I hadn’t made it in years. In fact, aside from me, I think only 2 other people have ever eaten my grilled bananas. Since I have lived in apartment complexes for so long, it is just not something I have had the opportunity to make. However, I invaded a friend’s grill (the same one the picky eaters post was about) to make them, and I think they turned out pretty well.
The premise is pretty simple, bananas with a glaze cooked on the grill served in a bowl of ice cream. For this particular time, I used Amy’s Mexican Vanilla. Now I love that flavor, but honestly, I think it was overpowering. That vanilla is so strong it will take over a dish. It is not a good compliment ice cream. I should have used the old stand-by Blue Bell. However, it still wasn’t bad.
The only real prep work is making the glaze. It is made up of molasses, light brown sugar, key lime juice, butter and dark rum. So the obvious question is “how much of each”. In my opinion, cooking in different styles is more than what type of method you use or what ingredients you use. It’s about getting in the right frame of mind for the type of food. For me, grilling, BBQing, things cooked outside over fire and coals are not meant to be exacting. You shouldn’t be measuring out with precision how much pepper goes into the rub. You put about “that much” in. “That much” varies by mood, cooking conditions, and often in outdoor cooking, intoxication. In short, “to taste”.
Molasses is the basis of the glaze. It is your stock. I am not schooled on the different types, so I just get molasses. Light brown sugar is preferred over dark merely because of the flavors in the molasses and rum, the light brown sugar provides some sweetness without the richness. Imperial has granulated light brown sugar now, which I highly recommend. While at the store, the little lady recommended it to me and she couldn’t have been more right. Anyone that has fought with an old box of brown sugar will understand. The only issue is the sugar needs to be heated more to break down. Since we are cooking this on the stove, that’s fine. Key lime juice tartens up the flavor. Citrus in general helps the glaze permeate the flesh of the fruit. You could use just reggae lime juice, but I feel that key lime is almost always better than reggae lime when available. Butter adds a buttery flavor to the glaze (go figure) and in conjuction to the rum gives a slightly crispy texture to the outside of the banana. This gives it a nice break from the smooth ice cream. Simply put these items in a sauce pan over medium heat and make sure everything is liquid, and it’s ready to go. When the time comes, use a brush to apply it to the fruit.
Slicing the bananas is simple and quick. Chop the ends off and slice the banana in half length-wise leaving the peel on. Be sure to cut it on the curved sides so you are left with 2 identical halves. We also made grilled pineapple (with limited success, imho). Slicing the pineapple was…. interesting. I had read a recipe that described how it should be cut, and I think we got it (gf did most of the work on this one), for the most part. It’s easiest to slice the bark (is it bark?) off the sides first, using the leaves as a handle. Then cut off the bottom and top. You are left with a barrell shaped slimy (excuse me, I mean juicy) yellow mass. Slice it in half lengthwise, and cut those halves into half again, lengthwise. Ok, one more time. That should leave you with 8 semi-identical wedges. Now, you want to cut the core out of them, probably an inch or so, you should be able to tell the difference, in firmness if not color.
Heat the grill up to a low medium or so. Put the banana slices on the grill peel side up. Also, as is true with all elongated items on a grill, place them either diagonally or perpendicular to the grill bars. If not, using tongs can be “interesting” when it comes to taking cooked bananas off the grill (I lost one in the grill before I realized I was doing it wrong). If you put the glaze on now, it will be burnt by the time you take it off, so fight the urge to do so. I speak from experience here. Put the pineapple wedges on the grill, and brush the glaze over the top of them. Shut the lid (or sit and watch, whatever) for a couple minutes. You want there to be browned grill marks on the fruit. Then flip the fruit over (peel side down) and brush the glaze on. Flip the pineapple wedges and apply glaze to that side as well. Shut the lid and cook for 3-5 mins, until the peels start to pull away from the bananas. Put a second coat of the glaze on the fruit and cook a couple minutes longer. The pineapple is ready when tender. The bananas are done when the peel is pretty much mostly black and some of them are crispy and has pulled away from the fruit along the sides. You want to actually cook the banana.
Take them off the grill, take them off the peel and serve in a bowl of ice cream. The recipe isn’t perfect, but they are pretty tasty, I promise. I am considering putting some cinnamon in the glaze. Maybe some cloves. Gotta wait till another grilling time to try out my new ideas…