Minatamis na saging (Sweetened Banana Plantains)

Easy desserts usually find their base in fresh fruit.  This one is no exception.  After scouring the internet for Filipino dessert recipes, only to come up bear and (I hate to admit it) a little disgusted by the unusual textures and ingredients used in most, I ended up sticking with what my mom would call "nature's candy" - fruit.  Plantains are a nice dessert option, too.  Starchy.  Often used at the end of a spicy meal to "soak up" the hot capsaicin.  Sweet, though not too sweet.  And filling, but not overly so.  Not as decadent as chocolate, this much healthier option will add a nice ending to a meal without making one feel like a glut. 

Ingredients:

• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 cups water
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 4 ripe plantains cut lengthwise into 1/8 inch thick slices
• A pat of butter
• 8 ounces sweet buttery sherry

Instructions:

1. In a saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar, water and salt until a thick syrup forms.  Simmer.
2. Add plantain slices and butter to the syrup and continue simmering for 15 minutes.
3. Lace each individual serving with a tablespoon of sherry and then serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

(The original recipe came from this site: http://filipino-dessert-recipes.blogspot.com/2009/07/sweetened-banana-plantain.html)

Oven Baked Sweet Plantains

Okay, so I'm busted...I have the sweetest sweet tooth that could be imagined by a hoard of sugar-plum fairies...BUT, I convey this recipe for good reason.  Most sweet plaintain recipes are loaded with tons of goppy, greasy oil (meaning wanton and pointless calories to boot).  While I'm not going to go overboard and pretend that this recipe is healthy, I will suggest that it is a "better bad" and will therefore harm your waistline much less than its oiler cousin.

I give you, "maduros"....oven baked sweet plaintains.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

4 very ripe plantains (when the skin is yellow with spots of black they're perfect)
cooking spray

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 450°F.
2. Coat a nonstick cookie sheet with cooking spray.
3. Cut the ends off of the plantains and peel.
4. Cut each plantain on the diagonal into 1/2 inch slices.
5. Arrange in single layer and coat tops with cooking spray.
6. Bake, turning occasionally, for 10-15 minutes, until plantains are golden brown and very tender.

(The original recipe came from this link: http://www.recipezaar.com/Oven-Baked-Sweet-Plantains-80130)