Recipe: S’mores Banana Boats

Simple, delicious, and summer memories all rolled into one. Let’s take a trip down memory lane and make S’mores Banana Boats.

As parents, we can get quickly caught up in grand gestures for our kids.

And when it comes right down to it, they don’t really care about any of that.

I have a friend who went with her family on a ten day trip to Alaska, including a seven day cruise. When they came back, I asked her son what his favorite part of the vacation was, and he responded, “The scrambled eggs at the Hilton.”

A hotel chain which we actually have a few miles away.

Kids and food are the same way.

They don’t care that I might take hours and hours to make an elaborate dessert that I think they’ll go crazy for.

Simple works just as well.

And so it was with these Banana Boats that we made over the weekend.

It requires little to no effort. Takes mere minutes to make. And they were completely and utterly enamored.

Isn’t that always the way?

I have a vague recollection of my Mom making these when I was a kid. You can *definitely* do them over a campfire, as is summer tradition, but if you’re like me and don’t camp, this is the next best thing.

Set up a toppings bar and have some friends over – everyone can mix and match toppings to make their own personalized banana boat and you have an easy Dessert Party with next to no work.

Delish.

Hungry for more s’mores inspiration?
These No Bake Oatmeal S’mores Cookies were a crowd favorite.
These Chocolate S’mores Cookies are not to be missed … especially if you’re lucky enough to have Joanne pipe some hearts on them.

S’mores Banana Boats
Recipe courtesy of Cate O’Malley

Ingredients
bananas
mini marshmallows
mini chocolate chips
Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Peel the bananas, discard the peels, and slice the bananas lengthwise from top to bottom. Load up the center seam with mini marshmallows, mini chocolate chips, and crushed bits of Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal. Wrap each banana up in a piece of foil and bake for 6-8 minutes. Be careful when opening up your foil packets, as steam will escape and the contents will be hot.

Notes: Be creative! You can add in whatever toppings suit your fancy. Chopped nuts. Caramel topping. Chopped strawberries (topped with whipped cream after baking). Sprinkles (add them after baking otherwise they will melt into a runny mess).