Banana Split

Bangkok is back to its hot, sticky, sunny days and there's nothing quite like ice cream to take the edge off the heat. Hard to believe the banana split has been around since 1904. The city of Latrobe, Pennsylvania celebrated the 100th anniversary of the invention of the banana split in 2004, and in the same year the National Ice Cream Retailers Association (NICRA) certified the city as its birthplace. My first introduction to this sinfully delicious treat was when I was a young girl. My parents would take us, my brother and sisters, to the Dairy Queen for an ice cream cone and on special occasions we could splurge and get one of their DQ treats. Now you have to remember that back then only hard ice cream was available so when Dairy Queen opened its doors and served soft ice cream, it was an instant hit especially with my family. The banana split (introduced by Dairy Queen in 1951) was one of my favorites. It comprised of three mounds of vanilla ice cream covered with strawberry, pineapple, and chocolate, topped with whipped cream all nestled between banana halves. We have DQ stores here but they don't sell the banana split or at least they don't in the ones I've been to. So, without much further ado, here's a simple recipe to satisfy any sweet tooth!

Serves 1

1 firm but ripe banana, peeled and cut in half lengthways
vanilla ice cream (for optimum flavor, buy the best)
crushed or chopped strawberries with some sugar added (this helps produce the syrup)
1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
whipping cream

First, combine chocolate chips and about 2 tablespoons milk. Melt the chocolate chips and mix until the chocolate is pourable, you may need to add more milk to achieve this then set aside. Whip about 1/2 cup of cream until soft peaks form. To plate up, place 3 scoops of ice cream equidistant to one another in a long dish and place the banana halves on the outside. Spoon strawberry mixture over ice cream followed by chocolate sauce. Use a pastry bag or plastic bag (snip one corner) and pipe whipped cream on top of ice cream.

The Culinary Chase's Note: If you can't find fresh strawberries, you can try substituting them with good quality strawberry jam or even better, homemade jam. If you live in a hot climate, scoop out the ice cream, place on a plate and return to the freezer until you are ready to use. If you like DQ's soft ice cream, click here for the recipe! This recipe is a guideline and add ingredients you like to make your own banana split version. Enjoy!