Bananas Foster - Easy Dessert with Flare!

When I was the Sous Chef at the Evergreen State College in Olympia Washington, we often did promo demonstrations for the incoming Freshman and their parents. One of the demos we did was Bananas Foster ... using basically 4 ingredients ... Butter, Bananas, Brown Sugar, and Rum.

We served it over Waffle points ... taking square toaster waffles and cutting them diagonally to create triangles. We baked them off in the oven before hand to warm them, kept them warm in a chafer, and did the Bananas Foster to order.

This is also great over Vanilla ice cream (more traditional) ... but we used waffles because it was easier to serve 200-300 people and not have to worry about melting ice cream.

It is always best to do this over a gas flame, but can be done on and electric stove if you are willing to ignite the Rum with a match or lighter. The reason the gas flame is preferable is due to the fact that simply tipping the saute pan will allow the flame from the burner to ignite the Rum that is so spectacular with this dish.

There are a couple of things to do before starting the dish ... mainly slicing your bananas and prepping your ingredients for easy application. I prefer to either slice the bananas on a diagonal or down the middle lengthwise and then divide into 2-3 inch sections on a diagonal ... this gets rid of the boxy look. Some people like to just cut them in rounds which also works ... too thin and they turn to mush, but thin enough that they get caramelized and still have some firmness to them.

Start with your pan medium hot and add your butter, let it melt ... add your brown sugar. When it is all melted and bubbly, add your bananas in a single layer. When they have softened and are turning a little brown, carefully away from the heat, add your rum ... then put back on the heat. When it has heated, tip the pan toward the flame and it will ... WHOOSH ... cook until flame dies and it's ready! Spoon or slide contents over the desired item ... be it ice cream or waffles.

Here are approx amounts for ingredients for four people:

• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) Butter
• 1 cup Brown Sugar
• 4 Bananas
• 1/4 cup Dark Rum
• Ice Cream or Waffles - 1 for each person.

If you are doing ice cream, scoop the ice cream before making the dish and put in freezer so it won't melt while you're making the Bananas Foster. The Topping will be hot so you want hard ice cream to start with.

Alternatives that can be added to this basic recipe are:

• a dash of cinnamon (1/2 teaspoon)
• banana liqueur (1/4 cup)
• walnuts (1/4 cup)

Warmest Regards,

Chef Tom Heintz