Paula Deen Is Trying to Kill Us, Part 6: Cheesy Ham and Banana Casserole
Today we present the latest installment of a long-running franchise here at Serious Eats: Paula Deen Is Trying to Kill Us. From an episode entitled "Gone Bananas" that re-ran today, the queen of buttery goodness Paula Deen shocks us yet again with her Cheesy Ham and Banana Casserole.
Combining ham, bacon, cheddar cheese, potato chips, bananas, white bread, eggs, milk, cream, and an unspecified amount of butter, Deen bridges the divide between sweet and savory, between bread pudding and casserole, between acceptable and unacceptable. I'm revolted. And kinda curious what it tastes like.
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40 Comments:
Honestly I can't handle it. Potato chips, bacon and bananas? No, no and no! I'm a pretty health-conscious foodie and I tried a recipe the other night full of butter and I just did not get any satisfaction from it. How does someone enjoy something so heavy and fattening? Mysterious.
littlesalsi at 5:36PM on 07/29/08
Wouldn't SPAM be better than ham for this delightful dish?
Asado at 5:45PM on 07/29/08
It sounds revolting and looks even worse. I'm just wondering if a sour kitchen sponge left in a banana peel would capture the taste, texture and smell of Cheesy Ham and Banana Casserole. Sorry, this can't be good.
holdthemayo at 5:48PM on 07/29/08
It sounds like it needs peanut butter to pull it all together.
jenilowrance at 5:58PM on 07/29/08
I saw this episode when it first aired. It was unbelievable - like watching a train wreck. Every additional ingredient was a total shocker. Things were already beyond disgusting and then the potato chips went on top and the custard mixture got poured over. I was literally shocked - I think I actually said NOOOOOOOOOO to the television.
jlbrach at 6:00PM on 07/29/08
What no mayo?!?
LearP at 6:23PM on 07/29/08
I think Paula Deen might be beat with this Ham and Banana Hollandaise.
Raphael at 6:41PM on 07/29/08
I just don't get her.
swirlingnotions at 7:07PM on 07/29/08
I think food like this is for (and made by) people were not breast fed.....
Pointy at 7:29PM on 07/29/08
Elvis Presley wouldn't eat this drek...... even though it has his favorite food groups
gaffer at 8:15PM on 07/29/08
i watched this today. i am a pregnant woman, and even i wouldn't eat this! my vegetarian/macrobiotic boyfriend called me nuts & said it looked delicious.
dmarina at 8:37PM on 07/29/08
I think Paula needs a warning label now. Skull and cross sticks of butter. Do people really eat this crap? If anyone likes this stuff I want to hear from you. This cannot be real, its like Scare Tactics the food version.
I skeeve this stuff.
JerzeeTomato at 12:03AM on 07/30/08
What's she smokin'???
finsbigfan at 7:34AM on 07/30/08
I don't mind fruit and meat mixtures.. but this just looks and sounds..icky..
cambriana at 8:38AM on 07/30/08
I might enjoy this thing if it didn't have the banana in it. It's a texture thing. But substitute some tart cooked apples and it could be fantastic.
Susquehanna at 10:36AM on 07/30/08
may i just say that i love the Paula Deen Is Trying to Kill Us posts.
cupcup at 11:35AM on 07/30/08
Is there no end to this woman???? That sounds just incredibly disgusting all mushed together. I do like most of those ingredients either on their own or combined with just one other thing, but all this together? NEVER!!!
suschef at 11:54AM on 07/30/08
I'm concerned that this recipe does not contain anything from the "deep fried" food group, and is therefore not a balanced meal.
Is it possible that Paula is slipping?
Kerosena at 12:24PM on 07/30/08
@Kerosena, maybe the potato chips qualify for the deep fried aspect of this dish? ;)
holdthemayo at 2:26PM on 07/30/08
sweet baby jesus on a rocking horse.
i actually attempted a paula deen recipe last week, just to see what it was like. i give you: chicken divan. i thought it couldn't get any worse. until i saw this.
thursdaynightsmackdown at 2:40PM on 07/30/08
What, no Miracle Whip?
This sounds beyond revolting, I'm sorry. If this were served to me, I seriously think I'd get queasy. Heavy, tastes that do NOT blend, unhealthy junk food/fat/carbo aspect. Was this something she threw together to feed a picky baby who would would only eat EACH of these items separately?
Or is this a secret contest being hosted by the network to see just how much CRAP people will accept from an alleged professional? Maybe that's it - it's a joke? We just have to say the magic word and the damned duck will fall on her head?
Fluffnik at 9:04PM on 07/30/08
@kerosena, hun Paula slipped a longgggg time ago;-)
I think she and a few other FN "personalities" are having a secret contest among themselves to see who can be the most disgusting and still remain on the air. So far Paula and Aunt Shmandy are in the lead, although Paula is pulling ahead because of multiple shows. ;-)
huneybumper at 7:18AM on 07/31/08
I MADE THIS. Yes, it's true. I prepared this recipe at a friend's coaxing and really, it was mostly for a lark. I should've known better.
