Nicola Halloran’s vegan banoffee pie
“My aim is to show that you can have it all when it comes to finding a balance". Nicola Halloran from The Wonky Spatula shares her favourite dessert recipe
SERVES
8
PEOPLE
PREP TIME
75
MINUTES
Ingredients
2 x 400g tins full-fat coconut milk, refrigerated for 6–8 hours
400g raw cashew nuts
1 tbsp melted coconut oil
1 tbsp solid coconut oil
6-8 pecans
2 cups of dates
¼ cup + 1 tbsp agave syrup
½ tsp ground cinnamon
1 square of 85% dark chocolate
2–3 ripe bananas
Method
Preheat the oven to 200°C.
Place the cashews on a baking tray and toast for 6–8 minutes, until they begin to go golden brown. Soak the dates in hot water and set them aside to soften. Place the cashews in the food processor and blend until you have a flour-like mixture.
Add 1 tbsp of melted coconut oil and ¼ cup of agave syrup to the cashew flour and blend until the mixture is combined.
Line an 8˝ cake tin with parchment. Add the mixture to the tin and smooth out with a flat spoon or small rolling pin; place in the fridge while you prepare the caramel.
Remove the stones from the dates and add them to the food processor along with about 100ml of the water they were soaking in.
Blend until the mixture looks like smooth caramel, then add the cinnamon, 1 tbsp of solid coconut oil and 1 tbsp of agave syrup and blend again. When all the ingredients have combined, add the pecans and blend until smooth.
Remove the base from the fridge and add the caramel; refrigerate for 1–2 hours or until set.
Carefully remove the coconut milk from the fridge and open the cans. The milk should have solidified at the top – scoop out the thick ‘cream’ and discard the water from the bottom. Whip the coconut cream until ripples begin to appear on the surface.
Remove the base from the fridge and layer the caramel with slices of banana. Transfer the pie onto a serving plate and smooth the cream over the banana. Grate the chocolate and sprinkle it on top.
