There's no other fruit that epitomises Caribbean cooking as bananas do, in their raw or cooked state they tend to be everyone's favourite. They are loaded with potassium, fibre and calcium important for healthy growth in adults and children alike. They provide an instant energy boost and they satisfy your "sweet tooth" when you crave a sweet dessert! They are portable and come in their own packaging. This way they make an excellent snack food at work or school. They're versatile as they lend themselves to different ways of presentation. Their distinctive flavours intensify when you incorporate them into cooking, so you don't need flavour enhancers when preparing them in recipes. They bake up sumptuous breads, and nutritious and healthy muffins, which we never tire of. You can bake and flambé them for an exciting and delicious dessert, or serve them over ice cream with hot fudge chocolate sauce for a special and decadent treat. You can even freeze them and give them to your teething toddler for nutritious relief from those itchy and irritating gums! When they become over ripe, don't despair! Refrigerate them and use in any of the following sumptuous recipes.
DIRTY BANANA CAKE
• 2 cups all purpose flour
•2 tsp. Baking soda
•1 tsp. baking powder
•1/4 tsp. salt
•4 oz unsalted butter
•1 1/3 Cups sugar
•4 eggs
•3 ripe bananas, mashed (1 1/4 cups) cup milk
•1/2 tbs lime juice Preheat oven to 350F
Line and grease a 9 inch by 3 inch round pan. Combine milk and lime juice, let stand for ten minutes until curdled.
Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Cream butter with sugar on medium speed until creamy.
Add eggs one at a time beating well between additions.
Puree the bananas with the curdled milk and vanilla.
Beat the dry ingredients into the butter mixture alternately at medium speed in two additions.
Scrape batter into the prepared pan and bake for one hour until a wooden pick comes out clean.
Makes one nine-inch cake
Although not very popular, this dessert is deceptively delicious, the creamy texture of the filling together with the subtle flavour of the banana become very alluring.
BANANA CREAM PIE PIE CRUST
• 1 1/4 cups flour
•1/2 cup shortening
•1/4 cup water, or more
•1/4 tsp. salt
Combine salt and flour add shortening and cut fat into flour until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Add water and bring dough together and refrigerate for one hour.
Preheat oven to 425F, Roll out dough to fit a nine inch pie plate, place pastry into plate, trim ends and crimp, line pastry with foil, fill with dried peas. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove foil and peas, lower heat to 350 and continue baking for 15 to 20 minutes, remove and cool.
FILLING
•3 ripe bananas, pureed
•1 tbs. gelatin
•1/4 cup dark rum
•1 cup brown sugar
•4 tbs cornstarch
•1 cup milk
•2 egg yolks
•1 tsp. vanilla
•1 cup whipping cream
Gently warm rum and dissolve gelatin, stir, In a saucepan combine sugar and cornstarch, whisk in milk, heat until mixture thickens.
Beat eggs; add some eggs to the hot custard then add the hot custard to the remaining eggs.
Heat for about three to four minutes. Beat in melted gelatin and vanilla, add banana puree.
Refrigerate until cold. Whip cream until light; fold in one cup into custard. Spoon filling into tart shell, top with whipped cream and garnish with banana slices.
Serves eight to 10