#19: My Banoffee Pie

My daughter's bear even covets to have a bite.

So, I got enamored with the flavor, elegance and simplicity of Banapple's Banoffee Pie. I wanted to eat some more so I said I'd rather stuff myself with it at home. I then relived all  the flavors I enjoyed, checked the internet for some of my co-foodie's versions and came up with my own. Yeah! One whole pie just for me and my household!
You will just have to have a hand mixer though to whip the cream that we have in our recipe. I'd like to make the caramel sauce our featured ingredient but it is not exactly an ingredient. Caramel sauce calls for its own recipe so we'll make it the banana. 
We are used to eating banana just as it is when we need a quick snack or when there is nothing else to eat. Well, it is becoming increasingly popular anyway as a breakfast or meal substitute because it has all the works: vitamin C, potassium, energy from natural sugars, digestible carbohydrates, zero fat and cholesterol, dietary fiber. However, we fail to see that we can squeeze it into a sandwich with some peanut butter, or toss it with some orange segments and simple syrup,  or turn it into a luscious dessert just like this one! Oh this is going to be exciting! 

Anne's Banoffee Pie
Sosy level: 4
Pawis level: 4 (but believe me it's worth it)
Featured Ingredient: Bananas
If each one is on a diet and no one is greedy, you can serve dessert for eight. But if your family has a bigger appetite, then, this will just be enough for four, hehe.


Ingredients:
A. Crust
1 cup crushed Graham crackers
1/4 cup rolled or quick cooking oats
1 tbsp sugar and a pinch of salt mixed in 
3/4 cup melted butter (not margarine okay?)


1. Mix all ingredients together until butter is evenly blended.
2. In a 9-inch round pie pan, press the crust as evenly as you can against the bottom and the sides. When you are satisfied  with it, pop it in the fridge while we make the...

B. Caramel Syrup
1 cup sugar
6 tbsps butter (again, not margarine)
1/2 cup cream


1. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan (meaning a pan with high walls because the boiling sugar is nasty hot - we don't want it to splatter on your silky-smooth hands), melt the sugar in very low heat. Whisk it constantly so that all granules will be completely melted.
2. Be careful not to allow it to boil when there are still sugar granules. Take it away from the heat for 8 seconds if bubbles start to come out and mix it continuously to dissolve the remaining granules. If it still has sugar granules and the syrup is always at the brink of boiling, add a teaspoon of water. However, this will thin out the mixture so make sure you have boiled the water out later on.
3. So when the granules are gone, then you're ready to allow it to boil. When it is boiling, DO NOT MIX IT ANYMORE! It will, ironically, create granules again. If you added water in it earlier, let it boil enough to make sure that the water has evaporated already. The syrup has to be thick enough to stick to your spoon and drip in long strands. Put on your gloves and goggles and get ready to...
4. Add the butter. It might spit and sputter a bit, or it may not depending on your luck haha! Then you can mix it untill all the butter is melted. 
5. When thoroughly melted, take it off the heat, count from one to five (I mean it, you really count to five) then add the cream. Mix it thoroughly until well-blended. Set aside to cool.

Here's my finished Banoffee Pie!

C. The rest of it...
6pcs of lakatan bananas, sliced
1 cup cream, chilled well
2 tbsps sugar or condensed milk
1 tbsp white unflavored gelatin powder
3 tbsps hot milk
any brown chocolate bar of choice to shave (I used Flat Tops in mine, hahaha!)


How to assemble the pie:
1. Using a hand mixer with the whisk attachment, whip the cream in a bowl for about 5 minutes or until it is stiff enough to form peaks when you lift the mixer. Then add the sugar or condensed milk and whisk again until thoroughly mixed. 
2. In another bowl, mix the warm milk and the gelatin. Stir until the gelatin is dissolved. Add the gelatin mixture to the whipped cream and fold it in. Do not use the hand mixer, okay. Just gently fold it in until you can't distinguish between the cream and the gelatin anymore. Set aside.
3.In a bowl, mix the bananas and a portion of the caramel syrup, just enough to cover the bananas well. You can add more if you are a caramel addict, just don't make the bananas swim in caramel.
4. Take the crust from the fridge and pour in the banana mixture evenly. Then using a spatula, spread the cream mixture on top of the bananas evenly. (If you're feeling like a pastry chef, you can use an icing bag to pipe in little beehives of cream to cover the pie and decorate the sides if you want. :-D)
5. Using your regular cheese grater, grate the chocolate bar on top of the cream. How much depends on your taste. Drizzle some caramel sauce on top to decorate. Then torture yourself a bit more by letting it chill the fridge for some 15 to 30 minutes more. Come on, it has to set dear. This should put your emotional quotient to the test. :-D Enjoy!