Finish Off Your Sundae With A Grilled Banana And Thank Us Later

Ice cream provides the perfect base for countless dreamlike desserts, from simple dipped cones and root beer floats to complex loaded flurries and sundaes with endless additions. No matter how you build it, it's going to be great. However, it's time for candy, cookies, and sprinkles to move aside, because there's a new topping in town that's guaranteed to make your ice cream experience even better: a grilled banana. 

Sure, there are many ways to cook with bananas, like making quarantine-popularized banana bread or baking them into banana chips, but the way the slightly crispy, caramelized outside and warm, soft center of a grilled banana contrasts with the chill of the ice cream sends this preparation technique to the top of the list. Because it is slathered with butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon before it is put over a flame, a grilled banana has enough flavor on its own to liven up a mild ice cream flavor like vanilla, but also balances well with other flavors like chocolate peanut butter or butter pecan. It even works well with a variety of toppings like caramel or those in a grilled banana split.

To achieve this beautifully golden banana, choose one that is just ripe or even overripe, which will lend itself well to caramelization due to its extra sugar. Leaving the peel on, slice the banana in half lengthwise. Coat the open halves with butter and a mixture of brown sugar and cinnamon. Place them on the grill, peel side down, for three minutes, then flip the banana halves and continue to grill them for another two minutes. When they're finished, remove the peels and place the banana slices atop your ice cream. 

If you want to take it up a notch, brush on some bourbon or rum before grilling to make this treat more reminiscent of bananas Foster, which calls for flambéing sliced bananas in a pan. You could also roast bananas to give them a flavor boost if you don't feel like firing up the grill. Another variation of this is deep-fried banana spring rolls, like those served at P.F. Chang's with coconut pineapple ice cream. 

Regardless of how you achieve it, this hot-and-cold combination of caramelized banana and ice cream is so good, you won't be able to resist. In fact, you'll likely be eager to see what other grilled fruits make the perfect summer ice cream topping.