Banoffee Pie

This. Is. Amazing. And incredibly decadent! I think this may be a new favorite for desserts that are sweetened only with fruit. There is a little sweetener in the crust, but honestly I'm not sure it needs to be there. A little applesauce would probably do just as well. 

I wanted to make this for a matter of weeks, maybe even months, and was slowly gathering the ingredients and gumption for it. I ended up making my own almond butter, since it doesn't call for much, and that works just great. It's a bit tricky because you have to make this at a time when your bananas are ripe, and for those who know me, that is an extremely narrow window. I left off the chocolate shavings and didn't think it missed anything special. It probably just looks nice. 

Just writing this makes my mouth water for some more of this pie, but alas it was gone a verrrry short time after its genesis. I won't say how short, and I won't say how much of it Kendall ate. I'll just say that a sleep-deprived mom battling a cute baby who struggles with naps all day might be driven to eat an unnatural amount of comfort food now and then. 

Banoffee Pie

From Oh She Glows

Crust:

1/2 C almonds

2 C rolled oats

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 C coconut oil, melted

2 T maple syrup, honey, or agave (or applesauce?)

1 1/2 T water, or as needed

Caramel Toffee:

1 1/2 C pitted Medjool dates

3 T smooth almond butter

1 tsp lemon juice

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp vanilla

Filling:

2 cans full-fat coconut milk, chilled overnight

Raw caramel toffee (from above)

3 large ripe bananas, sliced into thick coins

2 squares dark chocolate, shaved (optional--I didn't do this)

1. Place cans of coconut milk in the fridge upside down overnight. 

2. Preheat oven to 375. Lightly grease the base of an 8-10 in. tart pan, pie pan, or springform pan. 

3. Add almonds to a food processor and process until the texture of coarse sand. Now add oats, cinnamon, salt, and process until the same texture is achieved. Add oil, maple syrup, and water, then process until mixture comes together and no dry flour remains. The dough should stick together when pressed between your fingers. Add some more water as needed. 

4. Press dough in an even layer around the base and up the sides (partially) of your pan. Poke the base with a fork about 15 times. 

5. Bake crust uncovered, 12-14 min until lightly golden. Remove and cool. 

6. Make the raw caramel toffee by adding all ingredients to a food processor and pulsing until combined and smooth. You'll need to scrape the sides fairly often. (soak your dates if you have really firm dates. Mine never are)

7. Open chilled coconut milk and carefully scoop off the cream, discarding the remaining water (or using in a smoothie later, which I did and it was TASTY!). Add the cream to a bowl and beat with electric beaters until smooth and fluffy. 

8. When crust has cooled, spread all of the toffee onto the base until it is covered. Slice all of the bananas and place half of them on top of the caramel, lightly pressing down. 

9. Spread all of the whipped coconut cream on top of the banana slices. Spread evenly and place the remaining banana slices on top of that in a circular pattern. Garnish with shaved chocolate if you like. 

10. She says to serve this immediately, but if your coconut whipped cream didn't whip up that well it might stiffen up a bit more if you put it in the fridge for a while. It's tasty whether or not it stiffens up :)