Grilled Peanut Butter, Banana and Honey Sandwich on Cinnamon Bread
I’ll bet you’re thinking…really Barb? Yes, really! There are some things that I’ve eaten since I was too young to remember the first time and this sandwich is one of them. I might have taken some liberties along the way…what used to be put between two pieces of toast is now lightly grilled, that bit of butter on the outside of cinnamon toast sure doesn’t hurt but it’s mostly to slightly melt the peanut butter which is of course a very good thing! I thought about updating this classic using Biscoff spread which I do love but it was not true to my history; Biscoff is new to me and not part of the sandwich my childhood dreams were made of. This is. I think I need to re-discover more of these childhood delights and include them here.
I have five siblings but my youngest sister was born to my parents after they divorced and remarried (it was a soap opera I tell ya!) so although a true sister, she came along when I was 16 so most of my childhood it was the five of us. FIVE KIDS!!! I can not imagine raising five kids but I was a single parent for most of my child rearing days so my perspective is skewed I admit. Still; that is a lot of kids and meals had to be easy to prepare for sure. There were no picky palates in our home and no threats either. Dinner was served. Eat it or go without, that simple. Still my mom brought a couple of traditions from her childhood that I remember fondly and two center on sandwiches made with peanut butter; a staple when there are that many children. One was simple; you mix peanut butter with a nice amount of maple syrup (well, Log Cabin actually!) and spread it on bread. Top with chips and a 2nd slice of bread. Done. I still love it even if today I have to have real maple syrup.
This sandwich was another favorite! Peanut butter and bananas. The honey was my addition; I love it so much that this was another perfect opportunity to enjoy it. I asked my daughter Emily if she remembered me making this for them when they were kids and she doesn’t remember the cinnamon bread and thought I just did it on plain toast. Yep…she’s right. It’s newer, it’s gooder and it’s now necessary!
I was at Emily’s this past Friday to work on some dishes for blog posts and as dinnertime approached I wondered if she just wanted to eat what I was going to prepare. The ‘no thank you’ was pretty resounding so we decided we would run out for something once I had this dish (?) completed. Then the aroma of cinnamon and peanut butter and honey and bananas started to waft through the air and it was like my little girl had come for a visit. ‘Mom, I think we could eat those for dinner after all.’ See…sometimes you really can go home again!
Peanut Butter, Banana and Honey Sandwich
Ingredients
- 4 slices cinnamon bread or use sandwich bread and sprinkle the finished sandwich with a bit of cinnamon and sugar
- 2 Tbsp butter softened
- 2 bananas sliced lengthwise
- 2-3 ounces peanut butter
Instructions
- Heat skillet on medium heat.
- Butter one side of each bread slice.
- Spread all of the bread slices with peanut butter. Put two slices butter side down in pan.
- Top peanut butter with banana slices then drizzle with honey. Place a 2nd piece of bread on sandwich peanut butter side down.
- Grill in skillet; approximately 3-4 minutes per side on medium heat until nicely browned.
- Remove the sandwich from the skillet.
- Combine the cinnamon and sugar and sprinkle both sides liberally.
- Cut in half on a diagonal and serve while hot.
- Pretend you are eleven. To make it totally official, eat with some potato chips.
and i thought i was onto something here lol, Mine goes like this i took two slices of the freshest bread buttered both sides then had brown sugar to dip onto the buttered bread so that when cooking it would give a nice crispy crunchy outer layer then came the peanut-butter then more brown sugar sprinkled onto that then the banna’s nd repeated with the other piece of bread golden syrup to top it off yummie!!!!
Way to take something already over the top just a bit higher! Yum is the word! Thanks for sharing; now I think I have to try that brown sugar business. 🙂
Ah, one of my favorite combinations for a sandwich! 😉 I sometimes will make this on my panini grill. I have substitute cookie butter with great success.
This is one of my very favorite combinations, Barb, but you’ve elevated it by grilling it and using cinnamon bread! Wow. And potato chips are a must on the side. Now I’m hungry. 🙂
I love that I’m not alone…with some of these things you can’t help but wonder if mom was the only person who thought this a good idea…obviously lots of moms did!
