It makes complete sense that Bananas Foster is the dessert we made at the cooking class I attended in New Orleans. After all, Brennan’s invented it there. Born from New Orleans’ once-booming banana trade, Ella Brennan invented this dish in 1950. Her brother, Owen Brennan, then owner of the famous Brennan’s on Bourbon Street, asked Ella to invent a dessert to honor the New Orleans Crime Commission Chairman, Richard Foster. Inspired by the Baked Alaska, Ella caramelized bananas with brown sugar, butter, and liquor, set it aflame, and served it over ice cream. It was an instant hit and is still served today at Brennan’s in New Orleans. If you get a chance to visit NOLA, stop by and try this delicious dessert. In the meantime, here is the recipe so you can make it yourself.
Ingredients:
- 1 stick butter
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 bananas
- 2 oz. banana liqueur
- 4 oz. dark rum
- ground cinnamon
- ice cream
Directions:
Melt butter and add brown sugar to form a creamy paste. Caramelize the mixture over medium heat for about 5 minutes.
Stir in the banana liqueur, bananas, and rum. Heat and ignite. Agitate to keep the flame burning and add a few pinches of cinnamon to the flame.
Let the flame go out and serve over ice cream.
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