Banana Foster Recipe

It seems that nowadays, every cooking forum has people extolling the virtues of cast iron pans. People dwell on their longevity, their hardiness, their second-to-none ability to hold heat and give a good sear. And I gotta tell ya, I’m pretty impressed with my cast iron pans. They are pretty great. 

So what if my wee 6.5-inch pan couldn’t fit a steak? And does it really matter, given that cast iron is more high-maintenance, that I still reach for my stainless steel as a default? There are more important considerations for purchasing a cast iron pan: for example, how it makes the food you cook looks good. And that’s where a cast iron pan truly shines.  

My current obsession is Banana Foster. It’s a dressed-up banana split: a pan filled with tender bananas macerating in warm caramel sauce, which is topped with scoops of ice cream and served straight from the stove. It’s easy as ABC to put together and tastes like a treat. 

My folks are firmly in the Alice Waters camp that when a fruit ripens to the point when it's good to eat on its own, it is best enjoyed by itself, and shouldn't be cooked with. And, with them not being fans of overly-sweet desserts, they gave me the stink eye when I added perfectly-ripened bananas to a simmering pan of caramel. But my counter argument was infallible: unlike other fruits, bananas are guaranteed to be sweet when ripened. I don’t think I have ever had a bad banana. Most varieties of bananas taste a little starchy, and cooking them down tenderises them and removes their starchy texture*.

And judging by how fast this dessert disappeared, I do think everybody eventually came around to my point of view.

*I love banana splits as a kid, but over the years, I found that the starchiness of raw bananas distracts the creamy texture of ice cream. Though, if you can get your hands on red bananas that are indigenous to South East Asia, they lack the starchiness that makes them perfect for banana splits.

Banana Foster 

INGREDIENTS

30g unsalted butter

60g dark brown sugar 

1/4 tsp cinnamon

3 bananas, sliced lengthwise  

Ice cream, pre-scooped 

40ml rum (optional)

Pecan, whole or halved (optional)

STEPS

1. Place butter, dark brown sugar and cinnamon in a small skillet. Set it over low heat and let the butter gently melt, stirring occasionally to combine the melted butter with the brown sugar. If the melted butter is not mixing well with the dry ingredients, you can add 1-2 more dark brown sugar to help bring everything together. It should look like a thick slurry at this stage. 

 

2. Add sliced bananas and gently spoon the warm caramel sauce over them, making sure each piece gets equal time macerating in the sauce. They should begin to soften in 1-2 minutes. At this stage, the brown sugar melts fully, and the sauce should thin out. When the banana is soft and pliable, turn off the heat and remove the pan from stove.  

SERVING
Reserve couple of tablespoons of the caramel sauce. Add the scoops of ice cream over the top, drizzle over with caramel sauce and top with pecan. Serve immediately.   

TIPS

Flambéed banana foster: Prior to serving, heat up rum in a small saucepan set over low heat, until the rum begins to simmer at the edges. Remove from heat, and using either a kitchen torch or a long matchstick, ignite the fumes near the surface of the rum. Pour over the banana foster. As the flames die down, stir, add ice cream and pecans. Serve immediately. (If you have young nieces and nephews, as I do, you can bedazzle and befuddle them with this flambéed version. Just as befuddled would be their parents, to whom I might have expressively told that I had made desserts for their kids, before rum had been added. But that's okay.