Peanut Butter Banana Bonbons
I lay in bed some mornings trying to will my food brain into action.
On the particular morning that these Banana Bonbon things were born into my brain, I was lying in bed thinking that I’d really like to eat Oreo cookies… but I’d like them to be frozen… and then maybe I could smear peanut butter on top… except that’s crazy… crazy good!!!
No food brain. No. Be reasonable. (That’s what I think to myself as I lay in bed thinking about Oreo cookies first thing in the morning.) We need more fruit. Can we turn bananas into cookies? Yes. Let’s add peanut butter… and probably chocolate while we’re at it… and we’re going to need something crunchy… peanuts! And let’s pull that awesome coconut oil trick to make a the chocolate as smooth as can be.
Alright food brain. Good job! Essentially you’ve created a chocolate-dipped frozen banana and found a way to smash peanut butter inside. You started with Oreos cookies and, well… here we are.
Think of these frozen treats as mini banana peanut butter sandwiches dipped in chocolate an topped with peanuts. It’s beyond easy and might be one of the better ideas ever on the Internet. Speaking of the Internet, these treats are aaaallll over the dang thing, which just goes to show that no matter how hard my food brain works, it’s impossible to think of anything brand-spankin’ new. Still though…. still delicious! Just saying…
Let’s rustle these ingredients out of the pantry.
Bananas are sliced thick but not tooooo thick. Honey roasted peanuts, finely chopped and generously snacked on, peanut butter (I used the Jiffy kind because it’s not as mushy as my preferred natural variety), semi-sweet chocolate, and coconut oil!
I used a pastry bag and small star tip to pipe peanut butter onto the banana slices. I found that it’s much easier that trying to coax peanut butter off of a butterknife and onto a small banana slice.
Petite popsicle sticks, too!
I posed a picture of this recipe on Instagram yesterday and someone suggested I use pretzel sticks instead of popsicle sticks.
MIND BLOWN! Be smarter than me. Do this!
It takes some smarts to press the sticks into the banana slices without completely smashing the peanut butter out of the banana slices. I used my index finger and my thumb to surround the banana sandwich to support the top banana slice as I push the popsicle stick in.
Now… if you know a better way to make the peanut butter not mush, please… be smarter than me.
Lined up and ready for some time in the freezer. We want to freeze these treats so they’re just partially frozen.
I melted chocolate chips with coconut oil.
Coconut oil is such a fantastic trick! Coconut oil is solid at room temperature so once the chocolate and coconut oil settle around the bananas, they’re create a thin and smooth chocolate shell!
I poured my melted chocolate mixture into a drinking glass. The depth of the glass makes dunking the bananas easier.
Frozen bananas make me feel like it’s my lucky day. Like I haven’t really done anything to deserve such a treat, and yet…treats are here, and they’re cold, and crunchy, and chocolate-y.
I hope you enjoy these frozen treats this summer. I adore you. I’m going to go rest my food brain now so I can dream up something doughnut-y.
The recipe below seems pretty long considering we’re just combining bananas with peanut butter and chocolate. You don’t really need this recipe step-by-step. Your instincts will show you the way.
Peanut Butter Banana Bonbons
makes about 24 bonbons
3 ripe and large bananas
about 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter (I used Jiffy)
10 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1/3 cup finely chopped honey roasted peanuts
small popsicle sticks (or pretzel sticks)
Peel bananas and slice into medium-thick round slices. I sliced my bananas about 1/3-inch thick.
Spoon peanut butter into a piping bag fitted with a small star tip attachment. Pipe about 1 teaspoon of peanut butter onto half of the banana slices. Top each peanut butter topped banana with a plain banana slice and press down just slightly. It’s like a banana sandwich!
To insert the popsicle sticks (or pretzel sticks) into the banana sandwich, place your thumb and index finger over and around the banana sandwich. firmly press the stick into and through the banana slices, but use your thumb and index finger to hold the top banana slice in place during the pressing. This will help ensure that all of the peanut butter doesn’t smush out of the sides.
Place peanut butter pops on a parchment lined baking sheet. Place in the freezer to harden for at least 30 minutes.
While the pops harden, melt the chocolate in a double boiler.
Place 2 inches of water in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Place chocolate chips and coconut oil in a medium heat-proof bowl. Place the bowl over the simmering water and stir together chocolate and coconut oil as it melts. Stir until completely melted.
Transfer melted chocolate mixture to a glass with a mouth wide enough to dunk the banana sandwiches. I used a small tumbler glass. A shallow bowl will make the banana sandwiches hard to dip and completely cover.
Dip the slightly hardened banana sandwiches completely in chocolate. Return them to the parchment paper and immediately sprinkle with honey roasted peanuts. After dipping all of the bananas, return to the freezer for at least 2 hours before serving. Bananas will last for a week or two in the freezer. You can also wrap them individually for storage in the freezer.
