My apologies to anyone who missed a post last week. We had two and a half days of rain around here, and as my longtime readers know, my body does not take kindly to that sort of thing. I was hurting pretty badly and I just couldn't focus. But I'm back this week!
Pennsylvania, among its many claims to fame, is known as the snack food capital of the United States. It's not hard to see why, either. We're the home of Hershey, Tastykake, Middleswarth chips, Sturgis pretzels (both Julius and Tom), and a whole bunch of other companies that make many of our favorite snackies. This includes ice cream products, from outfits like Yuengling.
There's apparently something of a mild debate about the origin of the banana split. It seems that a number of communities across the country like to claim to be where the famous sundae was invented. However, our own Latrobe has the earliest claim, and has been certified as the birthplace of the banana split by the National Ice Cream Retailers Association. My sister Liza and I visited Latrobe last autumn to pay homage to Mister Rogers, and the marker for the banana split isn't far from his.
The marker stands at 805 Ligonier Street |
Another thing which happened as the 20th century approached was the greater access to fruits grown in foreign countries. In particular, bananas were shipped to the United States through the port in New Orleans and began to make their way north; by 1904, when our story really begins, they had reached the Mid-Atlantic states and were being enjoyed by the general population.
An interesting point to note about this is that the bananas being eaten then were not the same ones that we eat now. The most common variety today is called the Cavendish banana, which is hardy and resistant to illness. Until the 1950s, the bananas that were most popularly consumed were the Gros Michel (or "Big Mike") bananas, which have a sweeter and creamier taste. If you've ever had something which claimed to be banana-flavored and wondered why it tastes nothing like a banana, that's because the flavor being reproduced is that of the Gros Michel, not the Cavendish. Unfortunately, in the 1950s most of the very delicate Gros Michel trees fell victim to what's called Panama disease, which wiped out most of the banana plantations in Central and South America. Gros Michel bananas are still grown in a few places where the disease never took hold, but they're no longer exported. Ever heard the song "Yes! We Have No Bananas"? Allegedly, the Gros Michel shortage is what inspired the lyrics.
Also, fun fact: bananas are technically berries. I did not know that until I started researching this post.
The treat was a runaway success; David earned enough money to buy the pharmacy and rename it Strickler's. He still ran his optometry business upstairs. In 1909 he married his sweetheart, Mary Virginia Cancie, and they had several children - Helen, Louis, Mary, William, and Nancy. David passed away in 1971 at the age of ninety; he, his wife, and many of the other Stricklers are buried in Latrobe's Unity Cemetery. His invention, meanwhile, has long outlived him.
Today there are literally dozens, possibly hundreds, of different recipes for banana splits and also for banana royales, which is sort of the inverse - a sundae topped with pieces of banana. Marshmallow sauce is not usually an ingredient anymore, having been commonly replaced with whipped cream. Some recipes use different flavors of ice cream, different fruit toppings, or non-fruit toppings like crushed cookies. Many people recommend pulling the ice cream out of the freezer five to ten minutes ahead of time so it's easier to scoop. Some also like to chill the glass boat.
But no matter how the split is made, one piece of advice seems to be universal: always serve it immediately after adding the last topping. A fresh banana split is the only banana split worth having.
Except where indicated, all writing and photography on this blog is the intellectual property of Laura Klotz. This blog is written with permission of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. I am not employed by the PHMC. All rights reserved.
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