Deep Dish Banoffee Pie

Things have been quiet around here this week, but my hands have been busy with new opportunities and happy things on the horizon.  There’s also been rain – which I usually love, but this week it’s been a non-stop-icy-cold rain of biblical proportions. We just might need an ark! And we certainly need the comfort of a good pie.

When it comes to pie, I always seem to gravitate toward deep-dish.  And ever since the creation of this pie, I can’t seem to keep sprinkles out of my graham crusts. Although the sprinkles are optional for this pie, the extra touch of chocolate in the crust is nice -pretty too. If you can find chocolate vermicelli such as Deruyter brand (check your local international market) the chocolate flavor will be more pronounced than the usual cake-decorating variety of chocolate sprinkles.

Most banoffee pies have a soft texture that I find comparable to banana pudding or Tiramisu  This version is a little different.  It is still rather soft, but its toffee portion is more firm and caramel-like.  I love how well it holds up to slicing.  It has a great big cloud of whipped cream and a whole mess of chocolate curls on top – heaven!

Achieving perfect chocolate curls is all about timing. You can find my chocolate curls video here, but I’d like to add another note, er… visual cue, rather.  As you begin scraping the chocolate away from the baking sheet the chocolate may start to flake instead of curl. That means the chocolate is too cold.  Let it stand at room temp for 3-5 minutes longer and try scraping a very small section again. As soon as the chocolate begins to curl, go to it!

I really enjoyed developing this recipe. It only took a couple of tries to perfect and you can avoid some of my early mistakes by reading my notes below the recipe.

With all its curlicues, this pie practically begs to be made for celebrations and happy gatherings. Who says pie can’t be cute?

Deep Dish Banoffee Pie

Source: SprinkleBakes original recipe

Yield: One 9 x 2.5-inch pie about 18 servings

[click for printable version]

One thing that is especially important to remember when making this pie is that we’re using sweetened condensed milk here, which is quite viscous and syrupy from the can due to the added sugar – not evaporated milk which is unsweetened and very liquid. Plan ahead because this pie needs to chill for several hours, overnight is preferred.

Crust:

2 cups fine graham cracker crumbs

1/2 cup chocolate sprinkles

1/4  tsp. salt

2 tbsp. granulated sugar

8 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1. Combine graham cracker crumbs, sprinkles, salt and sugar in a large bowl. Whisk until thoroughly combined and jimmies are evenly dispersed.
2. Make a divot in the middle of the graham cracker mixture and pour in the melted butter.  Mix together using a rubber spatula; turn mixture over from the bottom of the bowl to the top until all the crumbs are moistened.
3. Pour crumbs into an 9 x 2.5-inch springform pan; press tightly and evenly into the bottom and up the sides of the springform pan. Chill in the refrigerator until ready for use.

Filling:

4 large bananas

2 tbsp. lemon juice

1 cup butter

2 14oz. cans sweetened condensed milk

1 1/3 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup dark corn syrup

1 1/3 cups heavy whipping cream

1/4 cup granulated sugar

Chocolate curls or chocolate shavings

1. Slice two bananas and place in a medium bowl. Toss bananas and 1 tbsp. lemon juice together with your hands or with a large wooden spoon (This will prevent the bananas from turning brown). Arrange banana slices in the bottom of the graham crust and return the pan to the refrigerator.
2. Combine the butter, brown sugar, condensed milk and corn syrup in a large non-stick saucepan. Roughly stir together and place over medium heat.  When butter has melted and sugar has dissolved, raise heat to medium-high and bring to a bubble. Be careful because this mixture is sticky and will bubble and sputter onto your bare hands. Wear an oven mitt on your stirring hand if possible. Keep mixture at a gentle bubble for 6-10 minutes (set a timer), stirring constantly so the mixture does not burn.  Edit 1/27/12 – I’m getting some feedback that 10 minutes is too long to boil the toffee.  It should not be so thick that you can’t pour it. If you half the recipe (I’ve noticed some are) the cooking time will definitely need to be reduced.
3. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.  Stir well then pour mixture over bananas in the graham crust. Chill until set, several hours or overnight.
4. Slice remaining two bananas and toss with 1 tbsp. lemon juice as before; set aside.  Whip heavy cream with an electric hand mixer until slightly thickened, then gradually add the 1/4 cup sugar.  Whip until stiff.  
5. Place a few banana slices on the top center of the set pie and then cover with the entire batch of whipped cream. Place remaining banana slices on and around the whipped topping and cover entire pie with chocolate curls or chocolate shavings.  If you have extra chocolate sprinkles from making the crust, sprinkle over a little of those, too.
6. Keep uneaten portion chilled.

Notes:

• It’s important to allow the butter to cool before adding to the graham cracker crust, especially if using the chocolate sprinkles. Hot butter will cause the sprinkles to melt and lose their shape.
• Be sure to let the toffee mixture cool down before pouring it over the bananas. The mixture hot from the stove-top will cook the bananas and cause them to weep and your pie will have pockets of liquid.
• If you have time constraints or are not ready to conquer chocolate curls, chocolate shavings can easily be made with a block of chocolate and a vegetable peeler. Just place the chocolate on a plate and scrape the side of the chocolate with a vegetable peeler until the desired amount is achieved.