Elevate your camping and glamping trips with this indulgent Toasted Marshmallow Bananas Foster that cooks up over the campfire.
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Glamping (glam + camping): the pleasures of a crackling campfire, good friends, and open-air slumber glammed up with luxurious comfort, chic decor, and indulgent food!
Camping and campfires almost always mean one thing: s'mores. Marshmallows toasted to a golden brown over the fire and then sandwiched with chocolate two graham crackers. What a wonderful and gooey dessert, and festive too because it's one of those defining, summery things that we wistfully miss when we're deep in the frigid winter buried in snow and ice. (That's my Vermont perspective.)
However, when on a glamping excursion you may be wondering how to take dessert to a new level. Something that you can bring together over the fire without too much fuss that will feel special and sophisticated. Even classy. To that end, I give you Toasted Marshmallow Bananas Foster!
The original Bananas Foster dessert was created at Brennan's Restaurant in New Orleans in 1951 and consists of sliced bananas quickly cooked in caramelized butter, sugar, cream, and rum. It's normally served over ice cream, but I would not dream of asking you to try to fuss with melty ice cream on your camping or glamping excursion. Here's how we keep it simple.
Why you'll love this treat
This Bananas Foster gives a nod to the good old s'more. Fresh off the fire, the bananas and sweet rum sauce are poured over toasted marshmallows and graham crackers in a bowl. The fusion of warm rum, bananas, and marshmallow is divine and so very nice with the crunch of grahams.
A traditional Bananas Foster has the rum ignited for a dramatic flambé, but in this version, we'll just keep the flames under the pan! This dish will warm you up as the sun sets over your glamping digs.
Put the ingredients for this recipe together in a galvanized tin tub or a cute fabric tote to make a Bananas Foster kit! That way everything is ready to go when you want to make your dessert. (And your glamping buddies friends will see the kit and wonder with sweet anticipation what you're up to!) Pre-measure the sugar, vanilla, and rum into sealed containers to save time if you wish. (The butter should be packed separately and kept cold.)
While you're at it, put together a kit for breakfast time: Bacon Avocado Toast and Campfire Bloody Marys, too!
🔪 How to make Toasted Marshmallow Bananas Foster
Step 1: Toast the marshmallows
Thread marshmallows onto skewers and toast them over a fire until they're golden brown. Put the gooey marshmallows into bowls with broken pieces of graham crackers.
Step 2: Begin the sauce
Melt butter in a skillet over a fire, then stir in some sugar.
Step 3: Cook the bananas
When the sauce is smooth and thick stir in rum, vanilla, and sliced bananas. Cook them for just a few minutes.
Step 4: Pour it on
Pour the sugary, syrupy bananas over the toasted marshmallows and grahams. Serve them up!
Notes:
- There is an equipment list below for this recipe. You'll probably find that you're bringing many of these items with you on your trip anyway for other food prep - like knives, cutting boards, bowls, and a pan to cook in. Have a small bottle of dish soap and sponge with you to wash up dishes between meals.
- A camping cooking grate like this one with folding legs will work with metal-ring fire pits or with fire pits set inside cinder blocks or stones. (All are possibilities depending on your campground.) If your site has a grill installed, or if you're bringing a grill or camp stove you'll be able to cook on that instead. Check the campground's website to learn more about the sites. If your glamping site's amenities include a kitchenette then you can skip the campfire cooking altogether if you wish! However, I strongly recommend still toasting your marshmallows over a fire because... well, they just taste amazing when cooked that way!
- You can plan to cook over wood or coals, whichever you prefer. This recipe is prepared over a hot fire (as opposed to coals or wood near the end of their burn) which allows the sauce to come to a simmer quickly. If your fire is cooler allow for extra time to cook the sauce.
- To make a nonalcoholic version, simply omit the rum from this recipe.
- Though you could bring disposable bowls and cutlery, your glamping experience will be more greatly enhanced with real dishes and silverware. Throw in a linen tablecloth and tall candles too. (Fancy!) In addition to elevating mere "camp food" to something glamorous and special, you can high-five yourself for making an environmentally friendly choice.
Enjoy this glamorous, sumptuous fireside dessert! The recipe is below, and here are more Camping/Glamping Recipes for you:
💬 Have you tried this decadent campfire dessert? Tell me in a comment below!
Toasted Marshmallow Bananas Foster
Equipment
- Sharp knife
- Cutting board
- Sticks or long wood or metal skewers for toasting marshmallows
- Cooking grate with folding legs to fit over campfire (not needed if there is a grill at your site)
- Cast iron skillet
- Dutch oven, or other pan durable enough to cook in over a fire
- Long handled wood or metal spoon for stirring
- Measuring spoons and a liquid measuring cup (or you can pack pre-measured ingredients in sealed containers)
- Potholder
- Serving bowls
- Spoons
Ingredients
- 3 whole graham crackers
- 4 large marshmallows
- 2 bananas, unpeeled
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ¼ cup packed light brown sugar
- ⅓ cup dark rum
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Divide the graham crackers between two serving bowls, breaking them into pieces.
Toast the marshmallows:
- Place the marshmallows on long sticks or skewers, and toast them over the fire until they are lightly browned on the outside (or a little charred if you like them that way) and becoming gooey in the centers.
- Push the marshmallows off the skewers into the bowls with the crackers, two marshmallows per bowl.
Cook the bananas:
- Peel the bananas and slice them into ½-inch thick slices. Keep the bananas close at hand as you prepare the sauce.
- Place the skillet on the grate over the hot fire or coals and add in the butter. Melt the butter and then add the brown sugar.
- Stir the sugar and butter until the mixture is smooth and bring it to a simmer in the skillet. Simmer and stir the sauce for about 3 minutes until it becomes thick and caramelized (longer if your fire is not as hot.)
- Carefully add the rum, vanilla, and sliced bananas to the pan and gently stir everything together. Cook the bananas for about 2-3 minutes until they have softened a little.
Finish the dish:
- Remove the skillet from the heat and pour the bananas and sauce over the marshmallows and grahams, splitting the mixture evenly between the two bowls. Serve the Bananas Fosters immediately!
Notes
- There is an equipment list for this recipe. You'll probably find that you're bringing many of these items with you on your trip anyway for other food prep - like knives, cutting boards, bowls, and a pan to cook in. Have a small bottle of dish soap and sponge with you to wash up dishes between meals.
- A camping cooking grate like this one with folding legs will work with metal-ring fire pits or with fire pits set inside cinder blocks or stones. (All are possibilities depending on your campground.) If your site has a grill installed, or if you're bringing a grill or camp stove you'll be able to cook on that instead. Check the campground's website to learn more about the sites. If your glamping site's amenities include a kitchenette then you can skip the campfire cooking altogether if you wish! However, I strongly recommend still toasting your marshmallows over a fire because... well, they just taste amazing when cooked that way!
- You can plan to cook over wood or coals, whichever you prefer. This recipe is prepared over a hot fire (as opposed to coals or wood near the end of their burn) which allows the sauce to come to a simmer quickly. If your fire is cooler allow for extra time to cook the sauce.
- To make a nonalcoholic version, simply omit the rum from this recipe.
- If you're making this in your kitchen instead, you can toast the marshmallows over your stove burner. And cook up the bananas and rum in a skillet!
Nutrition
Recipe first published in 2018.
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