Passionfruit Butter

One of my father’s claims to fame is his ability to perfectly reproduce the famous original dessert from New Orleans fixture Brennan’s Restaurant. He was a waiter there back in the day, so he learned the very detailed procedure of flambéeing and sautéing to a T.

Now, I myself have not gotten the process just right. So, allow me to map it out for you photographically — no, really, it’s the least I can do. The last two photos are not mine, as my camera died on me in the middle of the Bananas Foster photo shoot. The flambé picture is from here and the photo of the final product from here.

First, you slice up some bananas and cook them in a pan that has been previously and generously doused in butter. Legend has it that this dessert was originally invented by the then-dessert chef at Brennan’s, whose challenge was to find a use for some over-ripe bananas. He cooked these down with the technique you’re about to see, set them over ice cream, and voilà! These bananas are actually not quite ripe enough yet; Dad picked them up at the store the day he decided to make these, so they had no time to age on the windowsill. This isn’t the end of the world; he just cooked them a bit longer, which required a bit more butter. No big deal or anything.

After a bit of cooking, you should flip each slice to see this golden-brown allure. So sexy:

At this point, they should be getting realllllyyyyy soft. Mm. Caramelized anything is such a gift from the gods.
Okay. Bringing the focus back to our original topic. So, you cook the bananas well. Next comes a cocktail of cinnamon, brown sugar, and banana liqueur. Let it stew. Let it fester. Let it mature. It’s SO worth it… promise.

This next part is of the utmost importance. Are you listening? This is the part that really requires mastery and strategy and serious coordination. What you want to do is toss in some rum. Simultaneously, you want the pan so arranged that the (very high) flame of the stove will lick the alcohol and shoot it straight up in a dramatic flame:

Note that the alcohol is being sprayed from afar. That is not what my dad does (he tosses in the rum haphazardly; he’s weathered enough not to be concerned, even about huge flames), but I chose this picture from the Google search because it seems so epic. In any case, the flame dies down once the actual alcohol is cooked out, leaving you with this tremendously hot rum-flavored banana-infused caramelly gooey goodness. Divide the bananas into bowls and dollop in some Blue Bell vanilla ice cream.

I LOVE that the syrup is nearly black. It tastes like Stella and Stanley’s love affair: dark and dangerous and humid, partly sweet but with a mellow burning. The bananas are soft, but only in the most scrumptious way possible. No baby food/old people food here at all. (Ha, the prospect of infants and senior citizens eating this is amusing, though; it’s so impossibly decadent that if I were Catholic, I’d feel like I needed to go to confession after finishing off my bowl.)

Synopsis: thank GOD I can eat this at home whenever the mood possesses me. That’s what’s so empowering about learning to cook your own favorite foods… hence why I’m perfecting my recipe for goat cheese croquettes (my #1 most intense, most frequent craving). Then there’s the juxtaposition: you have the siren call of this torrid banana/butter/alcohol/sugar concoction, with its sticky-rich-rummy flavor drenching the scoop of pure creamy vanilla ice cream. Hot versus cold, too: WOW — the ice cream melts on contact, so you have to eat first. You see, the dish metamorphoses. First, you dole out a bite of banana, a spoonful of intact ice cream, and a dose of that tantalizing sauce. By the time you’re finished, you’re left with a soup. They’re equally amazing, though they conveniently offer a multitude of different tasting and texture experiences that evolves whilst you eat.

Okay, now this is just hyperbole. Trust me, though. Bananas Foster… MMM. Even if you don’t like bananas. I swear. Come visit me in New Orleans; if you give me a couple days’ notice, the bananas will be pre-ripened by the time of your arrival! Love all around.