Bananas Foster Crêpes

Recipe by Sara Moulton / Photo by Michael Piazza / Styled by Catrine Kelty

My first cooking job was at the Harvest. How blessed I was to work there with not one, but two great chefs: Lydia Shire and Laura Boehmer. It was the pivotal launch of a long career.

Serves 4

FOR THE CRÊPES:
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup whole milk
¾ cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
¼ teaspoon salt

FOR THE FILLING:
2 underripe (slightly green around the edges) bananas
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
⅓ cup dark brown sugar
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
¼ cup dark rum
Coffee or vanilla ice cream and chopped toasted walnuts, for serving

MAKE THE CRÊPES: Melt the butter in a 10-inch nonstick or stick-resistant skillet over low heat. Transfer 2 tablespoons of the butter to a ramekin, set aside the skillet (do not wipe it out) and combine the remaining 3 tablespoons butter, the milk, flour, eggs and salt in a blender. Blend until smooth, scraping down the sides. Strain through a sieve into a bowl; cover and set batter aside at room temperature for 30 minutes to allow the gluten (protein) in the flour to rest and ensure that your crêpes are tender.

Heat the skillet over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Reduce the heat to medium. Stir the batter and ladle a scant ¼ cup into the pan, tilting and rotating the pan until the batter coats the bottom. Cook for 30 to 45 seconds, or until the surface of the crêpe looks set and the bottom is lightly browned. Turn the crêpe and cook for 30 seconds more on the second side.

Repeat the procedure, brushing the skillet as necessary with some of the remaining melted butter, until you have used up all the batter. Transfer the crêpes to a cooling rack as they are cooked. You should end up with 8 to 10.

Once they are cool, set aside 4 crêpes for this recipe and wrap and freeze the remaining crêpes for another use.

MAKE THE FILLING: Peel the bananas, cut them in half lengthwise and then in quarters crosswise. Combine the butter, sugar, cinnamon and lemon juice in a large skillet and cook over medium heat, stirring, until melted. Add the bananas and cook, gently turning over 1 or 2 times, until the bananas are just golden at the edges, about 5 minutes.

Remove the skillet from the heat and add the rum. Return the pan to the heat, bring to a simmer, stirring, and simmer until the sauce is the consistency of honey, turning the bananas often to coat them with the sauce.

Arrange 1 crêpe on each of 4 plates, spoon ¼ of the banana mixture down the middle of each and roll up the crêpe to enclose the filling. Turn the crêpe so the seam is on the bottom.

Top each filled crêpe with a scoop of ice cream, a drizzle of the sauce and a sprinkling of walnuts.

This recipe appeared in the Winter 2026 issue as part of a larger story: How The Harvest Keeps Its Cool.