Plantains Foster

What’s dinner without dessert? Caribbean desserts are greatly inspired by the abundance of tropical fruits in the islands. And the sugarcane! Rum finds it’s way into many desserts. Plantains aren’t just a side dish for the main meal. When a plantain hits it’s peak ripeness, it is sweet and tastes similar to a ripe banana. And like a ripe banana, the skin needs to turn a blackish brown before it gets sweet. Not pretty, but oh so sweet and tasty. Sounds like dessert to me! As we wrap up our tour of the Islands, we leave the Caribbean on a sweet note!

There is a distinct Creole influence to the food and language in the Caribbean. When visions of black, ripe plantains and rum floated through my head I immediately thought of Bananas Foster. The recipe with bananas in cinnamon, sugar and rum was originally created in 1951 by Paul Blangé at Brennan’s Restaurant in New Orleans, Louisiana. Ah ha, the Creole influence! So why not Plantains Foster?  

Plantains Foster IngredientsAll the yummy ingredients except for the ice cream. This is a perfect plantain! Nice black spots with some yellow remaining. It’s gonna be so sweet!

Diagonal Sliced Plantains

To peel the plantains, cut off the end opposite the stem (contrary to the way we usually peel a banana) and discard. Peel them like a banana. Cut the plantains in diagonal rounds. Notice the yellowish orange color of the plantain? They are different from bananas in several ways.

Golden Brown Plantains

Heat 4 tablespoons butter in a large skillet and place over medium low heat (plantains have a high sugar content and will burn if the heat is too high.) Fry the plantains in a single layer, until golden on the bottom then turn over with a spatula. Cook until golden on both sides.

Set Plantains Aside

Remove plantains from the skillet an set aside. Because of the fibers in the plantains, once cooked, they will have a “bread-like” texture to them. So instead of a soft banana, it’s really more like a slice of soft banana bread and puts a unique spin on this traditional dish.

Cinnamon Sugar

Add the cinnamon, vanilla, and sugar and let it cook a few seconds, just to begin caramelizing the sugar. Oh, this smells so good!

Burner off add Bacardi

TURN OFF THE GAS BURNER!! and pour in the rum. You don’t want to flambe yourself! Turn the burner back on and cook off some of the rum. It just keeps getting better and better!

Plantains in Brown Sugar Rum Sauce

Just before serving, melt remaining tablespoon of butter to finish the sauce and stir to combine the butter and rum sauce. Add the plantains back into the rum sugar mixture to heat through and coat in the sauce. One minute more!

Drizzle Sauce

Layer the plantains in the bottom of a shallow dessert dish. Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream to the side of the plantains and drizzle with warm brown sugar rum sauce.

Plantains Foster
Serves 4
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284 calories
29 g
45 g
16 g
1 g
10 g
101 g
20 g
20 g
1 g
5 g
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size
101g
Servings
4
Amount Per Serving
Calories 284
Calories from Fat 144
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 16g
25%
Saturated Fat 10g
51%
Trans Fat 1g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1g
Monounsaturated Fat 4g
Cholesterol 45mg
15%
Sodium 20mg
1%
Total Carbohydrates 29g
10%
Dietary Fiber 1g
6%
Sugars 20g
Protein 1g
Vitamin A
20%
Vitamin C
14%
Calcium
4%
Iron
2%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your Daily Values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Ingredients
  1. 1 large ripe plantain
  2. 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
  3. 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  4. 1 teaspoon natural vanilla extract
  5. 3 tablespoons brown sugar
  6. 3 tablespoons Rum
  7. Vanilla Ice Cream
Instructions
  1. To peel the plantains, cut off the end opposite the stem (contrary to the way we usually peel a banana) and discard. Peel them like a banana. Cut the plantains in diagonal rounds.
  2. Heat 4 tablespoons butter in a large skillet and place over medium low heat (plantains have a high sugar content and will burn if the heat is too high.) Fry the plantains in a single layer, until golden on the bottom then turn over with a spatula. Cook until golden on both sides.
  3. Remove plantains from the skillet an set aside.
  4. Add the cinnamon, vanilla, and sugar and let it cook a few seconds, just to begin caramelizing the sugar.
  5. TURN OFF THE GAS BURNER!! and pour in the rum. You don't want to flambe yourself! Turn the burner back on and cook off some of the rum.
  6. Just before serving, melt remaining tablespoon of butter to finish the sauce. Add the plantains back into the rum sugar mixture to heat through and coat in the sauce.
  7. Layer the plantains in the bottom of a shallow dessert dish. Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream to the side of the plantains and drizzle with warm brown sugar rum sauce.
beta
calories
284
fat
16g
protein
1g
carbs
29g
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