Recipes for Shabbat

Bananas

By Eileen Goltz

As a certified "Jewish Mom of the 10th degree" (10th degree denotes the mother who has nursed her children though at least a combined 10 ear infections, 7 colds and the chicken pox and a couple of bouts with "I don't want to go to school Mondays) I've come to the conclusion that the old saying "an apple a day keeps the doctor away" should be changed to "a banana a day keeps the doctor away."

Compared to apples, a banana has less water, fifty percent more food energy, four times the protein, half the fat, twice the carbohydrate, almost three times the phosphorus, nearly five times the Vitamin A and iron, at least twice the other vitamins and minerals as those apples we keep touting Bananas are ALWAYS available and since I know that everyone and their Bubbie has faced the dilemma of what to do with left over bananas AND I know that bananas are really good for you I thought it was time to combine the two concepts and come up with a column devoted to banana recipes. You won't find just any old banana bread recipes here. I've compiled a tasty collection of cookies, muffins, pies and soup that will have you buying more bananas than you can possibly eat just so that you can take the over ripe ones and use them in these recipes.

HEALTHY BANANA COOKIES (pareve)

Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, mash the bananas. Stir in the oats, dates, oil, cinnamon and vanilla. Mix well, and allow the batter to sit for 15 minutes. Scooping out approx. 1 teaspoon of batter at a time place the cookies onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until lightly brown. Makes 3 dozen. Note, these cookies don't really rise. They are a dense moist chewy granola type cookie that is best stored in an air tight container.

BANANA BLUEBERRY MUFFINS (dairy or pareve)

Topping:

1/3 cup sugar

2 teaspoons grated lemon zest

Preheat oven to 400. Lightly grease twelve 2 1/2-inch muffin cups. In a large bowl combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon, mix and set aside.

Place the bananas in the bowl (you can use an electric mixer or do this by hand). Beat the bananas until they are thoroughly mashed. Add eggs, brown sugar, butter, and vanilla to the bananas, beating until the mixture is blended. Stir in combined dry ingredients with a wooden spoon until almost blended but be careful not to overmix. Gently stir in the blueberries just they are just combined with the batter. Spoon the batter into prepared muffin cups, dividing batter equally. Prepare Topping: Combine sugar and lemon zest in small dish. Sprinkle the sugar mixture evenly over muffins. Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 22 minutes or until golden. Remove muffins from the oven and let cool for about 5 minutes before you remove them from pan to the wire rack to cool. Makes 12 muffins

BANANA SPLIT PIE (dairy)

In an electric mixing bowl combine the cream cheese with confectioner's sugar. Beat until combined and smooth. Spread the cream cheese mixture over the crust. Slice the bananas over cream cheese and then spread the pineapple over the top of the bananas. Spread the whipped topping over the pineapple and decorate the top with Cool Whip and decorate the top with the cherries. 

Drizzle a little chocolate syrup over the top of the pie to decorate and serve immediately. Note: You can replace the whipped topping with sweetened  whipped cream that has been beaten. This substitution adds a few more calories and a much richer flavor to the pie. Serves 6 to 8.

BAKED BANANA-STUFFED FRENCH TOAST (dairy)

Preheat oven to 350. Place the peeled bananas in a bowl and mash them. Spread the bananas evenly over the tops of 4 bread slices Top with remaining 4 bread slices. In a bowl combine the milk, eggs, vanilla extract and cinnamon and whisk together. Dip each "banana sandwich in the egg mixture, turning once so that each side soaks for about 30 seconds. Spray (or grease) large nonstick skillet with vegetable oil spray or butter or margarine. Heat over medium heat. Working in batches, add French toast to skillet and cook until golden, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer the French toast to a baking sheet and bake 7 to 8 minutes. Transfer to plates. Dust with powdered sugar. Garnish with strawberries. Serve with maple syrup, if desired. Serves 4 

BANANA RASPBERRY BISQUE (dairy)

Preheat oven to 350. Place the pound cake squares on a cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes or until crunchy. Set aside the croutons until you are ready to serve the bisque. These can be made 2 days in advance. In a blender or food processor combine the raspberries, 1/2 cup half-and-half, whipping cream, and powdered sugar and process until smooth, stopping once to scrape down sides. Pour the mixture through a strainer into a large  glass bowl to remove the seeds. Cover and refrigerate.

Just before you're ready to serve combine 2 bananas and 2 cups half-and-half in container of blender or food processor; process until smooth. Pour banana mixture into a large bowl; repeat procedure with remaining 2 bananas and 2 cups half-and-half. If you try to do this all at once the bowl of the processor or blender will overflow. Pour the banana mixture into small soup bowls. Pour the raspberry mixture into a squirt bottle and using the squirt bottle, carefully drizzle raspberry mixture over the top of the soup either a strip pattern or a concentric circle pattern. Using a toothpick or a knife drag the tip of the toothpick or knife through raspberry mixture, dragging it just a little to make the desired design (make sure you do not stir). Top with Pound Cake Croutons. Serves 8 to 10

Eileen Goltz, a professional chef and caterer, is the author of the new cookbook, Perfectly Pareve.