These chocolate banana pops–a childhood favorite for just about everyone–are made at home by dunking bananas into melted chocolate and sprinkling them with chopped nuts, colored sprinkles, crushed cookies, or coconut. Memories, like the corners of my mind…
Remember chocolate banana pops from your childhood? These homemade ones are better than any you’ve ever had. So go on. Indulge in some frozen chocolate-covered bananas gilded with whatever toppings you can imagine—sprinkles, nuts, coconut, all the usual suspects, sure. But also consider some noveltie items. Maybe crushed cookies, chopped candy bars, smashed pretzels, pulverized potato chip crumbs you scavenged from the bottom of the bag, anything you want goes. After all, you’re an adult. You get to decide. Finally, one of the perks to being a grownup.–Renee Schettler Rossi
☞ Contents
Chocolate Banana Pops
Equipment
- 6 ice cream sticks
Ingredients
- 1 cup chocolate chips or chopped chocolate (milk, semisweet, or dark is fine)
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- Assorted toppings for coating bananas such as crushed cookies or graham crackers, sprinkles, chopped nuts, toasted or untested shredded coconut, or anything!
- 3 bananas peeled
Directions
- In a heatproof bowl placed over but not touching a pan of simmering water, melt the chocolate chips and coconut oil. Turn off the heat.
- Place each topping in a separate dish. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Peel the bananas and cut each in half. Push an ice-cream stick into the cut end of each banana half. Grab a banana by the stick, hold it over the chocolate, and spoon the chocolate over the banana, turning to coat it on all sides. Let any excess chocolate drip back into the bowl. Place the banana over a bowl of toppings and sprinkle, turning to coat it on all sides, mixing and matching toppings as you please. Place the banana on the parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining bananas.
- Place the baking sheet of bananas in the freezer. If you want a chocolate banana pop that's still slightly soft in the center and has a pronounced banana flavor, wait 1 hour. If you want a chocolate banana pop that's frozen through and through, wait 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Remove from the freezer and eat immediately or let them stand at room temperature for about 10 minutes to thaw a touch. If you let the bananas in the freezer for longer, transfer them to resealable plastic bags.
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Recipe Testers’ Reviews
I am absolutely in love with these chocolate banana pops! Not only were they delicious, refreshing, and a healthy alternative to most frozen treats, but the recipe was a breeze and it took no time at all to make them! I had wanted to make chocolate-covered bananas all summer and never got around to it. I’d also seen a few recipes that called for sliced bananas, which seemed unnecessarily messy; this method was much easier. I loved trying out each topping and found cashews and unsweetened coconut flakes to be my favorite. My husband noted that the interior of the banana was quite cold after a few days in the freezer and a little difficult to bite into, but I didn’t mind—especially considering how hot it is still here in Massachusetts. I will definitely be making these pops again!
These chocolate banana pops were the perfect activity with our grandchildren! Definitely an easy and fun “recipe” to enjoy. Our bananas were on the small size so everyone had 2 halves. If the banana halves had been larger, we would’ve gotten 6 servings. I used crushed Oreo-type cookies, assorted sprinkles, chopped peanuts, and mini chocolate chips (chocolate on chocolate!) for the toppings. The bananas were frozen in 1 hour. I’ll double the recipe next time for an afternoon of fun. Any extra chocolate banana pops could be kept in a resealable plastic bag after they’re frozen.
Frozen bananas were always a favorite treat of mine when I was a kid. As I got older, I took it to the next level and started dipping banana slices in ganache and freezing them. Chocolate-covered frozen bananas on a stick—now that’s something I can get excited about! These chocolate banana pops were super easy to make and I already had all of the ingredients in my pantry. I topped mine with sprinkles, toasted almonds, and toasted coconut. I’ve noticed that they’ve started selling something similar in stores now but with this recipe there’s no need to look elsewhere.
These chocolate banana pops are a delightful treat that I served to the grandkids when they got out of school today. They’re quick and easy to put together. The longest part is waiting for them to freeze. Each pop is the perfect serving size for both young and old alike. I used a variety of items to sprinkle on the bananas—mini chocolate chips, chopped pecans, sprinkles, and crushed graham crackers. The graham crackers were a hit with the adults and the kids preferred the colorful sprinkles. This recipe will be made again and again.
Originally published June 09, 2018
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If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #LeitesCulinaria. We'd love to see your creations on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
Thank you again for this recipe. These have become a regular after school treat. My grandson just finished helping me make a batch.
This time as a variation we used peanut butter chips for the coating (same ratio of chips to coconut oil) and sprinkled with mini chocolate chips.
I have my best results by freezing the banana halves on their sticks first and then coating them. The coating stabilizes quickly and less drops into the decorative element.
To freeze them standing upright I use a block of green floral foam still in its plastic wrapping. I just made half a dozen holes with the sticks. Once the bananas are frozen, coated, then refrozen, I remove them from the block and seal them up in ziplocks that are infinitely easier to deal with.
This is such a fun treat! It’s basically very healthy rendered sexy with a minimal amount of sugary stuff. Mom, grandson and I all feel great about letting him have it frequently.
rainey, thank you so much for taking the time to let us know! I love thinking of your grandson helping you make these—and then help make them disappear. Thank you, too, for your tricks—they’re incredibly helpful. Especially freezing the bananas first prior to coating with chocolate. (Why didn’t we think of that?!) Incredibly grateful, as always, to hear what happens in your kitchen.
What fun! I had bananas getting a little more than ripe and I have a 6yo grandson so this came along just at the right time. I’m picking him up from school in about an hour and boy! does he have a surprise awaiting him!
Wonderful, rainey! What a lovely grandparent you are! And what a lucky grandson he is! Did he like the pops?