The Ultimate Banoffee Pie

Banoffee pie, a name derived from the combination of bananas & toffee.
It’s an English dessert made from condensed milk, bananas and cream set on a biscuit base or pastry crust.

I have eaten it once when I was in London and it did not take my fancy then.
Yet, I made 2 today; cuz girlfriend’s back from her 4 years stint in the UK & she is dying for some.
Girlfriend had been bugging me for weeks to fulfill her cravings.
I finally succumbed to her pleadings in exchange for a bottle of Rose essential oil from her very protected collection (as I am writing this, my room is filled with the heavenly aroma of sweet rose…..bliss!!!).

The recipe I attempted is not by the traditional method, cuz the traditional way, *at least to me*, sounded like a very scary process from what I read while searching for the recipe.
It involved boiling unopened cans of condensed milk in a pot of water for at least 3-4 hours and explosions may occur if one is not careful in monitoring the water level, once the water evaporates, I think U can imagine the scenario *ka-boom*.
Not a pretty sight & if human traffic is around the vicinity, need I say more???
Me being the ever cautious one (read Kia Si), definitely have no guts to undertake this.
The version I made is way easier, fuss free & ridiculously easy to make, see recipe below.

Anyhow, I sliced a piece of the pie to snap a pix for this entry & elf became the happy recipient of it .
The boy was all thumbs up & full of praise, well, anything sweet goes for him.
I took only a tinny weenie bite from his share & I surrendered.
*Too sweet, waay toooo, toooo sweet*.

Girlfriend had a huge slab & took one whole pie home, that's to be devoured at the comfort of her home slowly (I doubt it!!!).
Left with another half, I sent it next door & to my surprise, thy neighbors enjoyed it too.

I think for this dessert, U either love or hate it…..I chose the latter. Try making one soon & let me know, which side U're on.

Banoffee Pie
(Source: Nestlé)

Ingredients:

For the base:

• 100g Butter - melted
• 250g Digestive biscuits

For the caramel:

• 100g Butter
• 100g Dark brown soft sugar
• 397g can Carnation Condensed Milk

Topping:

• 4 small bananas
• 284ml Double cream - lightly whipped
• Cocoa powder - for dusting

You will also need:

• 20cm (8”) loose-bottomed cake tin, greased and based lined

Method:

To make the base:

1. Process the biscuits until like fine crumbs then tip into a bowl.
2. Stir in the melted butter.
3. Press the mixture into the base and 4cm (1½in) up the sides of the tin.
4. Chill the base while you make the filling.

To make the filling:

1. Place the butter and sugar into a non-stick saucepan over a low heat, stirring until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves.
2. Add the condensed milk and bring gently to the boil, stirring continuously to make the caramel (10-15 mins).
3. As soon as it thickens, remove from the heat.
4. Spread the filling over the biscuit base, cool, and then leave to chill for about 1 hour, until firm.

To serve:

1. Remove the pie from the tin and place on a serving plate.
2. Slice the bananas; fold half of them into the softly whipped cream and spoon over the toffee base.
3. Decorate with the remaining bananas and dust liberally with the cocoa.