When 13 girls from all over the world are able to be united over seas and shores by a common love, it's gotta be one heck of a major bond. Call it Bond...Banana Bond. Presenting the Banana Bambinos, a bunch of banana lovin', pancake flipping and chocolate chomping friends! We're here to share positive quotes, recipes, and to spread a love for natural, nourishing and healthy food to promote general all-round deliciousness and wellbeing. Find this apPEELing? Hop onto the ride and hang on tight!
Our Motto:
Let's Get Naked!
Hang on...what do we mean by naked? It means we all believe in a diet as close to the Earth as possible--minimally processed, no nasties, stripped down to the most basic and fundamental core. We're all about getting down to the barest form, which is food you'll actually recognize on an ingredient list! Besides this being a sustainable, environmentally friendly way of eating, it's also the best and most nutritious way to nom! So, we challenge you...let's get naked, and in the process get on the way to a healthier, happier us!
Meet The Bambinos!
Sasha
Hello there fellow banana-lovin’ bebs. My name is Sasha (@thesashadiaries) and I am 18 and very bad at introductions. I am a Eur-indian (read: Half Indian, Half Eurasian. Yes, it’s a thing) I like to use brackets and to braiding hair is my number #02 hobby (after eating, of course). I am in the process of freeing myself from the sixth form and with enough faith, luck and pixie dust, I will be going to Uni for Medicine in October. I spend my holidays in Singapore with my fam and my coconut trees. I was brought up in a household that focused a lot on healthy eating, but I didn’t really like the idea of it when I was younger. However, being older now (and wiser?) (nah!) I find that healthy eating is not only something I really, truly enjoy, but it makes me happy. I like to say to people that I follow a plant based diet, and that basically means I like to eat things that came straight from a plant. No mystery chemicals, no processed food, just love. I try not to eat many animal products for ethical reasons, and personally I don’t crave them (I have coconuts!). My favourite food would have to be squash. All of them, even pumpkin (is pumpkin a squash?). Roasted, pureed, baked, seared, grilled, stewed, candied. Nom. In my nom-free time, photography is something I am also deeply passionate about. I am currently working on a personal project called #projectflowerchild which I flowerify some over my favourite gal pals. I also do quite a bit of film photography. I also love hand written letters, herbal teas, cats, yoga, Game of Thrones, the smell of new books, the smell of OLD books, knitted socks and robin-egg blue. So now you know a bit more about me. Hopefully I haven’t bored you. Stay tuned for more banana Bambino intros and then a ton of foodie fun starting next week! Much love xxxoxoxoxo
Lauren
Hi fruity friends, after the beautiful Sasha welcomed you it's now my turn to say hello ☺️ I'm Lauren (@naturalnomad) and I'm from the UK, although as soon as I graduate I am planning to pack my bags and move somewhere with a little more sunshine. Currently I'm at uni studying Biology, and I'm lucky enough to love what I learn about - nature and animals are the bees knees. It makes sense that my number one hobby is therefore travelling and exploring - if you hand me a scuba tank and throw me into the ocean I'll be in my element, and I like nothing more than planning trips to exciting new places. Like Sasha, I'm also a keen photographer (although I'm very amateur and no where near as talented as Sasha is!) Loving the world we live in is something that I think completely compliments a healthy approach to food too. My background with food has been very up and down, but last year I started using food as a tool to heal my body and build strength that would improve my capacity to enjoy life and live it to the full. Finding the Instagram community of healthy foodies, especially my other wonderful bambinos here, showed me that eating natural, nourishing foods and counting chemicals rather than calories has endless benefits for your health both physically and mentally. I've never felt better and have loved every second! I can't wait to start this joint journey with the bambinos and all of you guys - stay tuned to meet the rest of the team and have lots of fruity fun!
