Campfire Banana Boats
This campfire banana boat recipe is so much fun to make and eat! Whether you’re camping in your backyard or out in the wilderness, you can treat yourself and your family to one of these scrumptious desserts. I’ve seen variations all over Pinterest and Facebook and they’re so yummy! These banana boats are one of my husband’s favorite desserts. If I can be totally transparent, I don’t think I have made this recipe a single time! He is always the one grilling these up and I just get to sit back and enjoy. Why does food taste better when someone else makes it for you? Kids love these too! They’re so fun to let the kids get creative with their toppings. And the best part? They only take about 15 minutes to prepare and cook over a fire. Cover the bananas in foil, and place them on hot coals or smoldering firewood for about five or so minutes. That’s it!
Grilled Banana Boats
No campfire? No problem! You can easily make these on an outdoor grill too when you aren’t around a campfire and want to make these delicious treats at home. All you have to do is cut a slit in the banana peel, wrap each banana in a foil packets and throw them on the grill for about five minutes, turning once about halfway through. When it’s done, use tongs or oven mitts to remove each banana from the grill, then carefully unwrap the foil and place your banana in a bowl, leaving the peel on. Then top with ice cream and all your favorite toppings. Looking for more summertime desserts to serve hungry kiddos? Try this delicious S’mores Dip or our Firecracker Sugar Cookie Bars. Or keep the grill hot and make some Grilled Fruit Kabobs for your next backyard barbecue.
Ingredients in Campfire Banana Boats
If you haven’t tried them before, the recipe is simple. Basically, it is a grilled banana with melted chocolate inside topped with ice cream and yummy topping. Similar to a banana split but way better! Just think of bananas as the new graham crackers – this makes a great s’mores substitute! Here’s how we start our banana boats, then you can add on from here:
One banana for each person in your groupChocolate – we love using a large Symphony milk chocolate bar, either the plain or toffee and almonds. But you could use chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, candy bars, butterscotch chips, white chocolate chips, milk chocolate chips, anything you like!Cinnamon – this smoky spice really enhances the flavor of the chocolate. It’s delicious!Any flavor ice creamRaspberries (optional)Roasted almonds (optional)
Secret Ingredient
Do you want to know the secret that sets these over the top? My husband always sprinkles on a little cinnamon before grilling. Yum. I included the photo above so you can see how the bananas are assembled before grilling.
Toppings for Grilled Banana Boats
Now the really fun part…toppings! Just like with a banana split, banana boats can be totally customized depending on what kind of toppings you add. Here are some of my favorites to pick and choose from:
Your favorite ice cream (this vanilla ice cream is fantastic!)RaspberriesStrawberriesCherriesAlmondsCashewsPeanutsPeanut butterCaramel sauceNutellaMini marshmallowsPineappleHazelnutsBlueberriesA drizzle of honeyFresh whipped cream
What Readers are Saying About this Recipe
“Ok , grilling the bananas?! Brilliant idea and adding the slivers of chocolate. I bet this would be amazing to make smores with as well.” – Whitney “I found this delicious recipe on Pinterest while scrolling through banana split ideas! Our family will be enjoying these this tonight while cooling off after a hot afternoon.” – Denay “This is absolutely marvelous and great recipe to serve for backyard barbecues. Kids will have a blast enjoying this with their favorite topping. I am including this for my weekend menu.” -Sandhya Share It on Instagram!
