Cheap Eats: Banana "Frozen Yogurt"

The Topic: Quite possibly the cheapest, easiest dessert out there by VN Editorial Assistant Anna Peraino

The Dish: Summer is right around the corner, and that means many things: sun, sand, cookouts, watermelon-eating contests, sweating your face off walking to the mailbox, and of course, ice cream. One of the season's most beloved treats can also take a hefty crack at your wallet, with a teeny weeny carton of Coconut Bliss putting you back about $5. Seriously, I can take one of those down in 4.28 minutes. It's science. So how can a savvy vegan enjoy a cold, delicious ice-creamy treat this summer? I have one word for you: bananas. B-A-N-A-N-A-S.

Now that I've officially annoyed you by getting a Gwen Stefani song stuck in your head, let me get back into your good graces by telling you about this wonderful dessert. Did you know that by blending frozen bananas at a high speed you can make a soft, dreamy frozen yogurt-like dessert? No joke! All you need for this recipe is bananas, a food processor, and some fun mix-ins if you feel so inclined (I listed some of my favorites below). Plus, with bananas being one of the cheapest fruits out there (hello, one dime per fruit!), this dessert will keep that wallet of yours in very good shape. Not to mention it's swimsuit-friendly, since you're skipping out on all the fat and sugar found in traditional (albeit supremely delicious) ice cream.

Banana "Frozen Yogurt"

Serves 2 (or 1, if you're me)

What You Need:
2 or 3 bananas

What You Do:

1. Freeze bananas.
2. In a food processor, throw in frozen bananas and process for about 5 minutes, stopping periodically to scrape sides down. Once your bananas have a fluffy, frozen yogurt-like consistency, you're done!
3. Optional: While your bananas are transforming, throw in some peanut butter, chopped walnuts, cacao nibs, or rum. Or all of them. Or something else. Anything goes!
4. Enjoy your delicious, cheap, and healthy dessert! (Well, healthy unless you added all the mix-ins.)

The Final Word: Summer is a time for splashing and sunning, not for worrying about your bank account. Whip up this frozen treat next time you're jonesing for a dish of something cold and sugary but don't have the cash for the real dairy-free deal (which, if you're a normal person, is every day). Enjoy!

Cutting Corners: Simple Pancakes

The Topic: Sneaky Substitutions

The Dish: Right after I used up all of my corn meal and it seemed like hot water cornbread would have to take a vacation (since I had sworn off the store for as long as possible), I was left with nothing to eat on a leisurely Saturday morning. Well, not nothing. There was an old box of matzoh ball soup, a pound of dried beans, some quinoa, and tomato paste. Certainly not breakfast foods. And then—kablam! I remembered the secret stash of expired pancake mix.

I came into quite a bit of slightly out-of-date buckwheat pancake mixes last December and stuck them in a sad cabinet to be forgotten—until now, that is. I started getting super pumped that I could eat a proper weekend breakfast, when I realized I had no almond milk, and my roommate's applesauce I thought I'd use for egg replacer had a nice layer of mold growing on it. Did I give up? Um, no. There were pancakes at stake.

I learned something miraculous that morning: Water works just fine instead of non-dairy milk. I was really skeptical, but substituting water instead of throwing down $3 took care of that hurdle, and I miraculously discovered a canister of ground flax hidden in the back of the fridge and realized I could whip up an "egg" with that. In no time, my buckwheat flapjacks were hot off the skillet, and I was chowing down. I was fortunate to have just a teeny bit of maple syrup left from my cornbread streak!

I know having the ground flax was a lucky shot though, so I did what I do when I have a problem to solve: I ran it by Mom. In case you're ever out of the obvious choices and need to whip up a baking binder, stat, she passed along her favorite, easy, egg-replacer recipe to share with you. Thanks, Mom!

Mom's Radical Egg Replacer

Replaces 1 egg

What You Need:
1-1/2 teaspoons oil
2 tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons flour

What You Do:
In a small bowl, add oil and water and whisk thoroughly. Sift in baking powder and flour, and whisk for 2 minutes, until light and frothy.

The Final Word: The next time you're dying to have a dish but are missing a few of the ingredients, just try substituting what you have on hand, and see what happens! Sure, it could be a total mess (in which case, just cover it in ketchup and have at it), but you could also pick up some savvy new cooking skills of your own. You better believe that the rest of the pancake mix isn't going to last long at my apartment. Do you have a favorite sneaky substitution? Don't keep it a secret any longer!