Recipes Desserts Banana-Split Strudel 5.0 (1) 1 Review Gale Gand of Tru loves this fun takeoff on a soda-fountain classic because it's easy. You don't even slice the bananas. Beautiful Desserts By Gale Gand Gale Gand Gale Gand is an acclaimed and award-winning pastry chef who has opened five restaurants, written eight cookbooks, and hosted Sweet Dreams, the first dessert cooking show to air nationally. She has been cooking, writing, and teaching about desserts and cooking for almost 25 years.Experience: Gale Gand is a nationally acclaimed pastry chef, restaurateur, cookbook author, and television personality.Gale is based in Chicago, where she opened her first restaurants with culinary partner Chef Rick Tramonto. As acclaim for Trio and Brasserie T built, they opened Stapleford Park in Leicestershire, England. In 1999, Gale and Rick created Tru (open for 18 years), which won awards from the James Beard Foundation and was named Chicago's best restaurant by Chicago Magazine. From 2014-2016, she ran a two year pop up restaurant called Spritz Burger.In 2001, Gale was awarded Outstanding Pastry Chef by the James Beard Foundation. She hosted the first ever dessert-only cooking show, Sweet Dreams, that ran on the Food Network from 2000-2008.In addition to television and restaurants, Gale has written eight cookbooks: American Brasserie, Butter Sugar Flour Eggs, Just a Bite, Short and Sweet, Tru: A Cookbook from the Legendary Chicago Restaurant, Chocolate and Vanilla, Gale Gand's Brunch, and Gale Gand's Lunch.Gale created her own artisan cinnamon ginger root beer brand, Gale's Root Beer, available nationally.Education: Gale majored in gold and silversmithing at the Rochester Institute of Technology and attended the Cleveland Institute of Art. She studied culinary arts at La Varenne in Paris. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Updated on October 20, 2016 Print Rate It Share Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: © Anna Williams Yield: 6 Ingredients 1 ⅓ cups finely chopped walnuts (4 1/2 ounces) ½ pound cream cheese (softened) 1 large egg yolk ¾ cup granulated sugar (plus more for sprinkling) 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract ¼ teaspoon cinnamon 2 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate (finely chopped) 4 sheets phyllo dough 1 stick unsalted butter (4 ounces melted) 4 medium bananas (peeled) Confectioners' sugar (for dusting) 1 pint vanilla ice cream Directions Preheat the oven to 375°. Spread the walnuts on a rimmed baking sheet and toast for 6 minutes, or until browned. Transfer the walnuts to a plate to cool. In a bowl, using a handheld mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Beat in the egg yolk. Add 1/4 cup of granulated sugar, the vanilla and cinnamon and beat until blended. Stir the chocolate into the cream cheese mixture and refrigerate for at least 10 minutes. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Lay 1 sheet of phyllo on the parchment paper. Brush the phyllo with melted butter and sprinkle with 1/3 cup of the walnuts and 2 tablespoons of the granulated sugar. Cover with another phyllo sheet, butter it and sprinkle with walnuts and granulated sugar as before; repeat 2 more times to make 4 layers. Turn the baking sheet so that a long side is facing you. Spoon half the cream cheese mixture in a long strip along the length of the phyllo, leaving a 2-inch border of phyllo below and on each side. Lay 2 bananas end to end on the cream cheese. Set the 2 remaining bananas next to them, so you have a double row. Trim the bananas if needed. Spoon the remaining cream cheese mixture in a strip on the bananas. Starting with the long edge closest to you and using the parchment paper as a guide, lift the phyllo up and over the bananas and roll into a neat, compact log; fold in the sides to enclose the filling. Discard the parchment paper. Slide the strudel to the center of the baking sheet, making sure the seam is down. Brush the strudel with melted butter and sprinkle with granulated sugar. Bake the strudel for 40 minutes, or until crisp and brown. Let it stand for about 25 minutes, then transfer to a cutting board. Dust with confectioners' sugar. Using a serrated knife, thickly slice the strudel crosswise and serve warm with vanilla ice cream. Rate it Print