Resolution Recap 2012: Desserts (Excess Bananas)

I am not a big dessert person.  I would much rather have something salty, a good cheese, that kind of thing instead of something sweet.  But on some occasions it is nice to have a treat especially around the holidays.  In 2012 I tried seven new dessert recipes.  Two of those recipes were selected based on having an excess of bananas.  When Brad first got braces he went through a smoothie phase and his favorite was a chocolate banana smoothie.  But after awhile he grew tired of it and I was left with a lot of overly ripe bananas on multiple occasions.  After several batches of banana bread I decided it was time for something new.

The first recipe is a banana bar recipe from Betty Crocker.  I followed the recipe for the actual banana bars but did not have on hand the powdered sugar needed for the icing portion of the recipe.  Instead I found a recipe for a whipped cream - cream cheese frosting from Allrecipes.com that did not use powdered sugar (and I am counting this as another new recipe).  The banana bars rated a single * for pretty good mainly because they were very similar to banana bread so not really something new.  But the whipped cream - cream cheese frosting was fantastic and got two ** (yum!).  This frosting is nicely rich without being overly sweet and because it is whipped you can use an impressive amount without it overwhelming the flavor of the base bar. I would certainly make the frosting again for other dessert items.

Banana Bars*
(Prep Time: 15 min, Total Time: 1hr 45 min, Serves: 24)

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup mashed very ripe bananas (2 medium)
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Heat oven to 350°F. Grease bottom and sides of rectangular pan, 13x9x2 inches, with shortening. In large bowl, mix granulated sugar, bananas, oil and eggs with spoon. Stir in flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Spread in pan. Bake bars 25 to 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely, about 1 hour before frosting (see link for the original frosting recipe for these bars from Betty Crocker).

Whipped Cream Cream Cheese Frosting**

(Prep Time 15 min, Total Time: 15 min, makes enough frosting for a 2 layer 9 inch cake)

• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

In a small bowl beat whipping cream until stiff peaks form; set aside. In a large bowl combine cream cheese, sugar, salt and vanilla. Beat until smooth, then fold in whipped cream.

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 The next leftover banana recipe I made was Alton Brown's banana ice cream (another yum recipe).  I cut this recipe in half.  Unfortunately that was too low a volume for my old ice cream maker and while the bottom where the ice cream was located locked up the top of the spindle kept trying to turn and finally broke the plastic paddle.  However, this mishap did lead to me getting a really nice ice cream maker attachment for my Kitchen Aid mixer this past Christmas!

Banana Ice Cream**

(Prep Time: 35 min, Total Time: 6hr 35 min, Makes: 1 qt)

• 6 (approximately 2 1/4 pounds) ripe bananas
• 1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 3/4 cup light corn syrup
• 1 vanilla bean, scraped
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream

Place bananas in freezer and freeze overnight. Remove bananas from freezer and allow to thaw for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Peel bananas and place in bowl of food processor along with the lemon juice. Process for 10 to 15 seconds. Add corn syrup and vanilla bean seeds and turn processor on. Slowly pour in the heavy cream. Process until smooth. Chill mixture in refrigerator until it reaches 40 degrees. Transfer mixture to an ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer's instructions. Place mixture in an airtight container and freeze for 3 to 6 hours before serving.