Churro Banana Split Boats

 

There used to be a big old family restaurant on the Main Street where I lived a good part of my childhood called Eisner's Restaurant.  It was a family run place and "THE" place to go if you wanted a nice place to take the family for special dinners, or to meet up with your friends or social groups for nights out and celebrations.

 

They served great food!  Going there was a real treat.  One of the most popular items on their menu was the "Seafood Platter" which had lobster, shrimps, clams, scallops, fried fish, coleslaw and chips. It was a huge platter and meant only for the heartiest of appetites.  Luckily you could also buy a "Half Seafood Platter!

 

Every Tuesday night they had Banana Split nights. You could get a Banana Split for half price. My mom and her friend Marlene used to go and treat themselves to a Banana Split every Tuesday night.  It was a great night out for them!  My parents also used to go there regularly for coffee. 

 

They shut down the Town Cinema and turned that into a family type restaurant and pub with music and Karaoke, and then Tim Horton's got built just two doors down from Eisner's and so it was only a matter of time before they ended up closing the restaurant, which was kind of sad I thought.  It was like they were shutting down a town institution . . .

 

I was thinking about my mom and how much she enjoyed those Banana Splits the other day. I had seen a recipe on line for Mini Cinnamon Sugar Churro Bowls on Tablespoon.  They were created using the smaller tortilla boats and were filled with a variety of mousses.

 

I thought to myself that this simple idea would work also for creating Churro Banana Split Boats, except you would have to use the larger tortilla boats, because well . . .  banana splits are large!

 

They were a very simple make.  I simply brushed each tortilla boat with some melted butter and sprinkled them with cinnamon sugar, baking them in a moderately hot oven until crisp and golden.

 

Then I made my candied flakes almonds to sprinkle on top.  Oh boy but these are some good and they, too, are a very easy make.  I could just munch on them.  You could also sprinkle them with sugar to continue the churro theme if you wanted to.

 

Into each baked churro boat went one banana sliced in half lengthwise . . .

 

On top of the sliced banana went three small scoops of a good vanilla ice cream. I used Cornish Clotted Cream Ice cream . . .  yum!!

 

Each ball got their own drizzle of sauce  . . .  chocolate fudge . . .  strawberry and toffee  . . .

 

Then some softly whipped cream got dolloped on top of the ice cream . . .

 

Finally I sprinkled on the candied almonds, which I broke up and crumbled a bit, leaving a few whole . . .  toasty and crunchy and scrumptiously nutty.

  

Really they should have been topped with a maraschino cherry (with a stem) to finish them off perfectly, but I didn't have any on this particular day.  These were simple, delicious and very easy to make and then went down a real treat.  I remembered my mom and how much she enjoyed her banana splits with every mouthful

Churro Banana Split Boats

Yield: 4

Author: Marie Rayner

Simple and delicious. Your family will love this quick and easy dessert!

ingredients:

For the Churro Boats:

• 4 Stand and Stuff soft Tortilla boats
• 4 TBS butter, melted
• 2 TBS granulated sugar
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon

For the Candied Almonds:

• 50g of toasted flaked almonds (generous half cup)
• 100g caster sugar (1/2 cup)

You will also need:

• Vanilla ice cream for scooping (3 small scoops in each boat)
• 4 small bananas
• chocolate, strawberry and caramel sauce
• whipped cream
• maraschino cherries (optional)

instructions:

How to cook Churro Banana Split Boats

1. First make the churro boats. Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Line a small baking tray with baking paper. Whisk together the sugar and cinnamon. Brush the insides of each tortilla boat with some melted butter. Shake on some of the cinnamon sugar, shaking off any excess. Brush more butter on the outsides of the tortilla boats and sprinkle with the remainder of the cinnamon sugar. Place onto the paper lined tray. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until crisp and golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.
2. To make the candied almonds, have ready a lightly buttered baking sheet. Toast the almonds carefully in a skillet, over medium heat, stirring constantly. Tip out into a bowl. Add the sugar to the skillet and let it sit, undisturbed until it begins to melt. Swirl every now and again until it is completely liquid and turns a golden caramel colour. Don't be tempted to rush this process as you will end up with burnt sugar. Medium heat is sufficient. Remove from the heat. Tip in the almonds, stirring to coat. Pour onto the prepared baking sheet and tear them apart with two forks while they are still hot, breaking them up into little clumps. Allow to cool completely. Remember hot sugar is HOT. Don't touch.
3. Place a tortilla boat onto one each of four dessert plates. Peel and slice the bananas in half. Place two halves in each boat. Top each with 3 small scoops of ice dream. Drizzle the syrups onto the ice cream balls, making sure each boat has one drizzled with caramel, one with chocolate and one with strawberry. Top with the whipped cream, sprinkle with the candied almonds and cherries ( if using.) Serve immediately.

Created using The Recipes Generator

 

You could do a Churro Banana Split bar for children's parties if you wanted to, making up the churro tortilla boats ahead of time and then just providing the other makings for kids to make them up themselves.  In that case I would also add some dandy sprinkles, M&M's etc. Kids would really love this idea!