• 4 ripe bananas, peeled • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter • 1 cup paced light brown sugar • 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon • 1/4 cup banana liqueur • 1/2 cup dark rum • 1 pint vanilla ice cream • Confectioners sugar, garnish • Ground cinnamon, garnish



1. Use this sauce over your pancakes for breakfast or over ice cream for desert.

2. Cut the bananas in half across and then lengthwise.

3. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the brown sugar and cinnamon and cook, stirring, until the sugar dissolves, about 2 minutes. Add the bananas and cook on both sides until the bananas start to soften and brown, about 3 minutes. Add the banana liqueur and stir to blend into the sauce. Carefully add the rum and shake the pan back and forth to warm the rum and flame the pan. (Or, off the heat, carefully ignite the pan with a match and return to the heat.) Shake the pan back and forth, basting the bananas, until the flame dies. Remove the pan from the heat.

4. Remove the pancakes from the oven and divide among 4 large plates. Top each serving with 1 scoop of vanilla ice cream. Gently lift the bananas from the pan and place 4 pieces on each stack of pancakes. Spoon the sauce over the bananas and ice cream and garnish with confectioners sugar and cinnamon. Serve immediately.

Yield: Makes 4 servings.