Best Banana Napoleon Recipes

CHOCOLATE-BANANA WAFFLE NAPOLEON

Steps:

• Heat a Belgian-style waffle iron. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir in buttermilk, melted butter, and eggs until smooth. The batter will be thick.
• Spray waffle iron with cooking spray. Ladle about 1/4 cup batter into each section of the waffle grid; spread batter almost to the edges. Close lid; bake 3 minutes, until no steam emerges from waffle iron.
• Transfer cooked waffles to a baking sheet; place in an oven set to low heat, about 200 degrees, while using the remaining batter.
• Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons brown-sugar butter. Add bananas, and saute until softened and golden brown, 1 to 1 1/2 minutes. Add nuts. Remove skillet from heat, carefully add Grand Marnier, and ignite. Allow alcohol to burn off. Continue to saute until bananas and nuts are well coated.
• Split waffles in half. Place a half on each of two plates. Spoon one-quarter of the banana mixture over each waffle half. Top with remaining waffle halves. Spoon another one-quarter of the banana mixture over waffles. Dust each with confectioners' sugar and then drizzle with chocolate.

NAPOLEON'S BANANA MUFFIN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease two twelve-cup muffin tins.
• In a mixing bowl, mix bananas, 1/2 cup brown sugar, honey, rum, and cognac with an electric mixer until smooth.
• In a large bowl, whisk together 3 cups flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In another bowl, cream white sugar, 2/3 cup brown sugar, eggs, and melted butter. Pour banana mixture and creamed egg mixture into the flour, and stir until just combined. Spoon mixture into muffin tins, filling cups 3/4 full.
• In a small bowl, mix together 1 cup brown sugar, 3 tablespoons flour, and cinnamon. Cut in 3 tablespoons butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over batter in muffin tins.
• Bake muffins in preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until done.

BANANA NAPOLEON

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375°F.
• Boil water. Drop the wonton wrappers in one at a time and bring water back to a boil. Boil for about a minute and a half then drain carefully and return wrappers to pot. Fill pot with cold water.
• Brush a cookie sheet with oil. Carefully lift wrappers from water shake off as much water as you can and arrange on sheet. (NOW you know why we used cold water don't you?).
• Place 1 1/4 tbsp of sugar into sieve and top wrappers.
• Cook for 16 to 18 minutes. They should be nicely browned, crisp and glazed. Now remove wrappers from sheet to a cooling rack carefully with thin spatula.
• Mix the lemon rind, lemon juice, peach preserves, and rum in a bowl large enough to hold the bananas.
• Peel the bananas, first cut them in half crosswise, then into 1/3-inch lengthwise slices.
• Add them to the bowl, and mix gently to coat the banana slices with the sauce.
• When you go to serve place a wonton crisp on each of the four dessert plates then divide the banana mixture among the plates, spoon on top of the crisps.
• Place the remaining wonton crisps on top of the bananas, sprinkle the remaining teaspoon of sugar on top.
• Serve immediately.

BANANA NAPOLEON WITH RUM CREAM

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Place the puff pastry on parchment lined baking sheets, 1/2-inch apart. Place parchment on top of the dough and then on a wire rack or baking sheet on top. Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes. (If you are using a baking sheet on top, you will have to remove the baking sheet to see if the puff is done.) Cool to room temperature. Slice each piece of puff pastry in 1/2 horizontally along the 4-inch side.
• Whisk the cream, sugar, vanilla extract, and rum in a large bowl until soft peaks form.
• Slice the bananas 1/2-inch thick on a bias. Place them in a bowl and mix in the lime and orange juices.
• Place some bananas and a little rum cream on each of 6 plates. Place a piece of puff pastry on top. Place the remaining bananas and rum cream on the puff. Drizzle warm caramel sauce over and around the bananas. Top with a second piece of puff. Serve immediately.

BANANA BREAD NAPOLEON

Steps:

• For the banana bread: Position an oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line an 18-by-13-inch rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, allowing for a 1-inch overhang at each long end. Spray the parchment with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mash the bananas on medium speed until soft. Turn the speed to medium-low and add the granulated sugar, oil, vanilla and eggs and mix until the bananas are pureed and the mixture is smooth. Turn the speed to low and add the flour mixture to the banana mixture in 2 additions, mixing well between them. Mix until just combined.
• Spread the batter out in an even layer in the prepared baking sheet using a spatula, and tap the pan against the countertop once to remove air bubbles. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the bread is golden and pulls away from the pan, 22 to 25 minutes. Let cool in the pan 15 minutes. Remove the bread using the parchment overhang to a baking rack to cool completely, 30 minutes.
• For the frosting: Meanwhile, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese on medium speed until softened, 1 minute. Add the confectioners' sugar in 2 batches, beating on low speed until combined after each addition, 1 minute. Turn the speed to medium and add the sour cream and heavy cream and beat until smooth, silky and well-combined. Transfer to a resealable plastic bag and chill.
• For assembling the napoleons: Transfer the bread with its parchment to a large cutting board. Using a ruler to get a straight edge, trim 1/4-inch from all the edges. Cut the bread into thirty-five 3-by-1 1/2-inch rectangles (cut every 3 inches along the length and 1 1/2 inches along the width.). Line the rectangles up vertically on a cutting board. Cut the corner off of the bag of frosting, and pipe a zigzag of frosting over each of the pieces. Stack 2 banana bread and frosting layers upon each other. Repeat with the remaining layers of bread and frosting to make seventeen 2-layer napoleons (you will have one unpartnered piece of cake left over). Top each napoleon with a banana chip, if using.

CHOCOLATE-BANANA NAPOLEON

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400°F.
• Cut pastry sheet crosswise into 3 rectangles. Roll or stretch each rectangle into 14x3-1/2-inch rectangle. Place, 2 inches apart, on parchment-covered baking sheet. Sprinkle 1 rectangle with granulated sugar and nuts. Cover all rectangles with second sheet of parchment; top with second baking sheet.
• Bake 15 min., using oven mitt to carefully press down top baking sheet after 8 min. to flatten pastries. Remove top baking sheet and top parchment sheet. Reduce oven temperature to 375ºF. Bake pastry 8 to 10 min. or until golden brown. Cool completely.
• Meanwhile, mix sour cream and powdered sugar in medium bowl until blended. Gently stir in half the COOL WHIP. Microwave 3 oz. chocolate and remaining COOL WHIP in microwaveable bowl on HIGH 1 min.; stir until chocolate is completely melted and mixture is well blended. Cool.
• Slice bananas. Spread half the chocolate mixture onto 1 plain pastry rectangle on serving plate; top with half each of the bananas and sour cream mixture. Repeat layers. Cover with nut-topped pastry, nut side up. Melt remaining chocolate; drizzle over dessert.