's day. While Oreo, vanilla, and chocolate milkshakes are some of our favorite flavors, milkshakes offer plenty of options, including several of the fruity variety. And while a strawberry milkshake may be the first fruit you think of, a creamy, thick banana milkshake can take a banana-lover to culinary nirvana. 

Make a plain and simple version of this frosty beverage or, if you are feeling a little adventurous and want to split from the traditional banana shake, you can always up the flavor and try a spiced banana caramel milkshake. While banana shakes are beloved in Arkansas and Delaware, they aren't for everyone. If we are taking count, there really aren't many lovers of this fruity flavor of milkshake. In fact, Tastewise says the demand for banana milkshakes took a nosedive, declining 166.43%, between the years of 2022 and 2023.

As Taylor Swift says, haters gonna hate, but if you are a banana fan, you can shake, shake your way to a better milkshake simply by using overripe fruit. 

If you want an awesome banana milkshake, you not only want to use an overripe banana, but one that is frozen. Overripe bananas are especially sweet, but if your fruit doesn't even have a glimmer of brown to it, don't worry. For a perfect banana shake, turn on your oven and you are in business. The oven, which should be set to 300 degrees Fahrenheit, will soften up your yellow fruit and make it even sweeter in as little as 15 minutes. You can then take these overly ripened bananas that are still in their peels and place them in the freezer. Once they're like an ice cube, they are ready to use. 

Why freeze these bananas? Because it will help to create that thickness to the shake we all know and love sans the ice cream. That's right, when you use frozen bananas, you don't need any ice cream because the fruit will create the thick frozen creaminess with a little help from the milk or milk substitute your choice, a little sweetener like honey, some ice, and a bit of vanilla extract if you so desire.  Bon appétit.