Reader Ren had a good idea for those of us depressed over the lack of fireworks on Friday: Flaming food.

If you’ve not heard, all the local fireworks, except those in Mount Shasta, have been outright canceled and/or postponed.

We may not see fireworks outside but we create some - safely, of course – in our kitchen.

If we ’flambé’ our food, you can expect to see some appreciative oohs and ahs, similar to fireworks.

Flambé  is a French word that means “to pour spirits over and ignite. Any time you cook with flames, people are impressed, unless it’s an unintentional flame that catches your house on fire. That’s not impressive. That’s dumb.

While it’s possible to flambe’ almost any food, I had two classics in mind: First,  Bananas Fireworks. It’s sort of a play on a famous New Orleans specialty, Bananas Foster, a dish that originated at the Commandors Palace. (I was there more than 20 years ago. It remains one of my favorite restaurant experiences of all time.

Second is Cherries Jubilee, cheeries flambed and served over ice cream. You’ll see. You’ll love it.

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Bananas Fireworks

1 stick butter 
1/2 cup brown sugar 
6 bananas peeled, cut in half lengthwise
1 teaspoon orange zest

1/4 cup dark rum

Heat and melt butter in a large shallow pan. Add the sugar and stir until well blended. Now add the orange zest. Over medium-high heat, add the bananas and cook until golden brown.

Pour the rum into a small saucepan and heat just until you see vapors above the liquid. Tilt the pan that contains the bananas with one hand, and with the other pour the warmed rum into the pan, touching a match to the rum. Keep your distance and you let the flame die down. (Warning, the flame can  be substantial.)

Spoon the bananas and some cause over vanilla ice cream.

Serves 6

Cherries Jubilee

1 16-ounce can pitted dark sweet cherries

4 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/2 cup cherry brandy or kirsch

Ice cream

Drain cherries. Reserve 1 cup of liquid.

In medium-size skillet, combine the cherries, lemon, sugar, cornstarch, and lemon juice.

Heat to boiling, stirring constantly, until thickened. Add the cherries. Combine everything over low heat.

Bring serve dish or platter to the table. In a long-handled ladle, gently warm brandy until vapors rise. Ignite and pour over cherries.

When flames subside, spoon cherries into dessert bowls or over ice cream, custard or cake.

Tips for flambeing

While liqueurs can be flambéd alone, for best effect mix with a stronger spirit such as rum or brandy

Keep flames going by gently spooning more sauce over the food or carefully shaking the pan or platter of food, allowing all the liquor to reach the surface and burn.

Always use a flame-proof container (metal) for flambéing foods.

Never pour liquor directly from a bottle into a hot pan or an already flaming dish as the flames may travel up into the bottle.

To make the flames of a dessert last longer, soak a sugar cube with cognac and place it on the food before igniting.

Soups can also be flambéed.

Heat ½ cup whisky in a big ladle, spoon into the pot of soup and set alight. Once the flames have died down, dish out and pop a slice of cheesy toast sprinkled with parsley in each serving.

The liquor should always be added at the very last moment and lit as quickly as possible to avoid the liquor soaking into the food. Let the alcohol burn off enough and leave the flame to go out naturally so the flavour of the liquor doesn’t overpower the dish.

Never, ever pour your liqueur directly from the bottle into a hot pot or pan, or into an already flambéing dish. The flames can travel up the stream and into the bottle, causing it to explode.Use caution here, you will be dealing with a liquid that is on fire; do not carry the dish while flaming unless you’re completely sure what you are doing; flambéing for novices is best done on a serving cart slightly away from the table. Keep a large metal lid on hand to cover the dish in case your flambé gets out of hand.

Heat liquor until warm. Do not overheat or alcohol will evaporate.

To heat, place the needed amount of liquor in a large ladle or small saucepan with a long handle over a flame or other heat source.

To ignite, use a long match.

When liquor is flaming, pour it carefully over the hot food (keep clothing, hair and linens away from the flames).

Keep flames going by gently spooning more sauce over the food or carefully shaking the skillet or platter of food, allowing all the liquor to reach the surface and burn.

When flambeing foods, it is best to use a side table, so you reduce the risk of catching a guest on fire.

To make the flames of a dessert last longer, soak a sugar cube with cognac and place it on the food before igniting.

If you want to omit the alcohol, soak a sugar cube in lemon extract and light it.

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