Casey
Hello foodie friends!! My name is Casey (@wholeandhealthy) and I'm from the United States! I have won the award for World's Most Awkward 20-year-old, so bear with me and my bumbling rambles. To start, you all should know that my best friends (besides these bambinos) are my food processor, fig tree, and barbell weight set - they understand me. I may or may not have an enormous obsession with peanut butter, Harry Potter, and of course, bananas. I simply cannot live without them! I'm a lover of summer - sunshine, sailing, swimming, and quaint coastal towns; I love books, cats, antique shopping, and drinking my weight in green tea. I also love to travel! I've been to London and other UK cities, Scotland, France, and Italy! I'm currently going to college to study Exercise and Sports Science. When I was a child, I had severe stomach-related issues that were attributed to lactose intolerance and IBS, but after numerous doctors visits, I was finally diagnosed with Celiac Disease at age 12. Starting a gluten free diet made immediate positive changes on my health. Now as an adult, I try to eat an abundance of wholesome foods as close as possible to the way they are found in nature, and this changed my entire outlook on health - I have never felt stronger, happier or more alive! I am passionate about living a balanced lifestyle by eating foods that nourish my body, while also maintaining a high level of fitness through my favourite form of exercise - weight lifting! I feel like this picture describes me perfectly: I eat what makes me feel good and get my muscles moving - this combination helps keep me feeling my best!! If you actually took the time to read this whole saga, I applaud you - Four for you, Glen Coco!! I hope this gave you a little more insight into the "whole and healthy" life of the "Whole and Healthy" girl.
Rui Yi
Hello banana buddies! My name is Ruiyi and I document my food journey over at @bunnysquats. Singaporean born and bred, I curse the tropical climate for making my pits cry on a daily basis, yet worship it because that means we get tons of coconut all year round. This is slightly personal, but I began eating well and avoiding processed foods to counter bulimia. Growing up with crap self-esteem I soon developed a phobia for food and destructive tendencies at the age of 14, which stuck with me longer than any man in my life (ha ha ha haaa). What started off as a defence mechanism soon became a passion that has led me to confidence, recovery and this amazing community, so I've no regrets to say the least! As you can guess from my screen name, I have and love my pet bunny Truffle, who is so fluffy that I sometimes question the existence of her neck. When I'm not too busy emptying my kitchen I spend my time in the gym looking like microwaved shit. I work at an organic grocer for a living, and I love the opportunities I get to help people with their food choices and dietary needs, even if it means having to deal with getting out of bed earlier than I'd hope for. If you're still with me till this point, thank you for joining our banana bambino circle and reading my ridiculous bio! Stay tuned to hear from the other fabulous ladies, they are fo'sho going to amaze you as they did me
Maddie
Hello my lovely banana babies! Don't mind me, just clutching a banana to my ear. My name is Maddie, a 20 year old from Sydney Australia, and I tend to post an embarrassing amount of my food over at @madeleinelumley (especially banana ice cream bowls aka my one true love). I study graphic design at uni, am a bunny mama to my baby rabbit Luna, and I live for adventuring and exploring the world (if you scroll back far enough through my feed you'll find my documentation of the 5 months that I spent travelling last year!). I eat far too many peas, an astounding amount of fruit, I love yoga, baking cakes, drawing, music making, photo taking, creating, being sarcastic, hot mugs of tea, the sunshine, lazy mornings, getting lost in a good book, and discovering. Growing up, my parents always placed an importance on healthy eating and living. I became a vegetarian when I was 16, and now that I'm older I am continually striving to learn more and more about how we can nourish ourselves to be the best we can possibly be, whilst doing as little harm as possible to all other living beings and to our earth. I can't talk about what has brought me to all this plant-based fabulousness without mentioning slightly shittier times. Not quite two years ago I had a crapola period, a period where I lost my sense of self-love and self-trust, where I wasn't very happy and that unhappiness manifested itself in my eating habits. I don't often talk about that time, but I bring it up now as a way of proving that we are stronger than we think, and I am so thankful for that period for everything that it taught me about myself, life, and the world, and for bringing me to where I am today; happier, stronger, plant-fueled and surrounded by luuuuurve (both in real life, and in this wonderful Instagram community)! I hope you adore our new baby @bananabambinos as much as we are going to adore bringing nourishing goodness to you! We have so much fabulousness planned, and I'm beyond chuffed about being able to share it with you all, alongside some of the most wonderful girls I've had the pleasure of befriending on here. Endless love and light, cuties!
