Banana Cream Pie with Chocolate and a Hint of Cinnamon
Welcome to my longest-titled blog so
far! Today's recipe comes from, “The Art & Soul of Baking”
by Cindy Mushet. The layers are as follows from the bottom up:
chocolate cookie crumb crust, smear of chocolate ganache, banana
slices in cinnamon pastry cream, and whipped cream on top. The
cinnamon seemed a bit subtle in the pastry cream so I added cinnamon
to the whipped cream as well. I made this recipe for a going
away/birthday party and it was completely devoured within a very
short amount of time. Would I make it again? Absolutely!
Crust Ingredients:
1 ½ cup crushed chocolate cookie
crumbs (example: Oreos or Newman-Os with the cream removed)
¾ cup butter, melted
Cinnamon Pastry Cream Ingredients:
1 ½ cup milk
1 egg
2 egg yolks
6 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ cup flour
2 tablespoons cold butter
Remaining Ingredients:
1 ½ ounces semi-sweet chocolate
1 tablespoon + 1 ¼ cups heavy whipping
cream
3 large bananas
1 tablespoon sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla
¼ teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
chocolate cookie crumbs for garnish
(optional)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In
the pie pan you intend to use, combine the cookie crumbs and melted
butter, then press evenly into the bottom and up the sides of the
pan. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes and then set aside to cool.
Fill a large bowl halfway with ice and
water, set aside. Pour the milk into a medium saucepan and heat to
just below the boiling point. Remove from heat and set aside. In a
medium bowl whisk the egg, yolks, sugar, and cinnamon until blended.
Add the flour and whisk vigorously until smooth. Pour about ½ cup
of the hot milk into the yolk mixture, whisking constantly to temper
the eggs. Slowly pour the yolk mixture back into the hot milk,
continuously whisking. Return the mixture to the burner and heat
until it reaches a boil, still whisking to prevent the flour from
lumping. Continue to cook and whisk for another minute until the
pastry cream is very thick. Remove from the heat and whisk in the
butter. Pour into a medium bowl, press a piece of plastic wrap
directly on the surface of the pastry cream, then set the bowl into
the bowl of ice water. Once the pastry cream has completely cooled,
use or store it in the refrigerator until needed.
Place the chocolate and 1 tablespoon of
cream into a very small saucepan and heat just until the chocolate is
melted. Stir to blend and then spread a very thin layer of ganache
over the bottom and up the sides of the crust with the back of a
spoon. Chill for 10 minutes to set the ganache.
Peel and cut the bananas into ¼
inch-thick slices. Gently fold the banana slices into the pastry
cream and then pour into the prepared pie crust. Chill while you
make the whipped cream.
Pour the 1 ¼ cups cream, sugar,
vanilla, and cinnamon (if using) into a large mixing bowl or the bowl
of a stand mixer*. Whip on medium speed until soft peaks form.
Spoon the whipped cream on top of the pie and spread evenly out to
the edges so that the filling is completely covered. Garnish with
chocolate cookie crumbs and chill for 30 minutes before serving.
*Tip: Put your bowl and beaters/whisk
attachment in the freezer for about 15 minutes before you make the
whipped cream. This will help the cream whip quickly and increase
its volume.
Photo Credit: My usual photographer
(my husband) was out of town when I made this pie. A friend at the
party kindly took the photos for this post for me but wished to
remain anonymous.
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