Today is the day I’ve been waiting for since what feels like the beginning of time. There aren’t many things in this world that I can claim in true hipster fashion that “I loved it before it went mainstream,” but I loved Arrested Development before it went mainstream.
In fact, my whole family got hooked on the show a long time ago. After mercilessly tantalizing rumors about movies and new episodes, the long-awaited fourth season has finally arrived, and I can’t imagine a better way to spend the day than binge-watching the Bluth family in all of their dysfunctional glory.
Photo courtesy of Los Angeles Times.
In honor of the Bluth’s and their infamous frozen banana stand, I decided to make some frozen bananas to celebrate. Side note: when I told one of my friends I was doing this, she bluntly told me that any one can put bananas in the freezer. These bananas, however, are covered in chocolate and crumbled goodness. Below is the original pin that I tried to duplicate. Let’s just say that the whole ordeal was basically a fiasco.
Photo courtesy of makeit-loveit.com.
The original recipe, which can be found at http://www.makeit-loveit.com/2012/05/frozen-bananas-covered-in-chocolatey-goodness.html, seemed simple enough. Freeze the bananas, dip them in chocolate, and cover them in toppings. I used two bananas, chocolate morsels, pecans, Oreo’s, caramel, and toffee bits. These toppings create two kinds of frozen bananas: one with crumbled pecans and drizzled caramel, and one with crumbled Oreo’s and toffee bits with more melted chocolate drizzled over it. You can use whatever kind of toppings you want, though.
I cut the bananas in half, stuck barbecue skewers in them, and froze them overnight. The next day, I made my first mistake when I pulled them out of the freezer too early. They started unfreezing, obviously, adjusting to the room temperature, which made it harder for the melted chocolate to stick.
The melted chocolate in itself was an absolute mess. I don’t really know what went wrong, but something was definitely wrong. The recipe says to melt the morsels in the microwave until you get a nice, thin consistency. I ended up with lumpy and thick, which made it really interesting when I tried to drizzle the chocolate over the crumbled Oreo’s and toffee bananas. Also, the still-frozen bananas started freezing the chocolate before I put the toppings on. I couldn’t help but think to myself, “I’ve made a huge mistake.”
Erin Patterson/Old Gold & Black
By the end of the project, I had chocolate and toppings everywhere, all over my hands, in my hair, on one of my dogs, but most importantly, on the bananas. Here are some tips to help your banana extravaganza be a little less traumatic.
Before you do anything, make sure your toppings are ready. Crumble your Oreo’s, toffee, and pecans and put them in separate bowls so that you’ll be able to slap them on the chocolate before it hardens. When melting the chocolate morsels, stir them every 20 or 30 seconds, pouring in oil to help thin it out. Spread the chocolate on the bananas with a spoon, because your fingers will get burned and dipping the bananas doesn’t really work. Don’t try to get ahead of yourself. Spread the chocolate, press the toppings into the chocolate, and then move on to the next banana. Also, place the bananas on wax paper so that they won’t be frozen to the plate or cookie sheet you’re using.
Erin Patterson/Old Gold & Black
In spite of the absolute mess I made, I ended up with four delicious chocolate-and topping-covered bananas. It was like a magic trick. Or should I say illusion?
“And now the story of a wealthy family who lost everything, and the one son who had no choice to keep them all together. It’s Arrested Development.” Enjoy the show, folks.
Photo courtesy of brandnewcool.com.