Amy
Nothing to see here, just being held hostage by a banana. hello there you banana beauties! I'm Amy, a.k.a awkwardly shy frizz bomb known as @purepicks in the Instagram world. I'm a 17 (nearly 18) year old language student from the UK and I've recently finished my A-Level exams, so I'm just awaiting results day in August, and then hopefully setting off to University to study a degree in French and Spanish! Just like my fellow Bambinos, I have a passion for all things health-related. I choose to eat wholesome, balanced and nutritious meals and since discovering healthy living around October last year, I've never felt happier, more energised or more confident! For me confidence is one of the biggest advantages of this lifestyle as I've never had a lot of it in the past, so to not feel self conscious is kind of a change! Since starting my page I've had the opportunity to meet so many amazing like-minded people, which has allowed me gain even more knowledge about living a healthy lifestyle, and I feel privileged to be involved in this community! In my spare time (ha with A-Levels? Yeah right ) I love spending much needed time catching up with my friends that I haven't seen in months, baking, eating, travelling and experiencing other cultures! I do of course spend far too many days in bed wearing pyjamas watching films and Friends all day (world's biggest Friends fan over here guys). I hope you all love our Instagram love child, I can't wait to show you what we've been planning! I'm honoured to be part of@bananabambinos with such amazing, lovely, hilarious, completely bonkers girls! p.s. go you if you've read all of this rambling waffle, I'll send your medal in the post!
Meghan
Greetings, gorgeous souls! I'm Meghan (@naturallymeghan) and I'm an extremely shy and rather awkward 19 year old girl from the UK (Wales, to be exact!). I'm currently working as a waitress in a cafe in order to save up enough money to embark upon a working holiday adventure in Australia next year, although I was actually supposed to be studying English Literature at university this year; it's strange how things rarely seem to work out the way you plan them but I'm not complaining because travelling is something I dearly long to do! I have a slight obsession with pretty dresses, books (both old and new), vintage hairstyles, raw chocolate, my (vegan) Dr Martens and guys with tattoos. When I'm not serving people cups of coffee I spend my time creating delicious and nutritious food, chatting to my fellow bambinos, reading fabulous books, drinking copious amounts of chai tea and drooling over fictional television characters. I lead a vegan lifestyle and eat a diet abundant in wholesome and nourishing plant-based foods because I've found that this is what works best for my body. My passion for healthy living started soon after I began my recovery from anorexia early last year and although I'm nowhere near being fully recovered I do feel as though I now have enough mental clarity and rationality to be able to help other people who are also struggling with this illness. I'm so sorry if I've bored you with this introduction - I don't speak very much but I can write for days! Sending lots of love to you all xxx
Pixie
Hey bambinos! My name is pixie from @plantbased_pixie. I'm a 21 year old plant-based, gluten-free and refined sugar-free foodie from the UK. I recently graduated from university with a First Class Honours BSc in biochemistry, so I'm a bit of a science geek which also extends to food and what I eat! My family has always been health conscious and thanks to my mum's love for gardening I've grown up picking fresh fruits and veggies from my back garden. However life hasn't always been kind to me, and although I don't want to make this a depressing intro, after over 6 years of self-hatred and self-destruction I feel like this lifestyle is finally helping me to heal both physically and psychologically! But aside from my love for food I do have a geeky side that loves Star Wars, Lego, Lord of the Rings, and Game of Thrones! Plus now that I've finished uni I'm taking a gap year to work out what I want to do with my life and "find myself" through travelling the world and experiencing the wealth of food and cultures out there! I hope I haven't bored you, I'm so excited about being a banana bambino and I can't wait to share and spread the healthy food love x
Eloise
