1 pinch fresh orange zest, per serving (optional) .
1 oz triple sec .
1 scoop French vanilla ice cream, per serving .
1/2 c loosely packed brown sugar .
1 oz creme de banane .
4 tbsps unsalted butter .
2-3 bananas, sliced .
1 1/2 oz rum (Bacardi 151 works wonderfully)
Directions
Step #1 Scoop ice cream into 2-3 individual serving dishes (depending on how large you want each serving to be) & place this in freezer.
Step #2 The ice cream should be firm & the serving pieces should be ice cold by the time you are ready to make the dessert.
Step #3 Pre-chill the bananas in the refrigerator.
Step #4 Do not use overly ripe bananas.
Step #5 The peel should be smoothly yellow with minimal spots or browning.
Step #6 If you'll be using the orange zest, go ahead & do that now (it won't take much, probably 4-5 swipes on a medium orange) & set aside.
Step #7 Over medium heat, melt butter in an 8-9" sauté pan.
Step #8 Do not brown or overheat the butter.
Step #9 Once melted, add the brown sugar & stir until dissolved.
Step #10 As the sugar begins to caramelize, add the créme de banane & triple sec.
Step #11 Stir to mix everything smoothly.
Step #12 Reduce heat to its lowest setting.
Step #13 Peel & slice bananas into the sauce.
Step #14 This can be done with as much or as little flair as you desire.
Step #15 This is definitely a dessert whose incredible taste is enhanced by the style of its preparation, so I always like to make a bit of a show of it.
Step #16 Increase heat back to medium & cook the sliced bananas for about 2 mins, until they become softened & glossy in appearance.
Step #17 In the final seconds of their cooking, retrieve the dishes of ice cream from the freezer.
Step #18 They should be frosty cold.
Step #19 Increase the heat to medium high & have a long-reach lighter ready in your hand.
Step #20 Pour the 151-proof rum into the pan, wait a beat, then ignite.
Step #21 Watch those eyebrows! If you are a practiced cook, & are using a gas burner, you can ignite the rum vapors by tilting the sauté pan slightly into the burner flame.
Step #22 Once the alcohol is burned off, which will only take a few seconds, turn off the burner & spoon the bananas & sauce over the scoops of ice cream.
Step #23 This should yield 3 small desserts or 2 decent-sized ones.
Step #24 It's a very sweet & rich dessert, so small portions are not a bad thing!
If you want to add a small pinch of orange zest, do so as soon as possible before serving.