Saturday, April 15, 2017

Go Bananas! Reviewing Banana Treats & Toys for Banana Day

Illustration of bananas on a Banana tree
Source: Pixabay
Banana Day is held annually on the third Wednesday of April.  And August 27 is Banana Lovers Day. 

Many colleges and universities celebrate 'Banana Day' with a variety of events, including games, trivia, a bunch of banana concoctions to eat and drink, and students dressing up as a banana or a gorilla.

West Chester University in Pennsylvania began an annual BANANA DAY in 1996.  That year 3,000 bananas were given to people on campus and over 50 hours of service contributed to the community. Since then it has become a morale and school pride booster for everyone. 





Keep Calm and Have a Banana Fine Art Print
Fine Art Print Available on Etsy


Banana Facts


Bananas can give an instant and sustained boost of energy to your body.   It is the reason it  has become the number one fruit for today's leading athletes.  Three small bananas can provide enough energy for a strenuous 90-minute workout.  It's also good for many health reasons, making it the perfect staple in our daily diets.

There are almost 1000 varieties of bananas in the world, with the most well known one being the Cavendish banana, which is the one grown for export.  Bananas are grown in some 150 countries and produce about 105 million tons of fruit every year.  Did you know that bananas are botanically a berry?

Banana Costume


Handmade Banana Costume
Banana Costume by The Costume Cafe

If you want to dress up as a banana for National Banana Day,  Sara Carter makes adorable costumes in many styles and sizes.  Here's her banana costume for kids.


Sara, a midwestern girl now living in Austin, Texas, loves to create unique costumes for kids that fit well and allow them to move freely.  She thinks most costumes should be able to come on and off easily and be layered over street clothes.  Her specialty is costumes that look good enough to eat... 

Sara's food-related costumes from infant size to adult can be found in her Etsy Shop she calls The Costume Cafe.

Banana Play Food


Besides being a delicious fruit to eat, bananas can also be fun as a plush toy.



Handmade Plush Bananas
Kawaii Plush Bananas on Etsy



Monkeys Love Banana Day


Handmade plush monkeys
Cute Crochet Monkey

When you think of bananas, one's thoughts naturally turn to monkeys who love bananas.  My crochet monkey would love to eat a banana if he were real.  Instead, he'd enjoy joining a child playing with soft toy bananas at a playtime tea party.


Mark the monkey measures 12 inches tall (8 inches tall in a sitting position) and about 3 inches across. His tail is 6 inches long. He is crocheted with tan and a variegated yarn called Artist Print in shades of brown, green, purple, blue and burgundy.  Monkey is available in my Etsy Shop Coastal Crochet Crafts.


Other Banana Days


April brings us National Banana Day, but that's not the only day we celebrate the banana fruit.

  • February 23 is National  Banana Bread Day.  With this delicious homemade banana bread recipe from Sylvestermouse, you don't have to wait until February every year to enjoy this tasty banana treat.
  • And Mary Beth of MBGPhoto here on Review This shares a different banana bread recipe using sour cream and frozen bananas.
  • Olivia Morris tells us all about National Banana Day in her article here on Review This
  • March 2 is National Banana Cream Pie Day
  • And.... August 27 is National Banana Lovers Day

So be sure and enjoy bananas in ALL its forms on these special days.... and every day!










Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”


14 comments:

  1. What a great thing to celebrate! I love bananas. They are, by far, my favorite fruit. Banana pudding is my all time favorite dessert and banana bread is my favorite breakfast (thank you for including my recipe.) That banana costume is beyond adorable and I love the idea of crocheted play food. So many cute ideas! Thank you for sharing them with us. Oh, and your fabulous gorilla is the perfect match for a banana.

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  2. What a great holiday. I start my mornings with a banana for breakfast almost daily. I love my bananas they are so good for my leg cramps. This is so much fun, learning about how others celebrate the Great Banana. Love the little banana costume, so cute, and what can I say about the little gorilla? All of these ideas are wonderful and I so enjoyed reading this. Thank you for putting a smile on my face early today.

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  3. What a cute idea for a post. My favorite banana product is Doles chocolate coveted banana slices. Only 25 calories a slice and they ate wonderful

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  4. What a cute idea for a post. My favorite banana product is Doles chocolate coveted banana slices. Only 25 calories a slice and they ate wonderful

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  5. I can see everyone loves bananas.... in one form or another. My brother's favorite dessert is a 'banana split'. LOL. Thanks for sharing your favorite ways and reasons for loving bananas, Olivia, Mouse and Mary Beth.

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  6. What a lot of wonderful ways to celebrate Banana Day! Your baby gorilla makes a wonderful mascot. Love the little banana costume, the toy banana that just begs to be peeled and un-peeled, and of course the recipes sound delicious (thank you for including mine!). Yes indeed, I would have no problem celebrating Banana Day at least once a week. My mouth is watering already!

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    Replies
    1. Since almost everyone likes bananas, it's an easy day to celebrate anytime. Thanks for visiting my collection of banana-related things, Susan. Your banana pudding recipe sounds delicious.

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  7. Well, I always say there is one perfect hour in a banana's life when I will eat it. Before that it is not ripe enough, and after that it is too ripe. Very picky about my bananas! Cute page!

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    Replies
    1. I'm very picky about bananas too, Heather. My preferred way is cut up in a bowl with milk & sugar.:)

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  8. Well, I'm always learning something new here. I never knew there was a Banana Day, what a wonderful fruit to celebrate. Now I need to find some banana bread. Thanks!!

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    1. Glad I could enlighten you, Sam. :) Banana NUT bread is my favorite -- has to have walnuts in it for me. :)

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  9. I just read a great article on how healthy bananas are. Unfortunately, the most healthy ones are the greenest ones, and I'm not quite ready to consume green bananas. I love your play food banana. It should help encourage the young ones to start eating bananas early.

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  10. The little crochet banana is way too cute!

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    Replies
    1. I thought that crocheted banana was adorable too, Tracey. Of course, being a crochet crafter myself, I'm drawn to cute and clever creations like this. :)

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