Creole Flambé Bananas

If you love the darkly spiced and decadent flavours of Caribbean desserts, you’ll adore these Flambé Bananas from Vanessa Bolosier’s Sunshine Kitchen. Traditionally made with plantains, this very simple and easy recipe also works a treat when made with sweet bananas.

Read our full review of Sunshine Kitchen and the Caribbean flavours to be found within its bright and enticing cover.

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Flambé bananas | Bananes flambées

The most popular dessert in Guadeloupe and Martinique. Traditionally made with ordinary bananas, but we found them too soft and so my mum made a firmer version, using ripe plantains. It became a family recipe. When my sister and I lived in Paris, I would make these when I missed home – and my sister couldn’t get enough. When she makes them, she uses cane syrup instead of sugar and adds vanilla. 

Servings 4 servings

Author Vanessa Bolosier

Ingredients

• 2 very ripe plantains
• 50 g (4 tbsp) butter
• 1 pinch grated cinnamon
• 1 pinch grated nutmeg
• 150 g (3⁄4 cup) golden granulated sugar
• juice of 1 lime
• 3-4 tbs white rum

Notes

Tip: Grate a little lime zest over the bananas before serving, and serve with coconut or vanilla ice cream.

Instructions

• Peel the plantains and slice them in three lengthwise. Melt the butter in a frying pan (skillet) and fry the plantains on both sides, until golden.
• Add the cinnamon, nutmeg, sugar and lime juice. Pour the rum into the pan and immediately – standing well back as the flames leap up – either tilt the pan slightly so it touches the flame (if you have a gas hob) or hold a match near to the pan (on an electric hob) to flambé the bananas. Serve immediately.

Our reviewer Nicky made this recipe using regular bananas instead of plantains and loved it!

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Kavey Eats was provided with a review copy of Vanessa Bolosier’s Sunshine Kitchen: : Delicious Creole recipes from the heart of the Caribbean from publisher Pavilion Books. Book image (top) credit: Clare Winfield. Home-cooked image (below) credit: Nicky Bramley.