Why don't you see Pro's eating bananas?

Feedzone portables is my god send.
Gels/bars/drink mixes give me the gut rot in the hour (all since I did LEJOG in 2012 and did 9 straight days using them when needed, not living on them).
The rice cakes are the best, tried the original egg & bacon ones, then found out about the books, bought them and the stuff in there is awesome.
If you already have a well equipped kitchen you probably have most of the stuff needed, I had to buy some cup measures and a few more baking trays.

Converted many mates to 'real food' on the bike now with them trying what ever I made for that weeks ride, and it's super cheap.
10 rice cakes (which are the similar nutritional numbers to most bars) cost me around £3 to make, 10 bars? £15ish?

Mince pies. Stock up on the top end ones just after xmas and whack them in the feezer.

My Mrs goes an awesome "bike cake" as well which combined with a couple of bananas always keeps me going.

Gels are there for the last hard miles if required.

How long to rice cakes last for then? I'm always a bit wary of old rice; it's a haven for bacteria.

Chocolate coated hard nougat, has milk, almonds, chocolate and sugar. Get a big long bar and chop it into manageable chunks. Absolutely delicious!

But mostly I don't eat much, just zero cal electrolyte drinks and carry a couple of bars that I don't mostly eat, a gel in case a big hill suddenly appears at the end that I often need, and a protein recovery something to eat on the train home.

I've been making a... thing composed of apple juice-soaked dates, walnuts and sultanas, whizzed up with cocoa power; they're based on Nakd bars, but less exorbitantly expensive and cringily 'life-styley'. They taste a bit like chocolate truffles, but I'm having a hard time encouraging them to be solid. I've cooked the mixture with oats before, but doing late always obliterates their taste and sweetness to an extent I can't make sense of.

I'm interested in trying out Onigiri (Japanese rice balls) for something more savoury (Japanese food tends to be good at savoury), but they're too much of an exotic product to be economically viable, so I'd like to learn how to make them. They're just (strangely delicious) rice with a bit of punchier stuff in the middle, so it can't be that hard. I ate little else when I was in Japan, and they're an excellent source of quick energy. Like a rice sandwich.

I love taking yellow bendy potassium-rich fruits out to eat on my rides, but it just doesn't seem worth the risk these days. Each one is a potential banana-skin.

I make flap jacks that are great when cycling and so much better tasking than the bulk of commercial bars, but the big question is what do you wrap them in???? Cling film is not a one hand open possibility while riding, two handed is a challenge if they have been pressed firmly in the pocket. Greased paper comes undone of it's own accord and just putting them straight in your jersey pocket results in a variety of messy possibilities. For this reason my home made endeavours are restricted too the turbo.

In response to the original questions, bananas seem to get a peculiar amount of screentime in this Shimano video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyzpTct0Nwk

Soreen malt loaf for me, keep it in a whole loaf in your back pocket and just bite a bit off when you are ready. Also if space is tight,, squash it down flat

Few things taste better than wine gums when you're knackered, you can write PRO on the packet in felt tip, which turns them into a high energy sports product.
I was wondering about banana skins too, I tend to not chuck them in the hedge if there are cars/ people around, because they wouldnt see the skin, just some bloody cyclist littering.
Corn cobs never ever break down, not that I have ever taken corn on the cob out on a ride, just saying.

Prob more to do with the insulinergic response than the decomposition of the peel...

Jam sarnies, cheddar sarnies, bananas and grab bag mix of raisins, nuts, peanut M&Ms and jelly babies. With a mars bar for emergencies and pain au chocolat/coffee stops too.

I'm sure I remember a photo of Andre Greipel with a banana in his back pocket last year, so maybe we just don't see the pro's eating them. They're not sponsored, so wouldn't demand screen time

bashthebox: it's not that rice is a haven for bacteria. The problem only really arises if the rice is cooled too slowly, it should be spread out on a baking tray and then (once it has cooled for 5 mins or so) put into the fridge.

I am rigorously writing down these suggestions. I usually take jelly babies and flapjack if I can get a hold of it, as I can never be bothered to make it, does anyone have any shortcut recipe tips?