Can anyone help me with this question:::::

I fried my bananna this morning (in VERY LITTLE margarine) - because they are so sweet after being heated, I'm wondering if this changes the composition and calorie content of the bananna. Something that tastes THAT good cannot be "good for you" I'm just curious - b/c it's the kind of thing I can eat everyday, but I have a good suspision that by heating it, it must change something to make it not "as healthy" as just a raw bananna.

I use a miniscule amout of margarine - I'm talking the size of a baby pea here (I have non-stick pans)
fry it up until it's soft and sprinkle a little cinnamon and nutmeg on them.

What you put in the pan is what you get out of it. Add the banana calories and the margarine calories and you have the numbers you need (you might try using a nonstick spray even). It is amazing how preparation makes things soooo yummy...roasting bell peppers or salmon, heating or grilling fruit.

Well, you'd have to account for the calories in the margarine, obviously, but no, the basic calorie count of the banana doesn't change.

What is happening to make the banana taste so good is caramelization of the sugars in it. The sugars cook in the tiny amount of margarine, making them taste more buttery and bringing out more of the sweetness.

From a purely physics sense, its impossible to pull additional calories "out of the air" when cooking. Note that when boiling fruits or veggies, you lose a lot of vitamins and etc to the water you cook in, but there should be very little of this effect when cooking a banana and eating the entire contents of the pan, as you're not draining anything away...there will be some minor variations in vitamins due to cooking, however. Cooking the banana might make it taste sweeter, but there is no additional sugar/calories coming from anywhere, so the calories aren't changed. Some nutrients also can become less active/less beneficial when overheated, but that doesn't affect calorie content, just nutrient content, and its a relatively small effect.

I do this with pineapple all the time. Pineapple, once grilled, tastes like it has been sauteed in butter and brown sugar - but its just the natural sugars of the pineapple getting all toasty and happy. No additional calories.

Do you have a grill pan? You can get the same effect by grilling bananas, rather than frying, and eliminate the margarine completely. If you have a non-stick grill pan, you'll be eating the calories of the banana alone without adding any added fat, or if you're worried about sticking, using only a quick vegetable oil spray.

YES, God so loves me!! Man oh man, what a relief! Now I can continue to eat the fried banannas and will definately try the grilled pineapple!

I had to laugh when you said "natural sugars of the pineapple getting all toasty and happy"

Will also try the spray instead of the margarine!!!

YIPPEEE!!!!

But Mandelinn, when I break a cookie in two, are you telling me the calories don't all leak out?????

Well, if they did, they'd be floating in the air anyway...and I have to worry enough about the calories I eat...imagine if I had to worry about calories I BREATHED?

The horror.

Amanda