The Ultimate Gourmet Banana Split Recipe

The Banana split is an iconic American dessert that was invented by David Evans Strickler, an apprentice pharmacist, in 1904. This frozen treat consists of three scoops of ice cream (one scoop of vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry ice cream) between split banana halves. Each ice cream scoop is topped with a different sauce. Traditionally, hot fudge or chocolate sauce is poured over the chocolate scoop, strawberry syrup covers the strawberry scoop, and pineapple topping is added to the vanilla scoop. The whole sundae is garnished with nuts, whipped cream, and a cherry on top.

Growing up, banana splits were a special treat in my family. We would make them in banana split boats (i.e., long dessert dishes that fit a whole banana), but we made one major change, we replaced the pineapple topping with caramel sauce.  I’ve made this a Gourmet Banana Split recipe by making all of the components.  Click on the name of the components below to see individual recipes. 

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Components

• 1 scoop of Creamy Vanilla Ice Cream
• 1 scoop of Fudgy Chocolate Ice Cream
• 1 scoop of Roasted Strawberry Ice Cream
• Chantilly Cream (i.e., sweetened whipped cream)
• Caramel Sauce
• Hot Fudge
• Macerated Strawberries
• Chopped peanuts
• Fresh cherries
• Homemade Sprinkles

Equipment

• Banana split boats

To make your own banana split:

Peel a banana and cut it in half lengthwise. Place the banana halves on either side of a banana boat (i.e., a long, thin dessert dish).

Place one scoop of each of the following ice creams in the banana boat between the banana halves. You can use store bought ice cream or you can make the flavors from scratch using my recipes:

• Creamy Vanilla Ice Cream
• Fudgy Chocolate Ice Cream
• Roasted Strawberry Ice Cream

Pipe a small swirl of Chantilly Cream or sweetened whipped cream on top of each scoop of ice cream.

Pour caramel sauce (it’s best when made from scratch) over the scoop of vanilla.

Pour hot fudge over the chocolate scoop.

Add some macerated strawberries over the scoop of strawberry ice cream.

Sprinkle chopped peanuts (or your favorite nuts of choice) over the top of the sundae.

Place a cherry on top of each whipped cream swirl. Maraschino cherries are traditional, but we used fresh cherries because my husband hates maraschino cherries.

Finish the sundae with beautiful, homemade rainbow sprinkles.

Gourmet Banana Split

I hope you enjoy this fantastic tasting Banana Split! I shared this sundae with my husband and sister since it was so large, but you can make single serving Banana Splits if you use small scoops of ice cream.

This Gourmet Banana Split took awhile to make all of the components, but everything except the whipped cream and macerated strawberries can be made ahead of time and left in the fridge (e.g., hot fudge and caramel sauce), freezer (e.g., vanilla, strawberry, and chocolate ice cream), or an airtight container (e.g., sprinkles) until you are ready to assemble the Banana Split.