This is a classic dessert, developed at Brennan's in New Orleans. I ate there once when I worked at Andersen Consulting. I was working in Dallas on a project and I met up with my home group at the DEC conference in New Orleans. The food was excellent and Rosemary, the group's lead, ordered $300 bottles of 1976 Chateau LaTour and $180 bottles of a white Puligny-Montrachet. To that point, my only experience with wine was Cold Duck at holidays as a kid and white zinfandel as a college student. Needless to say, I wasn't a big fan of wine. Since the wines cost so much, I decided to try both. The Puligny-Montrachet was delicious, but the LaTour was a revelation. It was the most refreshing beverage I've ever had. No astringent aftertaste and I could taste the fruit for minutes after a sip. I understood then why poets write about wine and decided that I needed to learn about wine. Of course, this all happened over multiple bottles, so my recollections may be a bit altered. Oh yeah, we also had banana's foster, which was tasty.

Nola Cuisine: This classic New Orleans dessert is another creation of the late dutch Chef Paul Blangé of the early days of Brennan’s, and is now known worldwide. Created in 1951, Bananas Foster is named for Richard Foster, owner of the Foster Awning Company, chairman of the crime commission to clean up the French Quarter, and at the time, frequent customer of Brennan’s.

Bananas Foster is simple, elegant, and sinful all at the same time, and one of my absolute favorite desserts. I’ve adapted my recipe from the Brennan’s version with a few changes.

I took the seemingly strange addition of toasted sesame oil from the recipe for Bananas Bliss from Paul Prudhomme’s book, Louisiana Tastes. Once you taste the nutty depth of flavor that it adds to the dish, you will never go back.

• 1/4 cup Butter
• 1 cup packed Brown Sugar
• 1/4 cup Creme de Banana
• 1/2 tsp ground Cinnamon
  • Bring simmer, cook for 2 minutes
• 4 medium Bananas, quartered
  • Add, cook for 4 minutes
• 1/4 cup Dark Rum
  • Add, ignite
  • Stir bananas until flame dies

Serve 2 pcs of banana and 1 TBSP sauce over ice cream

• Nola cuisine adds 2 pinches Nutmeg, 1 pinch salt and a small dash of toasted sesame oil to the cinnamon. Worth a try.