The first appearance of this delicious dessert was around 1970 in Great Britain, but it soon became a world classic. Crunchy, creamy and tasty, the banoffee cake is characterized by a filling and a base that are very easy to prepare.
Ingrediants
- At least 600 g of sweetened condensed milk in closed cans
- 150 g of crushed digestive biscuits or similar
- 40 g of ground almonds or almond flour
- 40 g of ground hazelnuts
- 3-4 large, ripe bananas
- 85 g of butter
- 500 ml of whipped cream
- 75 g of dark chocolate
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Making the Toffee Sauce
Step 1. Cover the cans of condensed milk with water
Remove the labels from 2 tightly closed cans of condensed milk. Put them in a saucepan laying them horizontally to prevent them from banging. Pour water at room temperature so that at least 2 inches of liquid remains above the cans.
A standard can of condensed milk contains approximately 400 g of product. If you use cans of other sizes, remember that you need at least 600g of product
Step 2. Let it boil for at least 2 hours, adding water from time to time
The condensed milk will be caramelized, turning into a soft and brown dulce de leche, or toffee sauce. Check the pot regularly and add more water if necessary. If the cans are exposed to air, they can overheat and explode. Let it boil for at least 2 hours, even 3 if you want a dark and thick sauce.
Technically, the milk is exposed to the so-called Maillard reaction rather than caramelization. A regular caramel sauce is not thick enough to be used to fill a cake
Step 3. Let it cool
Remove the cans from the pot with tongs and move them away from any heat sources. Allow them to cool to room temperature before opening them, otherwise the dulce de leche may splash out of the can.
Part 2 of 3: Prepare the Base
Step 1. Preheat the oven to 180 ° C
Step 2. Mix the biscuits and ground nuts
American recipes usually call for a base made of graham biscuits, while British recipes involve the use of digestive biscuits or the like. Choose your favorite ingredient and measure 150g (or make 9 whole digestive biscuits). Place it in an airtight bag, then add 40g of ground almonds and 40g of ground hazelnuts.
- If you prefer to avoid using dried fruit, replace it with larger quantities of biscuits.
- The wholemeal digestive biscuits contrast the characteristic sweet taste of this cake, while those with honey make the base more compact.
- To intensify the flavor, you can toast the ground dried fruit.
Step 3. Crush the cookies and nuts
Let the air contained in the airtight bag out as much as possible, then close it tightly and pass a rolling pin until the biscuits are finely crushed.
It is not necessary to pulverize the ingredients: leaving a few solid pieces allows you to make the cake more crunchy
Step 4. Mix with the melted butter
Pour the ground ingredients into a bowl. Melt 85 g of butter, then pour it into the bowl. Stir with a fork until you get a consistency similar to that of wet sand.
Step 5. Grease a pie pan or a 20 cm diameter cake pan with a zipper
Press the cookie and butter mixture into the base and sides to create an even layer. Make it compact by pressing it with the bottom of a glass.
Step 6. Bake for 10-12 minutes
Before continuing, let it cool down to room temperature.
Alternatively, avoid putting it in the oven and keep it in the refrigerator for at least an hour. This will give you a slightly less compact base
Part 3 of 3: Making the Cake
Step 1. Peel 3-4 ripe bananas and cut them into thin slices
Place them on the base of the cake.
Step 2. Cool the cans, open and pour the condensed milk over the bananas with the help of a spoon
You will need about 600g of condensed milk.
- Modify the doses of bananas and condensed milk to suit your taste.
- Once cooked, the condensed milk should thicken and turn light brown.
Step 3. Garnish
Whip 500 ml (2 cups) of cream until stiff. Place a generous amount on the cake with the help of a spoon.
Step 4. Grate the dark chocolate onto the cake to complete the topping
Step 5. Put the cake in the refrigerator (optional)
You can serve it at room temperature, but keeping it in the fridge for 20 minutes allows the toffee sauce to thicken.
If you used a cake pan with a zipper, pass a knife around the perimeter to make the base come off before serving. Remove the sides of the pan and serve the cake directly, otherwise lay it carefully on a plate. Be careful: if the base hasn't been cooked or compacted enough, it may not be solid enough to keep its shape intact
Advice
- Store leftover toffee sauce in an airtight container, as the metal in the can can alter the color. You can keep it in the fridge for up to 3 weeks.
- The maker of the banoffee cake uses shortcrust pastry instead of crushed cookies. Since the base must be cooked without filling, make holes in the bottom and weigh it down with cake weights or dried legumes to prevent bubbles from forming.
