Cooking with Booze

   

Banana Flambé

Although the practice of igniting food for show can be traced to the Moors in the 14th century, modern flambéing was discovered in Monte Carlo in 1895, when Henri Carpentier, a waiter, accidentally set fire to a pan of crêpes he was preparing for the future Edward VII—and found the dish much improved.

• 2 bananas
• 2 tbsp sunflower oil
• 4 tbsp sugar
• juice of one lime
• 125ml (¼ pint) white rum

1. Peel the bananas and cut them in half lengthwise. Heat the oil in a medium pan and brown the bananas for 5 minutes on each side. Add the sugar and the rum and cook for a couple of minutes then light. When the flames go out, sprinkle with lime juice and serve.