To "holdthemayo," your description of what it might taste like was quite astute. It had a very spongy texture and the banana permeated all layers.
The middle layer - ham and banana, blech - basically steamed between the bread layers.
It was revolting. I couldn't even chuckle once it came out of the oven and I tasted it.
This woman must be stopped. She is either insane or is sincerely trying to kill us.
KimIsAwesome at 10:24AM on 07/31/08
Yeah, it all steamed between that nasty bread.. all hammy and such.. the ham and banana part was kidna dry, and the bread was.. moisty? uhg.
seikel at 10:31AM on 07/31/08
Sounds disgusting. Honestly.
Eeeee-yewwwwwwwwww.
Brownie at 11:37AM on 07/31/08
I love how the picture has a parsley garnish on top. That's how you know it's fancy.
erinlovestoeat at 12:26PM on 07/31/08
Erin's right, it's now officially "classy. I'd suggest that the parsley is the only healthy/wholesome/nutritious element in the whole damn dish (yeah there are bananas but they're all mooshed in with the awful stuff).
Fluffnik at 6:50PM on 07/31/08
Maybe with some major revisions (like whole grain bread, no potato chips, skip the bananas, reduce the quanities of meat, add some veggies, use 2% cheese), this dish may be made somewhat healthful. But then again, it wouldn't really be the same dish.
beth1 at 12:31AM on 08/01/08
This. Makes. No. Sense.
None.
I love Paula, but I think the people over at Food Network have hit her with some crazy gamma rays and turned her into an Incredible Southern Fried Hulk, intent on creating gratuitously grotesque food for sheer shock value.
Narinda at 6:26PM on 08/01/08
Come on fellow foodies, this is "Paula Deen is trying to kill you" right? Welllllllll that is her mission, to kill us all. This is only the beginning of whats to come fellow foodies stay tuned, she will concur up something more cheesier, fattier, buttery, gooier, vile and discusting (ier), in no time at all. Be patient "Y'all".
pjracz10 at 10:58AM on 08/03/08
That just looks gross and doesn't really sound too appetizing either.
JigsawJones at 12:46PM on 08/03/08
And after reading the other entries about her trying to kill us, she's a horrible, horrible woman! I shall have to tell my mother at once to stop watching her show and beg her NOT to cook these recipes. She's trying to kill my mother, too.
JigsawJones at 12:49PM on 08/03/08
I love Paula, but I must admit that I would not give this a try. Remember though that Paula grew up in a time when times were tight and there are many recipes created just using what was available at the time...this definitely seems like one of those recipes, especially with the bread pudding influence...the idea of bread pudding was to leave nothing wasted. However, I would have to be wasted before I tried this recipe.
MrsPrough at 1:46AM on 08/04/08
there is a limit to wasting food. this isnt about being thrifty. Thrifty would havebeen maybe a banana bread pudding, and maybe simple grilled ham on the side, leave out the chips completely. better yet a grilled ham sandwich. thei is how to put together the nastiest thing possible and make people actuallly believe it might not be totaly revolting. I dont think much of Paula Deen as a cook, but as a saleswoman she is tops.
huneybumper at 9:44AM on 08/04/08
Wow. To all you haters...how about hitting the "channel" button and tuning in to another station??
carol107 at 10:47AM on 08/04/08
You know people make fun of that type of cooking...like it's s000000 fattening , but the reality is, don't eat th whole dish! I think if you have balance you can pretty much eat and enjoy everything....(that's wy I run!!!) ..don't focus so much on Paula, focus on the many drive thrus....god knows what your eating or better yet what crawls in there and you eat it anyway!!!!!!!!!That is the stuff that really kills you! At least her food is made fresh, peole love it or she wouldn't be the success she is! Go Paula...!!!!!!!!!!!
Maria Marra at 12:29PM on 08/06/08
How in the name of Betty Crocker does she come up with this crap? I have a suggestion for her concerning the banana.........
RichardCrystal at 2:24PM on 08/07/08
BEST. BLOG. SERIES. EVER.
heartnibbler at 5:33PM on 08/21/08
Paula likes to say, "I'm a cook......not a doctor." Her accent is completely real and there are many Southerners who sound just like her! She is a happy woman who is laughing all the way to the bank. She and her family are very generous. To see photos of them at a recent benefit for Safe Shelter (for abused women and children) in Savannah, please go to spotted.savannahnow.com and type PAULA in the search box.
TybeeSherri at 7:07PM on 09/23/08
ahahaahah! she is trying to kill us!
Shr1mpch1p at 1:50AM on 09/15/09