I have recently had a food epiphany. For the first twenty
two and a half years of my life, I thought bananas were an evil joke. This was
due mostly to that horrible texture: not quite mushy, not quite rigid, sort of
creamy but not runny, and with tiny seeds you can taste but not see – this has
to be an alien food sent to confuse us. However, after trying them in smaller
portions and mixed with other ingredients, I found that they are more like a
friend with a great sense of humour and good heart, once you get past the fact
they like Avatar and occasionally
wear corduroy. In short, it’s worth overlooking that funky banana texture in
order to access that exotic, classic, versatile flavour. If you’re still a
sceptic, here are some simple recipes to embrace banana.
Blended
Probably the easiest way to enjoy a banana without having to
deal with the texture, blending removes this problem by breaking down the
confused mushy stiffness into a recognisable liquid state that only gives you
the flavour. If you’re feeling virtuous, make a smoothie by mixing your banana
with your favourite fruit and apple juice, and blending until it is fairly
thick but looks like something you could drink without choking. For dessert,
add banana to a generous portion of ice cream and a splash of milk (or the
other way if you like it runny) and blend. For extra indulgence, use chocolate
ice cream, or add chocolate sauce or peanut butter before blending.
Banana and Nutella toasty
Bangers and mash, peanut butter and jam, cheese and toast:
some flavours are just meant to be together so we can eat them and be filled
with joy. If you have yet to introduce bananas and Nutella into the same dish,
this easy breakfast is a good place to start. Spread the Nutella as thick as
you like, add thin slices of banana on top and toast in a toasty maker, or with
one of those toasty bags. For extra fruity goodness and more sugar, add
strawberries. For extra nuttiness, peanut butter makes a good alternative to
Nutella.
BBQ Banana Split
The forks are out, the gloves are on and the air is filled
with smoke. Barbeque season is hopefully beginning (cue rain), but meat is no
longer the only option on the menu. Leaving the skin on, carefully slice your
banana open lengthways without cutting all the way through. Chop some dark
chocolate into small pieces, or use dark chocolate chips, and press them into
the slit in the banana, making sure not to let your banana split completely.
Wrap it up in foil and put it on the BBQ for about five minutes, or until the
chocolate is melted and the banana is gooey. You can use milk chocolate if you
prefer, and add marshmallows for extra sweetness. Eat straight from the foil,
or serve with ice cream.
Pancakes
As we’ve seen, bananas tend to taste better when they’re
sliced, heated and surrounded by a dessert-like substance. When it comes to
pancakes, you can either go thin and French, adding the sliced banana as a
filling and wrapping it up, or thick and American, adding slices to the batter
itself. Personally, I prefer the latter, since the bananas get really gooey and
sweet. Unfortunately, despite my love of baking and making all things sweet, I
have cook’s block when it comes to American-style pancakes. From many
experiments, I have found that the best way to achieve those big, fluffy
pancakes you see stacked up in American films, such as that adorable scene in Matilda, is to go to Selly Sausage or
swallow your pride and any pretention of actually cooking, and to use a
readymade pancake mix.
On a side note...
According to this Betty Crocker mix, only girls can make
pancakes. Must be something to do with our soft fingers, delicate sensibilities
and love of staying in the kitchen. Or maybe it’s to do with gender
stereotyping.
Back to the recipe. Ladies and gents, begin by thinly slice your bananas, then follow the
instructions on the box to make the mix. Once you’ve added the batter to the
frying pan, quickly press the banana slices into the pancake as it fries,
obviously being careful not to burn yourself: don’t be a hero, it’s only
breakfast. The pancakes taste better if you keep them flat, as this makes them
cook more evenly, so use two frying pans if necessary. Once they’re golden
brown and cooked through, transfer to a plate, cover in Nutella (if you wish) and
gorge. Alternatively, you can put chocolate chips in the mixture with the
bananas, but again add them once the batter is in the pan, since mixing them in
beforehand makes it harder to get the pancakes flat. Best served with a sea of
maple syrup, a hot coffee and a lazy Sunday morning.
Banana Brownies
As this post explains, I am a bit of a brownie fiend. Quick
to make, easy to get right and fun to eat, these are the ultimate indulgence
with minimum effort. They are also great to experiment with, whether that’s
adding marshmallows and/or peanut M&Ms, or making a cheesecake brownie or
Smores brownie, like those clever folks at the Hummingbird Bakery. For my
banana brownies, I used their basic brownie recipe, mixing in 100g of roughly
chopped dark chocolate and three mushed up ripe bananas right at the end.
Have them finished no more than two hours before you need
them, and leave them in the tray until right before serving for a warm pudding
that goes well with a splash of cream or scoop of ice cream. They also taste
great when they’re cold, with that gorgeous gooey centre. Although I’m tempted
to play around with the recipe a little more, this is a rich, dense dessert
that’s been a favourite with my family.
Banana Cake
Cake makes everything better, including bananas. If you’re
looking for something slightly exotic, hummingbird cake is one of my favourite
desserts both to make and eat. It contains pineapple, pecans and bananas, and
is best finished off with a cream cheese icing and a fork. No hummingbirds
should be injured during the making of this cake, and if you do manage to hurt
them, you’re doing it wrong.
If you’re craving dessert but not feeling that adventurous,
banana muffins are moist, flavoursome and almost healthy. Ahem. They can be
flavoured with cinnamon or chocolate, depending on your taste, and a bit of
sugar sprinkled on the top creates a slight, sweet crust. Tantalising teaser:
expect a future post with a more detailed description of my post-uni adventures
in banana muffins.
No comments:
Post a Comment