Wuff prepared these for another of our office Birthday Parties. The “honored one” asked for French Toast, when Vrghr inquired what they might enjoy for their special celebration.

But, you KNOW wuff couldn’t just do a “regular” French Toast for a party!

Time to get a bit silly and creative! When wuff hears “parties”, the happy folks on those tropical isles of the Caribbean come to mind. So perhaps Vrghr could instill a bit of that into the dish?

To Vrghr, “Caribbean” inspires thoughts of coconuts, bananas, tropical fruits, and Rum! So, what we have here is a banana bread based toast, with a rich custard-y French Toast batter enhanced with Rum. Topped with a layer of creamy Mascarpone cheese for even more richness and that creamy flavor. Piled high with a generous portion of Caramelized Banana-Pecan compote, also with Rum. And drizzled with a home-made Coconut Syrup. Garnish it with a few bits of shaved coconut and toasted pecans!

And Bingo! A tropical island party on a plate!

Vrghr intentionally kept the sweetness quotient low on the compote and syrup, to keep from making the final dish overpoweringly sweet. Lots of layers of flavor, with subtle hints of sweet spices add complexity. The banana bread offers a crispy surface, with a soft, custardy interior and lots of its own flavor.

Vrghr was a bit worried about the banana bread coming apart after getting soaked in the batter, but it held up nicely!

And worry not about the Rum, it is added early to the compote and the long, hot cooking does away with much of the alcohol there. Likewise, frying the toast on that hot griddle does a number on its alcohol content as well. So, if you want the Rum flavor to be a bit more prominent, wuff would recommend stirring a little into the coconut syrup once it comes off the stove.

The Compote and Syrup can be made before hand and refrigerated for “breakfast day”. Just warm them up gently before serving for best results.

Ingredients:
For the Syrup:
1 C flaked Coconut
1 can (~14 oz) Coconut Milk
1 Tbs Brown Sugar
1 Tbs Butter
Dash Salt

For the Caramelized Banana-Pecan Compote:
4 ripe Bananas, peeled and cut into ½ chunks
~ 2/3 C Chopped Pecans
2 Tbs Butter
1-2 Tbs Dark Rum
2 Tbs Brown Sugar
1 Tbs granulated white Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
¼ tsp Ceylon Cinnamon
1/8 tsp Nutmeg
1/8 tsp Salt

For the Banana French Toast
2 “demi loavs” or one medium-size loaf Banana or Banana-Nut bread, slice into ¾” segments
4 Eggs
2/3 C Half n Half
~1 Tbs Dark Rum
2 tsp Sugar
½ tsp Vanilla Extract
¼ tsp Ceylon Cinnamon
1/8 tsp Nutmeg
1/8 tsp Salt

2-3 Tbs Butter (for the pan)

Mascarpone cheese, at room temperature (spreadable)

Directions:
For the Coconut Syrup:
In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the coconut milk, salt, butter, and brown sugar. Allow to come to a light simmer, stirring occasionally. Don't let the coconut milk scorch.

While the coconut milk is warming up, put the flaked coconut into a dry skillet medium-high heat, spreading it out evenly across the pan. Watch for the edges on the bottom later to start to toast, and flip/stir to bring new coconut into contact with the bottom.

Continue toasting until most all of the flakes have some tan spots/edges, and others are mostly tan.

Add the toasted coconut to the saucepan and whisk in. Allow to simmer gently until the toasted flavors infuse the coconut milk, stirring occasionally. (~15 minutes)

For a smoother syrup, blend with an immersion blender or “regular” blender, until desired smoothness.

For the Caramelized Banana-Pecan compote:
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and cook until it stops foaming and just starts to brown.

Add the sugars, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Heat until the sugar melts a bit, then add the bananas and chopped pecans.

Stir to coat everything with the sugar syrup.

Continue to cook, watching to make sure nothing scorches on the bottom (might need to reduce heat), stirring occasionally. The bananas will gradually break down, and things will start looking like lumpy brown jam. (about 15-20 minutes)

Remove from heat and stir in Vanilla

(Best when served warm!)

For the French Toast:
If your banana bread isn’t already cut, slice it into ~3/4” segments.

In a large bowl, whisk together all the remaining ingredients (except the butter for the pan), until completely incorporated and the eggs are pale yellow.

Heat a griddle or electric fry pan to ~ 350-375 degrees. Just before you’re ready to add the bread slices, melt 1 Tbs of butter onto the pan.

Submerge slices of the banana bread so the batter soaks in some, and flip to make sure all sides get coated.

Move bread to a buttered griddle/fry pan. Cook until browned and slightly crispy on one side (about 4 minutes), then flip and cook the other side.

Move the cooked slices to an oven-proof plate and hold in a ‘keep warm” oven (If your oven doesn’t have a warming feature. Fire it up at the lowest setting for about 5 minutes, then turn it off and use that to keep the toast warmed).

Repeat until all the slices are fried.

(Makes about 16 or so slices, depending on the size of your bread.)

To Plate:
Place a slice or two of the banana-bread. Cover each with ~ 1 tablespoon of Mascarpone cheese.

Add a couple tablespoons of the Compote on top of the cheese. Drizzle with some of the coconut syrup.

Garnish with a pinch of flaked coconut, and perhaps some of the chopped pecans.

DEVOUR!