Bananas Foster

This bananas foster recipe is a showstopping dessert that will impress everyone at your table — but it's surprisingly simple to make!

What Is Bananas Foster?

Bananas foster is a dessert consisting of sliced bananas and a rum sauce served over vanilla ice cream. It originated in New Orleans and is often prepared tableside in restaurants as a flambé (a cooking technique in which alcohol is added to a hot pan, creating flames).

Bananas Foster Ingredients

These are the ingredients you'll need to make this restaurant-worthy bananas foster recipe:

· Butter: This decadent bananas foster recipe starts with butter melted in a skillet.
· Brown sugar: Dark brown sugar gives the dessert a rich and complex sweetness.
· Rum: Use your favorite dark rum for this boozy treat.
· Vanilla: Vanilla extract enhances the overall flavor of this bananas foster recipe.
· Cinnamon: Ground cinnamon lends a warm and cozy flavor.
· Bananas: Of course, you'll need bananas!
· Walnuts: Coarsely chopped walnuts add nutty flavor and welcome crunch.
· Ice cream: Use store-bought or homemade vanilla ice cream.

How to Make Bananas Foster

You'll find the full, step-by-step recipe below — but here's a brief overview of what you can expect when you make bananas foster at home:

1. Melt the butter in a skillet. Stir in the sugar, rum, vanilla, and cinnamon.
2. Add the bananas and walnuts, then cook until the bananas are soft.
3. Serve over ice cream.

Can You Make Bananas Foster Ahead of Time?

While it's best to make bananas foster right before you plan to serve it, you can make the sugary rum sauce the day before. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator, then reheat on the stove before finishing the recipe as written.

Allrecipes Community Tips and Praise

"Just right," according to Bradley Miller. "Delicious and simple. Making sure the sugar is completely dissolved is very important for a great bananas foster."

"I have made this for years," says Michelle Embrey Hembree. "It is so delicious! The only thing I do differently is substitute brandy for the rum. It's a favorite at my house. I usually make a double batch and it will all be gone that night or the next day."

"Made this on the weekend with pecans and had to omit the vanilla (because I ran out), but it was so good," says LJ Shaw. "Used the remaining little bit on pancakes the next morning and I now have a new favorite pancake topper."

Editorial contributions by Corey Williams