Peanut Butter Banana Bites

Chocolate!

It’s Friday, and to me, that means it’s time for treats. Ok, I tend to think that there’s a time for treats somewhere in every day, but Friday is for extra special treats. (Sometimes, Monday is for extra special treats, too.) I like treats, a lot. And I especially love it when I can pretend like my treats are super healthy. That’s kind of why I’ve always loved frozen chocolate-covered bananas. It’s totally fruit.

The best thing about frozen chocolate-covered bananas, other than their obvious perfection as a dessert, is that they are really easy. Of course, I did once manage to find a way to mess them up, but what’s great about mistakes is that you can learn from them. What I learned from the Frozen Banana Disaster of Aught Seven is that melted chocolate can be a little temperamental. But I understand. I can be temperamental, too.

The trick to melting chocolate is not to let it get too hot. This will cause it to go all chalky and weird. See the aforementioned Frozen Banana Disaster for photographic evidence. You want to melt the chocolate just until the point that your individual pieces are starting to become indistinguishable in the mass of chocolatey goodness. You’ll probably think it’s not done yet and be tempted to heat it just a bit more, but refrain. Just stir the chocolate up really well with a fork or a spatula, and the remaining unmelted bits will melt. You will be spared chalky chocolate.

What’s also great about making frozen bananas is that you really don’t need much in the way of ingredients.

Ingredients, so easy

Just chocolate, cream, and bananas. And, oh wait, what’s that in there? Is that peanut butter? Oh bejeesus, someone went and made my favorite snack even more awesome. I saw these gorgeous banana bites on Pinterest, and my heart immediately started racing a little faster. Kris is clearly a genius.

I also love the idea of making these just a little smaller than I usually do. It makes me feel totally justified in eating twice as many. Remember, this is fruit. It’s totally ok.

Peanut butter and bananas

It’s Friday, and you deserve a treat. These take about 30 minutes to pull together (or less, if you’re better at chocolate dipping than I am). Of course, they have to freeze, but two hours should be enough time to at least garner you a few as a snack. Then you’ll have to rest of them to tide you over all weekend. This is also a perfect little kitchen task to help you, or at least me, unwind after a long working week. It’s easy, and there’s chocolate.

Peanut Butter Banana Bites

Adapted from Kris at nom!nom!nom!

  • about 4 1/2 ounces of dark chocolate
  • about 3 tablespoons cream
  • 2 bananas
  • some peanut butter

This is a totally inexact recipe, because it’s Friday, and you don’t need to be thinking about precision.

Cover a small baking sheet (small enough to fit into your freezer) with parchment paper.

Cut up the chocolate and put it in a microwave safe bowl. Pour in the cream. Microwave the chocolate at 20 second intervals, stirring between each. Mine needed only 35 seconds to melt sufficiently. You don’t want to let the chocolate get too hot, so be careful, and stop microwaving when the chocolate is still not 100 percent melted. Stir it together well until the remaining bits have melted. Add a little more cream to thin the chocolate if needed.

Cut the bananas into half inch slices. Dab a little slip of peanut butter on top of each banana. Use a fork to dip the banana slice into the melted chocolate. Tap the fork against the side of the bowl to allow the chocolate to coat the bananas, and to let any excess slip off. Don’t worry about covering the bananas perfectly, unless you’re a perfectionist.

Slide the banana slice from the fork onto the parchment paper, and continue with each banana slice until you’re done. You might have some chocolate left, and you should probably eat it straight up with a spoon.

Put the baking sheet in the freezer and let the bananas freeze for at least two hours, and preferably overnight. You will not be sorry.

2 thoughts on “Peanut Butter Banana Bites”

    1. I wish I could take credit, but I saw the idea on Pinterest. They are pretty perfect though.

Comments are closed.