Happy Mardis Gras!



Tonight's post is to celebrate Mardis Gras!  Originally I thought I would make something like jambalaya or gumbo but this morning I woke up to a sick husband.  When he's sick he doesn't usually want to eat much so I knew that an elaborate dinner wouldn't be appreciated.  So, instead I made Bananas Foster. 

If you decide to try this recipe I do have to warn you to be very careful when lighting the rum.  I was to scared to do this on my own since all we had was a lighter and not a BBQ lighter.  With a BBQ lighter you would be able to keep your distance.  The hubby lite the rum and boy did it light!  He's pretty certain that he lost some eyebrows.

I've never had Bananas Foster so I was going into this a little blind.  I don't really know what it's supposed to look like or how it should taste. I really liked the warm bananas and caramel sauce on the cold vanilla ice cream. I will definitely make this again, especially for guests. 

Bananas Foster

Ingredients

• 2 tbs unsalted butter
• ½  cup lightly packed dark brown sugar
• ¼  tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tbs cup banana liqueur
• 2 firm-ripe bananas, peeled, halved lengthwise, then halved crosswise
• 2 tbs cup amber rum
• vanilla ice cream

Directions

1. In a skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in the brown sugar and cinnamon and cook until moist, about 1 minute.
2. Add the banana liqueur and cook, stirring continuously, until the grainy texture disappears and the mixture rolls off the spoon in a steady stream, 1 to 2 minutes.
3. Put the banana quarters rounded side down in the pan. Cook until the bananas begin to soften, 2 to 3 minutes.
4. Turn the bananas onto their flat sides. Remove the pan from the heat and pour in the rum. Set the pan over high heat and carefully ignite the rum with a long match or grill lighter. Gently shake the pan until the flame subsides. Remove from the heat.
5. Place a generous scoop of ice cream in 6 to 8 individual heatproof dessert bowls. Arrange 2 to 3 pieces of sautéed banana around each scoop of ice cream. Spoon on the sauce and serve immediately.

 ENJOY!