Pie seems to be the order of the day with me this month. Well, when I say pie, I really mean tart.
Today I made a luscious banana cream version, to be served with lashings of fresh cream and warm chocolate sauce.
I like bananas … and so does Doopey. He eats them for breakfast occasionally. The vet says he needs to eat healthy snacks … hence the fruit and veg.
Peeling fruit (with a peeler) and deseeding stuff myself isn’t something I can be bothered doing, which is probably why bananas appeal. From the bunch into my tummy in less than 5 seconds. Also they go great on so many things: pancakes (YUM!!), on toast with honey, and deep fried in what I like to refer to as ‘banana donuts’. My Malaysian friends will know it as ‘cekodok pisang‘. (Teh tarik satu!)
This is the first time I trying my hand at making banana custard. I was a bit unsure if it would turn out well but, as I have discovered, its easier than I imagined. I already know how to make vanilla custard by-heart, with my eyes blindfolded, so the next step was to make a new flavour. Have I mentioned that I lurrrrrve custards and custard-based desserts?? My last successful custard recipe were these amazing ‘Bailey’s Chocolate Creams‘, a recipe which I happened to come up with myself. It’s quite an adult dessert and it was pure indulgence … you wouldn’t want to share it with the kids anyway.
I have noticed a good few banana custard recipes in food magazines recently and wondered if I should dip my finger in it and have a go. So this is that I have come up with today, based on my favourite French crêpe filling. I don’t think you can go far wrong if you stick with classic combinations you already know will work every time. Chocolate and bananas are already winners, but tie it all together with whipped cream and you have a solid trifactor. Have them on WAFFLES! With a scoop of ice cream … omg!! Okay, I am getting carried away now. Need to focus on the pie at hand. Its a pretty straight forward dessert … essentially a few different components being prepared separately and then put together the next day.
Ingredients:
- sweet pastry dough
- 700 mls banana custard* (see below for recipe)
- 300 mls whipped cream, for topping
- 1 banana, sliced for topping
- 100 g dark chocolate ganache
After you make the pastry, place it in the tin and bake it blind.
It is important that you fit the paper firmly on top of the pasty and press into the corners to avoid air pockets.
Fill the tin with baking beans or legumes and bake for 10 – 12 minutes on 190°C
Remove the paper after 12 minutes and return the tin to the oven to cook the center properly. It should come out dry to the touch.
Once the shell if done, cool it completely on a wire rack.
Melt a little chocolate in a bowl and paint the bottom of the crust to provide a water-tight seal. This will ensure your pastry will not get soggy when you pour in the custard later. But it’s okay if you forget, or skip this step. I omitted the chocolate brushing and the tart still cake out well.
Banana Custard.
- 2 large bananas, mashed
- 500 mls whole milk
- 3 egg yolks
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp light brown sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp custard powder
- 200 mls fresh whipped cream
- 4 sheets gelatine
Heat milk in a saucepan until just simmering.
Meanwhile, whisk egg yolks in a large bowl with sugar until pale. Then add the custard powder. Whisk again to form a paste.
Add the hot milk slowly to the egg mixture. Whisk constantly to avoid lumps and to avoid cooking the eggs too much that they scramble.
Return the mixture same pot and return to the stove on low. Heat gently until mixture begins to thicken. Whisk constantly.
Once the custard is thick and glossy, remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract.
Mash two bananas with the light brown sugar in a clean bowl. If your bananas are very ripe and sweet, the addition of brown sugar can be left out.
I don’t mash all the bananas to a puree. I like to leave a few lumps for texture.
Pour the hot custard over the banana mash, and stir well.
Keep whisking to cool down the mixture quickly … then cover with plastic wrap and chill overnight in the fridge. Remember to place the cling film directly onto the surface of the warm custard to avoid a skin from forming as it cools.
Next day, just before you fill in the crust, whip up some fresh cream and fold this into the banana custard to lighten the texture.
Please note that your custard mixture will no longer be bright yellow as it was the day before. Bananas do turn a bit brown in the fridge.
Bloom gelatine sheets in cold water and then add them to a small amount (approx 2 tbsps) of hot cream. Stir until dissolved thoroughly.
Add the melted gelatine** to the custard cream and stir well to evenly distribute.
Pour immediately into the pie shell before it thickens. Shake the tin to evenly distribute, then return everything to the fridge to set, 4 – 8 hours.
For the finishing touches, slice some ripe bananas and place on top of the pie.
Grate some chocolate curls or simply dust with cocoa powder.
Pipe whipped cream swirls on the edges of the pie.
Serve with warm melted chocolate sauce on the side.
**note: The number of gelatine sheets I use depends on how runny my custard cream turns out on day two. If yours turns out like a banana smoothie then go with four sheets.
This pie went down a real treat today. Very rich, so this pie will feed a lot of people. After eating my test slice I somehow reaaaallly wanted a cocktail. Somewhat random, but I honestly wanted one. Also, just like my cheesecake craze a few months back, I think I might be in danger of heading the same way with tarts. I am already having visions of other flavours: ‘Coconut Rum & Pineapple’, ‘Strawberry Cheesecake’, ‘Double Chocolate & Sour Cherry’, ‘Pear & Frangipane’. Don’t think I will be able to sleep tonight; I’m sure many a food lover can relate.
Well before I go ranting on and on about future tarts I have yet to make, I better take my leave and skedaddle. On a final note, just remember bananas will brown when left exposed to air and when kept in the fridge … so only top the tart with fresh banana slices just before service. I hope everyone enjoys this as much as I did today. So happy it turned out exactly how I wanted it to and it sliced really well, without custard oozing all over the place. R. will be home from work later and he’ll probably eat half of it. Mental note to self ~ slice a piece, hide the rest.
~ Enjoy ~
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