Ok so, I have long said that bananas are one of my guilty pleasures. Hear me out – I’m not one of those people who villainize the sugar content of fruit, I promise! Lemme break it down. Around 100 billion bananas are eaten each year, making them a gigantic socio-political and economic force. And while there are over 1000 different varieties grown, how many varieties do you see in your local grocery store? I mean, when you think about how many types of apples there are, it's kind of crazy that the same variety isn’t an option in the case of the banana. Depending on where you live, you likely only have one option - the Cavendish banana. It’s big, it's bright yellow, and the skin is… thicc. The bananas that grow here in Hawaii are different. They’re much smaller and the skin is more delicate, due to the fact that they haven’t been bred for maximum transportability. The common varieties on Oahu are the manzana banana (apple banana) and the ice cream banana (it's really called that!) and they both smash on the Cavendish in terms of… well, everything – texture, flavor, LIFE! I became obsessed with them while we were here last year and will miss them greatly when we leave. But I digress…

After the banana was domesticated some 7,000 years ago in Asia, it has become the fourth most important crop in developing countries. Basically, large companies like the one we now know as Chiquita, started buying up land for banana plantations as early as the 1870’s. They cleared forests all across India, Costa Rica, Colombia and the Philippines, monocropping with no regard for biodiversity or the fair treatment of laborers. When laborers in Colombia went on strike in 1928 for better working conditions, the American government conspired with Chiquita to pressure the Colombian government to resolve the issue – god forbid a labor strike disrupt banana profitability! What resulted was The Banana Massacre – the Colombian army killing over 1,000 of its own people; farm workers and civilians. The term“banana republic” is not just a clothing store your mom used to shop at – it describes a politically and economically unstable country with an economy dependent upon the export of natural resources. When a country’s welfare hangs on the exports of a singular natiural resource; coffee, sugar, chocolate, or bananas for example, the powers buying those exports have an undue level of influence on what goes on in that country. Capitalism rules supreme, and much like we see in our own American economy, the interests of big business far outweigh what is good for people or the earth itself.

So where does that leave us?

Like it or not we exist in a capitalist regime, and the banana has become a staple in many people's diets. There is no way for us to go through life without participating in at least one supply chain that is harmful to someone somewhere. We can’t all peace out, go off-the-grid and grow our own food. The best we can do is be conscious about where we are putting our energy. In a capitalist society, the biggest way we speak, the biggest way we direct our energy, is through our dollar. The banana itself is not the problem, the unwillingness to look at our participation in these systems is. One of the things I’ve been lucky enough to experience as a chef, is the privilege to spend money in ways that support the local economy. I know this is not a reality for everyone; exploitative systems cost less for the consumer. And I do not take for granted my ability to spend $14 on a dozen eggs to support my neighboring farmer rather than $9 on a dozen eggs from big Ag chickens that suffered their whole lives. My money is saying, I believe in how you’re doing things. I am grateful that I have the agency to make this choice.

Perfection doesn’t exist, but we can walk the path. We can attempt to make choices that we are fully aware of and can stand behind. One of the things I love about Ayurveda is that it acknowledges that we are all on our own journey without judgement. Ayurveda gives you the tools to notice when you’re off-course, and return to the path of connection, spirituality and health. One of the ways we practice is by being in alignment with our actions.

That being said, I will leave you a recipe for banana buckwheat muffins. I made these with ice cream bananas grown here on Oahu, but if you’re not lucky enough to be living in a local-banana type climate, maybe you can buy them fair-trade at least ;)

3/4 C all-purpose flour

½ C buckwheat flour

¼ C almond flour

1¼ t baking soda

1 t kosher salt

1 C coconut sugar

⅓ C plain whole-milk Greek yogurt

4 T evoo

2 ea large eggs

1 t vanilla x

½ t cinnamon

4 ea large ripe bananas (or 6 if you're using ice cream bananas which tend to be small guys)

½ C chopped activated pecans - yee!

Combine salt, sugar, bananas, yogurt, evoo, eggs – blend with an immersion blender

In a separate bowl, whisk your dry ingredients

Combine, folding wets and dries together gently with a spatula.

You can bake as muffins like I did or pour into a loaf pan lined with parchment. I did mine in a silicone muffin tray which I love because they pop right out once they've cooled.

If you're gonna do a muffin tray, pro-tip is to use a cookie scooper to cleanly and uniformly transfer the batter to the muffin tin.

I also dropped a slice of a banana to decorate the tops before I baked :) enjoy!