Hello hello hello hello! It's Eloise here from @eatlikeeloise, an 18 year old aspiring ballerina from the Land of Aus. Well, this photo pretty much sums me up; ballet, food and autumn (favourite season of the year, people say I'm odd for adoring the cold, but I think they're odd). I train full time ballet at a school in Melbourne which takes up all my time and all my energy, but I wouldn't have it any other way. My goal and dream is to become a professional ballerina in a company in Europe. I have an insane amount of determination and stubbornness (I refuse to fail at anything) so it's going to happen one day, don't you worry. In my limited spare time when I'm not at ballet I'm in the kitchen cooking (and creating a gigantic mess at that). My Mum is a personal trainer and gym instructor so naturally she has brought me up to be a health conscious teenager. She has enlightened me on how to fuel my body correctly (which is especially important being a dancer) and hence I have now formed a large passion for wholesome food and have never felt happier or more alive! I love inventing and experimenting in the kitchen, especially when it involves pumpkin or tahini (my motto; if you can eat it, you can put pumpkin and/or tahini in it). If I'm not in the kitchen (what? no way!) or at ballet (what's happened to the world?!?) then I'm at the gym! I love feeling strong and pushing myself to improve everyday, I have a rather large love for weights...weird I know. What else can I tell you about myself?? Umm.... I have two gorgeous cats named Adagio and Pirouette (surprise surprise they have ballet related names) that are Scottish fold and Scottish shorthair, I never wear any clothes other than gym attire and leotard and tights, I avoid sun at all times (am I a vampire? Can't tell you) and I eat protein powder off the spoon. Oh Lordy that was long, if you're still with me after all of that (definitely gobsmacked if you are!) then I am super excited to be sharing this journey, along with my fellow bambinos, with all of you, it's going to be a ripper of a ride so stay tuned!
Chelsea
What's crack-a-lackin cool bananas?(hehe) I'm Chelsea (@feedingmindbodysoul if you've seen my floating around this virtual world) and this is my smiling at bananas... I do this often because I LOVE them! I love a lot of things so I'll list a few: dancing (as you can see this picture was taken after a competition last night... 1st place woo), singing and acting as well, I like to eat (duh), I love to travel, read, talk (and I love to speak French), learn, move and groove, I love learning, fashion, movies, the beach, and I love making people happy! There is so much more too, but I am forgetful a little more on me: I'm 19 from Australia, my family background is Italian and I'm a vegan and a coeliac (no gluten for me!) But I love my pizza and pasta still. I have come from a time of much illness and darkness and found the strength within myself to push through to lighter days, like today and every day from now on. However I do not like to dwell on the past because it is done and cannot be changed, we can only learn and grow but it is also to left behind. All we have is now, the present. And do not worry so much about the future, because we haven't even arrived yet. We focus so much on what is behind or ahead that we forget where we are right now, which is the only thing that should matter. I am so honoured and blessed to be part of this fabulous group of lovely girls, and they are so supportive of each other and me and it makes my heart sing. Positivity is a disease we should all want to catch.(And sorry for the terrible selfie, I've been sick and last night was the only time I looked half decent...) love and peace to all!
Lin
We interrupt the strong of gorgeous fabulous girl selfies with uh, a kneefie. yeah. a kneefie. it's a thing now. at any rate helloooo fellow yellows! the name is Lin (@tumblinbumblincrumblincookie),the age is 15 and the level of awkwardness simply crippling. I am from Singapore and I am a hard core chocoholic (eye game! try to find a row in my feed that doesn't have some form of chocolate! spoiler alert: there is none). when I am not eating chocolate or eating in general I am either making food to eat of photographing food to be eaten. When I am not doing any of the above I will be photographing people and places, writing a lot, drawing, and spending too much time on food YouTube channels. of course most of the time I'm in school but I'm on holiday now so no S-word please yup MOVING ON I have a very murky future that hopefully does not involve math--fingers toes and all appendages crossed I will be able to become a freelance food photographer/stylist, cookbook author, have a job in a food magazine or all of the above. My food philosophy is all about synchrony-- live and eat in a way that your body will flourish under, and make it fresh, simple and beautifully exciting! Listen to your body both when it wants some sweets and when it needs some wholesome nutrition. I learnt the hard way (one hospitalization, two hearbroken parents, threeish years lost) that healthy eating isn't all lean protein and greens and eggwhites ew, it's about loving yourself and having what's best for ya--even when that includes chocolate sometimes! hopefully I'll be able to spread self love, positivity, and self acceptance amongst you gorgeous people and awaken y'all as to your awesomeness factor through some yummy goodies! So a few of my favourite things include mornings, breakfast foods, yellowed book pages, Robin's egg blue, Christmas, pancakes, and cooking/baking. also spending inordinate amounts of time on food YouTube channels but that is another topic to skim over for now...at any rate, hope y'all are feeling fabulous and that you're pumped up for the deliciousness coming your way soon from my fellow bambinos et moi! peace.
