Bananas Foster: the delicious dessert recipe made with bananas, rum and ice cream

So versatile, delicious and easy to make, this bananas foster recipe is going to be something you will want to enjoy all the time. The bananas foster is a famous, impressive American dessert of New Orleans created in the 1950s.

Tasty dish and very easy to prepare, firm and ripe bananas are sautéed with a caramel sauce flavored with rum. The dish is then served flambé to impress guests and garnished with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, a pinch of cinnamon and walnuts.

You can serve this tasty recipe on French toast or waffles in the morning for a delicious breakfast. Bananas foster are also great on their own, straight out of a bowl – no extras needed for this mouthwatering recipe! If you like walnuts, go ahead and use them! Make sure to use a dark rum with this recipe for its rich flavor.

What is Bananas Foster?

The bananas foster is a New Orleans dessert made from bananas that have been sautéed and flavored with a butter, brown sugar and rum sauce. It's a delicious, rich dish that aims to impress guests as it's served flambéed and then topped with vanilla ice cream and walnuts.

Bananas foster was first made in Brennan's restaurant in the French Quarter of New Orleans in 1951. The name of this famous recipe is a tribute to Richard Foster, the chairman of the New Orleans Crime Commission and a regular customer and friend of the restaurant's owner.

To flambé bananas foster you need to add rum to the butter and brown sugar mixture because the alcohol is what sets the food on fire. However, you can also serve bananas foster without the flambé. If you decide to flambé the bananas foster, just make sure you have a lid handy so you can extinguish the flame right away.

Can you make Bananas Foster ahead?

Bananas foster is best served right away, but you can also make the sauce ahead if you want.

Store it in the refrigerator for 2 days and heat it again you're ready.

Tips

While dark rum is the standard for bananas foster (and quite good with the bananas and nuts), try using Gran Marnier for a orange flavored version of this recipe. Otherwise, Old New Orleans or Goslings are perfect.

You can make bananas foster without alcohol and replace it with vanilla or rum extract.

If you have some fresh strawberries, slice them and add them along with the bananas for a even more fruity treat.

Be sure to constantly stir the mixture once everything has been added to the pan as the sugar and rum in this recipe can burn quickly. Remove from the heat right when the liquid begins to thicken to prevent any burning from happening.

You can replace walnuts with pecans, peanuts or almonds.

You can add a teaspoon of banana liqueur to bananas foster.

How to store Bananas Foster

You can store bananas foster in the refrigerator for a week, closed in an airtight container. You can also freeze it for a month.

How to make Bananas Foster

Slice two bananas in half lengthwise and again crosswise, you should have eight pieces of banana. Set aside.

In a medium sized frying pan, melt the butter over low heat.

Add the rum and let it simmer for about one minute to cook off any alcohol. Add the brown sugar and cinnamon. Stir until melted.

Add the banana slices. Cook for about 1-2 minutes or until the liquid thickens. Add the chopped walnuts.

Remove from the heat. Serve immediately while hot in a bowl and top with ice cream. Enjoy!