Old bananas? An old problem with an easy solution.
I honestly get a little excited when I start to see those mushy, brown spots on my ‘nanners. As bananas ripen, their starches turn to sugars — beautiful, delicious sugars. Utilizing that new sugary state is a great way to make some creative, sweet treats and save some money.
To save that bunch of old bananas, use the two C’s: creativity and caramelization.
Caramelization is basically cooking something down to break down the sugars inside, coating said item in browned, sugary, buttery goodness.
Caramelized bananas are great on just about everything. Use them to top pancakes, waffles, cake or peanut butter — whatever you want a little extra sweetness on. My personal favorite: a sweet baguette wrapped in caramelized banana.
This recipe to make caramelized bananas is beyond simple, and where you take it is up to you.
The Must-Haves:
Over-ripe banana — Have at least three or four of these guys to make enough.
Brown sugar — Always a good staple to have in the pantry.
Butter — If you don’t have butter, reevaluate your life.
The Highly Recommended:
Cinnamon — This just makes the bananas that much more delicious.
The How-to:
Peel the bananas and slice with a knife. It will turn into a mushy mess anyway, so don’t worry about the cuts that much. I like to slice length-wise just for beauty’s sake, but little round circles are just fine too.
Take a large pot to put on heat. Add a healthy amount of butter, around 2 tablespoons.
When the butter is melted, add in 2 tablespoons of brown sugar. Keep heat on medium-high. Stir the mixture rapidly, and then add in the bananas.
With a wooden spoon or spatula, stir the bananas until they are completely coated in the butter-sugar mix. In about five minutes, the bananas should be covered in a thick, brown, syrupy sauce. Sprinkle in cinnamon and add raisins if desired.
Remove from heat, and try not to eat the whole pot before adding it to other wonderful dishes.
Contact CU Independent Grapevine Staff Writer Jackson Barnett at Jackson.Barnett@colorado.edu.