The Banoffee Pie was invented by The Hungry Monk restaurant of Sussex, U.K., in 1972. Traditionally the recipe includes a hint of coffee in the cream and a shortcrust pastry base. The hybrid of three or four recipes seen below was due to my not having all the ingredients on hand to make the bona fide version.
200g blanched whole almonds
300g icing sugar
2 x 400g tins condensed milk, boiled for 3hrs in their tins
6 bananas
600 ml double cream
Seeds from 1 vanilla pod
150g butter, melted
250g digestive biscuits, crushed
Cocoa for dusting
Pre-heat the oven to 180C
Equipment:
20cm loose-bottomed cake tin, greased and based lined.
To make the base:
Crush the biscuits in a food processor (or the old-fashioned way by putting in a plastic bag and whacking) until like fine crumbs then put into a bowl. Stir in the melted butter. Press the mixture into the base and up the sides of the tin. Chill the base while you make the filling.
Filling:
Give the almonds a rinse in water, drain them a little and mix them quickly with the icing sugar in a bowl until they are really sticky. Tip them on to a baking tray and toast for 15 minutes in the oven until they are golden and crispy, turning them every couple of minutes. Remove them from the oven and allow to cool.
Spread the toffee as thick as you like across the base of the pastry. Slice the bananas and place on top of the toffee, then whip the cream with the vanilla. Then dollop the cream on top of the bananas, as high and as rough as you like.
Sprinkle the almonds over the top of the banoffee pie, dust with cocoa (I didn't have any) and serve immediately.