Mmmmm… this looks so divine!! And love that you made this sammie on a cinni bread!
I am craving one again now. Good thing I know how to make them in my sleep huh?
I can imagine how heart wrenching it must have been to see your daughter so unwell. I know this because my son has been very unwell for many years. I am so glad to know that Lauren is now cancer free. Bless her! Love your recipe. I think my Peter would lurv this!
You know how heartbreaking…after a lifetime of fixing ouchies it’s hard to just stand by, not be able to remove the pain or the stress like we did when they were little. But she weathered this storm with aplomb; I’m so proud of her.
This sandwich sounds absolutely drool worthy! Lover that you served it on cinnamon bread. That little touch seems to make this sandwich a little more special.
I can feel the love. GREG
This sandwich is new to me, I didn’t grow up eating much peanut butter, just wasn’t popular back in England. When I moved to the US, it still was not so popular in our house of 5 kids. However, after I married an American, and had American children, there is SO much peanut butter 🙂 I love this sandwich, actually and find myself craving it. My husband turned me on to it. I also find myself smearing bananas with PB too. Yours looks like a thing of beauty.
Nazneen
He he he! I haven’t had a peanut butter and banana sandwich since I was a kid either and I’ve never had it toasted, nor on cinnamon bread. I want it! I want it all. I’m going to enjoy these Wayback Wednesday features.
You’re not going to believe this, I know, but I have never had a peanut butter and banana sandwich. See…in the part of the world where i come from…we do have banana sandwiches but they’re made with mayonnaise. Stop making that face. I love them! White bread, spread liberally with mayo, slice a banana. Heaven, I tell you!
You are right– I am not sure about this one! but I love the memories it brought back for you and think it sounds like a cozy meal to share with family. I do love honey, though, and have the ingredients out to make a honey spiced bread today. Hoping it turns out!
It’s good…but you do need a leap of faith. You have to trust the child in me! 🙂
Really nice post on so many levels! First, so happy Lauren is cancer-free. Second, love the idea of Wayback Wednesdays – terrific idea! Third, not that I had any doubt, but I’m delighted your Fridays will always be devoted to cocktails. 😉 Fourth, thanks for the reminder about how big families used to be! I came from a family of 4 kids, and that was a pretty average size those days (maybe even on the small side). Today? No way! Fifth – and the main point – what a great sandwich! Peanut butter and bananas is a great combo, and always better with honey. Cinnamon bread is a new concept to me, and sounds terrific. Sixth and last, glad Emily embraced her past and went home again! Fun post – thanks.
Thanks John…on all counts!
I cannot live without PB and Banana sandwiches. It’s just one of those things that no matter how old I get I will always eat that kid food.
I knew this would be a great reminder to many; even if not identical; we’ve all had peanut butter with something like this. Now wondering…should I do peanut butter and lettuce? Sounds SUPER odd but it’s really great; that sort of wet crispiness of the lettuce plays against the PB so well!
What a nice ending to the story. i have to tell you that this is one of manservant’s favorites. Only his never looked this good or I would have eaten them. He used to always take peanut butter and honey on his hiking trips and bring the banana to add. I’m not sure how he would feel about cinnamon toast but I LOVE that part. Good story, Barb.
The cinnamon adds a nice spiciness that I love Abbe; I bet one’s manservant would love it. 🙂
When I think of peanut butter I always think, “No thank you”, but once I take a bite I love it. Like Emily I think I would turn it down until I smelled it cooking then I would devour it. What a nice departure from the grilled cheese.
These are not something I do often but once I think about it…the craving will not go away. I knew I would win her over!
Still recuperating BTW. Next time we go to the mall I want to meet someone named Kerry for coffee – that’s what I originally thought you meant! 🙂
This post kinda makes me want to start singing an Elvis tune.
I think it’s wonderful to read cancer free. I’d eat this sandwich!
I know right?