international house: So I've got this Iron Chef style cooking challenge I'm working on, and the ingredient to use is banana/plantains. For the main dish, I've got this idea rolling around in my head. Kinda like a picadillo with some coarse chopped plantains, and baked in a banana leaf. Any opinions on what would work best or what would be good to add? I'm leaning towards ground beef, largely because I have about 3.5 hours to shop and make an appetizer, main dish, and dessert. Appetizer will probably be something like fried plantains with a chimichurri. Dessert will probably be bananas foster with some ice cream. (I also had the idea of kinda combining bananas foster and creme brulee, basically using the burning alcohol to carmelize the sugar, but I don't think I have enough time for trial and error, especially since tomorrow is Sunday and I can't buy rum until noon, 30 minutes before deadline, here in Texas. Yeah time starts in 10 hours so any thoughts would be appreciated, thanks.|||Somehow wrap this in the leaf- SWEET PLANTAIN AND PEPPER STUFFED CHICKEN MARINADE 2 fresh lemons, juiced 4 garlic cloves, minced 1 tablespoon dried Mexican oregano, crushed 2 tablespoons olive oil Salt and freshly ground pepper 1 whole 3 to 31/2 pound chicken PLANTAIN AND PEPPER STUFFING (A.K.A. MOFONGO) 4 slices bacon, diced 1 large ripe plantain, peeled and cut into 1/2inch cubes 2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped 1 small red pepper, seeded and chopped 1 Anaheim chile, seeded and chopped 1/2 bunch oregano, chopped 1/2 cup chicken stock 2 slices country bread, diced and dried 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper 1/2 cup chicken stock To make the marinade: In a small bowl, combine the juice of the lemons, garlic, dried oregano, olive oil, salt and pepper. Rub all over the chicken and allow it to set in the refrigerator 1 to 2 hours. To make the stuffing: Over mediumhigh heat, sautJ the bacon until crisp. Remove from the pan. Place the plantains to the pan and cook until lightly browned. Add the garlic, peppers and oregano and cook 2 to 3 minutes more. Pour in the chicken stock to deglaze the pan, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add the bread, salt and pepper. Stir gently to combine. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Remove the chicken from the refrigerator and stuff it with the plantain pepper mixture. Tie the legs together and place on a rack in a roasting pan, breast side down. Cook for 1/2 hour, turn the chicken breast side up and roast for another 1/2 hour or until the skin is golden brown and the chicken is cooked through.|||I have only heard/seen baked fish in a banana leaf. If you change your mind, here is a recipe: http://wokkingmum.blogspot.com/2008/03/b鈥?/a> Hope you do well in the challenge.