Americans eat more bananas than apples and oranges combined, according to Dan Koeppel,  author of Bananas:  The Fate of the Fruit that Changed the World.  By the numbers, that’s America’s favorite fruit.   I can only figure people eat a lot of bananas because they’re cheap, portable, and convenient, but not because they taste better than other fruit.

Although, one time I did try a banana that would be worthy of the ‘favorite fruit’ title.I was traveling with some friends who lived in Costa Rica.  Their boys used bananas to lure white-faced monkeys to us so we could get a better look.  I ate one while we watched.  These bananas were way too good for monkey bait.  Each bite was like a spoonful of my grandma’s banana pudding (dare I say better?).  I’ve never tasted another banana quite that good.

The familiar American supermarket banana is a Cavendish.  They were chosen by Chiquita because they are disease-resistant and easy to ship green, not because they have superior flavor.  Other varieties are showing up at supermarkets lately.  One such variety is the apple banana, which is small and has a bright, more tart flavor than the Cavendish.

 I’m growing a variety called Ice Cream (aka Blue Java).  As the name implies, they’re sweet and creamy with a hint of vanilla.  They’re not as good as the monkey bait bananas, but they’re pretty tasty.

You can use any variety in these egg rolls, but whole small ones fit neatly inside.  The end result is a golden crispy shell filled with warm caramelized bananas… and some mango, which will always be my favorite fruit.

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Banana Mango Rolls

 Ingredients:

• 8 egg roll wrappers
• 8 small bananas or 2 large bananas, quartered
• 1 mango, sliced
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 1/2 tablespoons honey
• 1 teaspoon lime juice
• 1 tablespoon coconut sugar or brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• pinch of salt

Directions:

For the dipping sauce, whisk honey and lime juice.  Set aside.

Mix the cinnamon, sugar and a pinch of salt in a small bowl.

Place a banana and a slice of mango across one corner of the egg roll wrapper.  Sprinkle it with the sugar mixture.    Fold in the sides of the wrapper around the ends of the fruit.  Begin rolling it.  Seal the end corner by brushing it with the beaten egg.  Place it end-side down on a plate or baking sheet.  Repeat with the remaining wrappers.

Heat one tablespoon coconut oil in a skillet.  Fry each roll a couple minutes on each side, or until golden brown.  Transfer to a platter and serve with the dipping sauce.