This week, we are going to make a dessert with bananas and prunes!
This is Black and White Fluff!
AuthorRetroRuth
From Prunes For Epicures, 35 Intriguing Recipes - United Prune Growers of California, 1933
Tested Recipe!
[cooked-sharing]
Boil prunes for 10 minutes in enough water to cover, drain, cool and chill.
Cut prunes into small pieces. Slice bananas. If you are using large marshmallows, cut them into 8 pieces. Whip cream until stiff, add prunes, bananas, marshmallows, lemon extract, and fold in.
Serve in footed glasses with a maraschino cherry on top. Fluff can be stored in the refrigerator for up to two days.
Yield: 6 to 8
Ingredients
Directions
Boil prunes for 10 minutes in enough water to cover, drain, cool and chill.
Cut prunes into small pieces. Slice bananas. If you are using large marshmallows, cut them into 8 pieces. Whip cream until stiff, add prunes, bananas, marshmallows, lemon extract, and fold in.
Serve in footed glasses with a maraschino cherry on top. Fluff can be stored in the refrigerator for up to two days.
Yield: 6 to 8
Notes
Now, if you don’t recognize this book, it is the book I made California Prune Cream Salad out of a couple of years ago. It was terrible. So I have ankle-high expectations for this recipe. If you want to see this whole cookbook, it is available in the Digital Cookbook Library for all patrons on my Patreon. (Only available on Patreon for copyright reasons!) This recipe, and one other prune gem, were chosen recently by the patrons in a poll. It was a big poll because there are lots and lots and lots of recipes in that book that would be very at home on this blog.
So, you can tell by my picture above that I opted to use large marshmallows and cut them into 8 pieces each. And you can tell by this picture that it was a huge pain in my kitchen shears. That mess on the cutting board is all the cornstarch I needed to add to be able to cut the mallows.
But that is a small complaint, in the grand scheme of things. At least I didn’t have to add chili sauce to this whipped cream.
I always forget how much better prunes taste after they have been boiled for a little bit. I might have snacked on a couple while I was putting this together. But I didn’t eat any marshmallows, because I was mad at them.
Here it is all goo-ed up! This looked pretty plain, but it smelled really good, like lemons and marshmallows. So I guess the marshmallows are forgiven.
I also got to use some new footed glasses I ordered online recently because I love everything that can be used as a mid-century kitchen prop. Oh, and all the extra cornstarch really helped this fluff keep its shape.
But now it was time to see how it made the fluff taste.
“Can you tell what’s in it?”
“Banana, marshmallows, and something liquidy.”
“Prunes.”
“Prunes?! That’s excellent, I was just saying I need to eat more prunes.”
The Verdict: Surprisingly Good!
From The Testing Notes –
Overall, the Black and White fluff was really good. I thought it be a little on the mush side, but I enjoyed it and so did Tom and the kids. The marshmallows were a total pain to cut up, and I would just recommend using mini mallows if you don’t like sticky. I took the time to snip them all up because I wanted to make sure that I made as accurate a fluff as possible, and I’m not sure that I did because I ended up adding extra cornstarch. But, the fluff was very creamy and squishy. It wasn’t overly sweet, and you could taste marshmallows, but not really bananas and only occasionally taste prunes. The prunes also tasted less prune-y just by doing that 10 minute boil. If you need texture in your food, like TJ, and you can’t just choke goo down, you might want to add some nuts or chocolate chips. Oh, and do NOT leave out the lemon extract, because the flavor hinges on that little bit of lemon flavor. (P.S. Video taste testings are available on my Patreon! If you think Tom is hilarious on paper, you should hear him on video. And those videos are only available on Patreon because my kids are in them a lot, and so is my messy house.)
I’m glad you forgave the marshmallows!
I just love your aesthetic! The bright colors and subject matter just make me smile. I read this blog not only for the great mid century taste tests but also to see all the wonderful dishes, bowls and artwork you have. Great stuff.
This reads tasty. I love prunes, but always hesitate because I can get carried away.
I must have told the kids what my grandma had to say about prunes, because once when my dad asked for a glass of prune juice, my then five year old son declared, “Prunes-a. She make-a you go.”
My father’s guffaw literally knocked him off his chair.
Thank you for sparking that happy memory.
It’s easy to cut up marshmallows if you dip your scissors into a glass of water between snips!
I’m a real prune lover. I’ve got to try this!
Thank you!!! I will have to do that next time. 🙂
Me, too!!! 🙂
If the cookbook includes a recipe for lekvar cake, you should try it. Basically a sugar cookie type crust, a layer of prune butter, and topped with meringue. So good.
Hmmm, looks tasty. I wonder if you could substitute lemon zest for the lemon extract, and maybe a touch of lemon juice to cut the sweet a bit…
Also, that’s a super cute dish you’ve got there!
Thank you! And lemon zest would totally work.
Thank you, Kerry Jean! I needed to hear this today. So glad that you are into the aesthetic….MidCenturyFoodCore? MidCenturyKitchenCore? Anyway, I’m glad you like it. 🙂
That is a happy memory! Thank you for sharing it!
I will have to keep my eye out for that one! Sounds delicious!
You do! It’s a winner. 🙂