Recipe

Plantain Piononos with Bacon and Cheese

Name: Plantain Piononos with Bacon and Cheese
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 2 ripe macho or burro plantains; 100 g smoked bacon in slices; 100 g Emmental cheese thinly sliced; 1 teaspoon chopped parsley, for garnish; Vegetable oil, for greasing

Ripe plantain piononos rolled with bacon and Emmental cheese, baked until golden. A sweet and savory side dish, easy and quick.

CiberCubaAugust 15, 2010

CiberCuba

Preparation10 min
Cooking20 min
Total time30 min
Servings6 servings (about 10 piononos)
DifficultyEasy

Generally, we prepare macho plantains as fufú, chicharritas, or tostones, or let them ripen to fry them. These piononos are made with very ripe plantains, rolled with bacon and cheese, and go into the oven instead of the frying pan. I hope you enjoy them!

Ingredients

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2 ripe macho or burro plantains
100 g smoked bacon in slices
100 g Emmental cheese thinly sliced
1 teaspoon chopped parsley, for garnish
Vegetable oil, for greasing

Method

Wash and peel the ripe plantains.
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Cut them lengthwise into thin slices; you will get approximately 5 slices from each plantain.
Cut the cheese into thin strips of similar size and thickness to the plantain slices. Separate the bacon strips so preparation is faster.
Preheat the oven to 220 ºC (428 ºF). Lightly grease a baking sheet or some pancake molds with vegetable oil.
Place a strip of plantain on top of a bacon strip and put a slice of cheese on top: it should be bacon, plantain, and cheese.
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Roll them as tightly as possible and place each little roll in the mold. If you do not have a mold, pierce each roll from side to side with a toothpick so it does not open while baking.
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Bake at 220 ºC (428 ºF) for 20 minutes or until golden.
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Remove them from the oven, garnish with a little chopped parsley, and serve immediately, very hot. Enjoy!
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Tips and variations

Variation with picadillo: in the book Cocina al minuto, Nitza Villapol prepares them with picadillo, makes the rolls, and fries them. To do it this way, cut the plantains into slices, fry them until golden, and let them cool. Spread each slice with 1 tablespoon of picadillo, roll it up, and pierce it with 1 or 2 toothpicks so it does not open. Pass the little rolls through beaten egg with salt and fry them until golden. In this version, we bake them because the bacon and cheese already provide enough fat.

For garnish: give them a green touch with parsley or chives, but lightly, so the sweetness of the plantain stands out.

About the plantains: they are ideal for recovering energy after great physical exertion and are rich in potassium, magnesium, vitamin C, and folic acid. The color of the skin indicates the degree of ripeness; if you notice spots or dark dots, do not discard them, because that does not affect the quality of the fruit.