Reprinted with permission from The Wine Lover's Dessert Cookbook by Mary Cech and Jennie Schacht (Chronicle, 2005). (Compare Prices)
- 4 medium bananas or 8 niño bananas, completely yellow with just a few dark spots
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
- 1/3 cup salted, dry roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped
- 2 teaspoons finely grated lime zest (about 2 limes)
- 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- 2 to 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
Preheat the broiler and position an oven rack 6 to 8 inches from the broiler element. Butter a rimmed baking sheet or line it with foil.
Peel the bananas. Cut them in half crosswise and then lengthwise to make four pieces for each banana. (If using niño bananas, cut them in half lengthwise only.) Place the bananas cut-side up in the prepared pan. Sprinkle the brown sugar, peanuts, and lime zest evenly over the bananas. Dot them with the butter pieces and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the lime juice.
Broil the bananas until the sauce is bubbling and patches of brown appear on the peanuts and bananas, 3 to 5 minutes. Sprinkle the bananas with the remaining lime juice and serve immediately on warm plates.
Matching the wine
Sweet wines love salt, and the bananas pair well with botrytis. Together, the elements match well with a late harvest botrytised wine with good acidity, such as a sauvignon blanc or sémillon. We love this with Carmenet's honey-gold Copa de Oro late harvest sémillon (Edna Valley, California). The combination of flavors also stands up well to a vin santo or tawny port, while the lime marries nicely with orange muscat or a late harvest white featuring citrus flavors.