Carina
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, commited, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has. ~ Hello fellow foodies, I’m Carina (@roadtoeverywhere) and be warned, I’m incredibly awkward, so a lot of mumbo jumbo is about to follow. I’m originally from Germany, but I’m a total Cali girl at heart (my dream is to one day move back to LA to only act there. It will happen I’m sure of that). Traveling is my favorite thing in the world. I love sunshine☀️, the sound and smell of the sea and the boundless freedom it gives me. Sunsets and smiles are pure magic. I feel incredibly fortunate that my job has gotten me to the most amazing countries around the world. I’m a serious collector of quotes and yes, a total geek. I took some time off from acting in October last year to get my degree in theater, film, media, literature, as well as American history. Yep, in all of that... I’m going to graduate a year early and I can’t wait to get back to work and have my freedom back. The little prince is probably my favorite book, but don’t want to discriminate against any of them. I mean, there’s also Harry Potter. Other than that I binge watch TV shows (GoT anyone?!), eat a lot of food and spent time with my one true love. We have a very intimate relationship at home and have been together for 10 years or so. Yes, I had to mention my tracksuit bottoms. I haven’t always had a good relationship with food. Bullying at school first pushed me towards anorexia and later into a really bad habit of binge eating. I lost all sense of self-respect at some point and wasn’t even able to leave my room anymore. I couldn’t go to the store, nothing because I felt so unworthy. It took me years to get my life back on track and I still have many setbacks, but I’m mentally stronger than I’ve ever been. I also have coeliac disease, but I was only diagnosed a few days ago. I started my account in the hopes to inspire others to treat their body as the temple that it is and to live a nourished lifestyle, to make people smile and tell everyone to never let other people dominate their lives and rather to never give up on whatever it is they are passionate about.
Tilda
Hi there! Just me, awkwardly posing with a bunch of bananas hehe. My name is Tilda, but here on Instagram I usually go by @flourishinghealth. I’m from Sweden and it is here that I have spent most of my 17 and ½ years long existence, for better or worse. I’m currently living with my parents (i.e. occupying their fridge and forcing them to pay for all of my ridiculously overpriced superfoods) but as soon as I’m done with school, I plan on taking a year off to travel and work abroad, hopefully someplace where they grow mangos and/or bananas. Bambino style. During my time not spent on Instagram, eating or cooking (which only leaves a teeny-weeny fraction of my day) I enjoy horseback riding, singing loudly and completely out of key, dancing, reading nerdy books, tv-series (GoT, OITNB, TWD, TVP, ANTM…), grocery shopping (every day), running (occasionally) and stretching (banana splits are not the only splits you know). Ever since I can remember, I’ve been a true foodie, always on the lookout for things to eat, drooling my way through the world. The good part of being a foodie: Food, obviously. The bad part: When the obsession with what you put and don’t put in your mouth, becomes a problem. I have, unfortunately, experienced both. I was diagnosed with anorexia nervosa in 2011 and even though those destructive thoughts are slowly beginning to fade away, I still have a long way to go. But, I’m not one to throw myself a pity party. It is through the recovery process that I've discovered the way of healthy eating and, as you can see, Instagramming. For this, I am immensely grateful. I have so much love for my banana bambinos and all of you guys, it’s insane! So, with this my awkwardness, I put an end to our introductions. I HOPE I haven’t bored you all to death because THIS is where the real adventure commences! Stay tuned for our very first Banana Bambinos theme, to be announced later today!
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