THIS. This recipe is something I used to make almost every summer night when I was a kid. Those nights where all of the neighborhood kids would gather around after playing “jailbreak” or a heavy game of tag with flashlights running around for hours! We’d be famished afterwards and aching to sit down around the fire pits with our parents while they were all enjoying drinks and gossip- we were all about these desserts and refueling. To be honest, we used to beg our parents to make “foil bananas” which were peeled bananas sliced and stuffed with chocolate chips, coconut, and chopped peanuts wrapped in foil and put on the grill or open flames. Campfire Banana Boats are my grown up version of this classic summer treat.
AROUND THE FIRE
My remake of this childhood favorite is a little bit different with the addition of dark chocolate chips, toasted coconut flakes, a dash of cinnamon, chopped hazelnuts, and served with my Coconut Whipped Cream… and my Raw Caramel if you’re feeling extra indulgent.
There’s nothing like warm fruit, whether it’s banana’s foster, grilled pineapple, fruit baked in the oven- it’s even more delicious when heated. The sugars in fruit slowly release and start caramelizing creating this incredibly delicious syrup, especially when dark chocolate is thrown into the mix, the chocolate melts into the sugars from the banana and…it’s ridiculously good. The texture combination is sublime, bananas have a mushy texture especially when heated but holds up as the base when you mix crunchy toppings like chopped hazelnuts, coconut, and whatever other ingredient you’d like to try out! If I nutritionally break this recipe down, it’s pretty “healthy” if you want to apply a label to it. It’s a carbohydrate and fiber rich banana, topped with whole food ingredients that contain healthy fats especially the coconut whipped cream, toasted coconut, and nuts of your choice. But more than anything, it’s just delicious, and it’s all good to indulge every now and then!
Here are a couple more ideas and flavor combo you gotta try too!
- Served with coconut milk ice cream + topped with goji berries + raw caramel
- Dried mulberries + almond butter
- Dash of cinnamon and cayenne + cashew butter
- Vegan marshmallows (or organic if you can) + dark chocolate chips + chopped almonds
- 1 banana
- 1 tablespoon dark chocolate chip
- 1 tablespoon shredded unsweetened coconut
- 1 tablespoon chopped toasted hazelnuts
- Dash of ground cinnamon, to taste
- Small pinch of sea salt
- Garnish options: [url href=”https://nutritionstripped.com/raw-caramel-with-apples/” target=”_blank” title=”Raw Caramel with Apples”]Raw Caramel,[/url] [url href=”https://nutritionstripped.com/peach-fig-galette-with-coconut-whipped-cream/” target=”_blank” title=”Peach Fig Galette with Coconut Whipped Cream”]Coconut Whipped Cream [/url]
- Heat your grill or enjoy the experience of making these over an open fire (using a grill rack over the firepit).
- Using a sharp knife cut the banana in half, keeping the peel, and gently opening from the slit. Place the split banana on a large piece of foil, and top with dark chocolate chips, coconut, hazelnuts, cinnamon and sea salt in the opening of the banana, where it’s been cut.
- Next wrap the foil around the banana making sure that all the contents are tightly wrapped around and won’t pour out of the foil over the flame.
- Next place the foil wrapped banana on the open flame or grill and cook for 5-8 minutes or until the banana is soft and chocolate is melted (check by opening the foil and stabbing with a fork).
- Serve hot and enjoy!
Some of my favorite tools that might help make this recipe an entire fun event, gather your friends and family and cheers, these amazing blankets or a grill just incase you don’t have a fire pit. I hope you all give these a go, especially if you’ve never tried them before!
PS:
I’m so excited to announce that I’ll be hosting a supper club with my friends at Haven Mag on July 18th! The best part is, it’ll be back in my hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio. Spaces are limited so CLICK HERE for more details and to purchase tickets while you can!
xx McKel
