Raw Banoffee Pie
I had never heard of Banoffee Pie until traveling to the UK in my 20’s. It seems like almost every café or restaurant in Bangkok has their own version – even Starbucks! This recipe omits the dairy and refined sugar, but still delivers a filling and flavorful end result.
Crust Ingredients:
- 2 cups raw walnuts (no salt, unroasted)
- Pinch of Himalayan or sea salt
- Scrapings of 1 vanilla bean, or 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 2 tbs raw cacao powder (or conventional raw cocoa powder)
- 1 tbs agave nectar, raw honey or yacon syrup
- 3/4 cup dates (remove pits)
Crust Instructions:
Place the walnuts, salt, vanilla and cacao powder into a food processor fitted with the “S” blade and process into small chunks. Add the agave and one date at a time and further process until a dough-like consistency is formed and is well-mixed.
Take handfuls of the mixture and press into a large pie pan (approx. 9in, or 23cm in diameter) or into 3-4 small tarte pans in an even layer to form a crust base.
Filling Ingredients:
- 7 bananas
Filling Instructions:
Peel and slice the bananas and place them in the crust (thin slices = neat layers, thick slices = pile them in!).
Cream Topping Ingredients:
- 1 cup Thai young coconut meat
- 2 cups raw cashews (no salt, unroasted), preferable soaked for approx. 2-4 hr
- Scrapings of 1 vanilla bean, or 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbs agave nectar, raw honey, or yacon syrup
- 1 tsp sunflower or soy lecithin (optional)
- Coconut water or filtered water, as needed to blend, approx. 1/4 cup
- 1/4 cup cold-pressed coconut oil
Cream Topping Instructions:
Place all ingredients except the coconut oil into a blender and blend until smooth (adding the coconut water or filtered water to help blend, only if necessary – you do not want the cream to become too thin). Add the coconut oil and blend again until well-mixed. Smooth on top of banana layer. Cover and refrigerate until ready to eat. Will last up to 3 days, but tastes best if eaten as soon as possible after assembly.
Additional Serving Ideas:
- Dust with raw cacao or conventional cocoa powder
- Sprinkle with shaved or grated raw or conventional chocolate or cacao nibs
- Drizzle with raw or conventional chocolate or caramel sauce