banoffee custard pie

Last weekend was Neil's birthday, so I made him a banoffee pie.  

I love banoffee pie. It's a popular dessert in Ireland and traditionally is made from a cookie crust (I used graham crackers, but plain digestives would be used in Ireland), a layer of toffee, a layer of bananas, and a layer of whipped cream. I decided to add a layer of banana custard because....why not? Custard only makes this pie better.   

My banoffee custard pie is buttery, sticky, sweet, creamy, and so delicious. Not one bit of it is healthy or slimmed down in any manner but whatevs, sometimes you just need a full on dessert. This pie should serve about ten people. 

We had it in our refrigerator for three days and every time I went into the kitchen, I would take a bite. It was bad. But also so good.

This dessert has several steps but each one is really easy. I suggest making the bottom three layers (crust, toffee, and custard) several hours ahead of time and them finishing off with the banana and whipped cream topping an hour or so before serving.

banoffee custard pie (serves about 10)

for the crust-
2/3 a box of graham crackers (I used two out of the three packs in the box)
6 tablespoons of melted butter

for the toffee
one can of sweetened condensed milk
2 tablespoons brown sugar
4 tablespoons butter

for the custard
1 3/4 cup milk (fat free or full fat, either works)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
a generous sprinkle of cinnamon
1 small banana
pinch of salt

topping
one large banana (or two small - enough slices to cover the top of the pie)
one cup of heavy whipping cream
dark chocolate shavings (optional)

1. To make the crust, put the graham crackers in a food processor and process until they are crumbs.  This should take less than 30 seconds. Once they turn to crumbs, pour in the melted butter.  The crust will begin to come together after a few seconds.  
2. Dump the graham cracker/butter mixture out into a nine inch springform pan. Use clean hands or a spatula to spread the mixture along the bottom and somewhat up the sides of the pan.
3. Set the crust in the freezer for about ten minutes while you make the toffee.

4. For the toffee, melt the butter and brown sugar in a saucepan.  Stir in the can of sweetened condensed milk and whisk all together.  
5. Bring to a boil and stir constantly.  Boil and stir for about 3 minutes.  When the color of the toffee has darkened to a light brown, it's finished.
6. Remove the crust from the freezer and pour the toffee into the pan.  Set aside for about ten minutes so that it can cool slightly.

7. While the toffee is cooling, make the custard.  Put the milk, sugar, and cornstarch into a small bowl or liquid measuring cup and whisk.  Pour this into a blender with a small banana.  Blend until smooth and pour the mixture into a small saucepan.  Do not turn on the heat yet.  First let the blended mixture settle for about ten minutes, as it will have a layer of foam on top from being blended.
8. After the foam has settled, turn the heat to medium-high and stir almost constantly.  Bring the custard to a boil and then begin to constantly stir, scraping the bottom and sides of the pan.  Allow this to boil for about a minute, remove from the heat, and stir in the vanilla and cinnamon.
9. Spread the custard out over the toffee, allow the pie to cool at room temp for about 30 minutes and then put in the refrigerator for several hours (at least three).

10. A little bit before serving, make the whipped cream.  Whip the cold whipping cream until stiff peaks form.
11. Top the pie with slices of banana, then spread a thick layer of the whipped cream over the bananas.
12. Finish off with dark chocolate shavings and enjoy!  It's totally worth all the steps. 

mini blueberry-peach pies

Saturday it all hit me - my jet lag from our Rome/Ireland trip that followed by a busy {and let's get real, at times alcohol soaked} four days in Vegas.  Mix in a stupid cold that stuck around for two weeks and I was exhausted on Saturday.  I slept half the day, woke tired and then went back to bed at 8pm.   The one thing I managed to do all day was make these mini pies and eat.

I also went to the store because we were out of garbage bags.  Although we could have easily gotten by for one day with old grocery bags, I made the trip because Yogurtland is located next to the grocery store. After two mini pies I really needed a massive serving of froyo and candy.  It was just one of those days :).

These pies are the perfect "look like you slaved but they're ridiculously simple" dessert.  Make them and wow everyone with your baking skills.  

mini blueberry-peach pies {makes six mini pies - double for more}

filling
-a cup of blueberries
-two large peaches - chopped
-1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

crust
-1/4 cup sugar
-1/3 cup vegetable oil
-1 teaspoon baking powder
-1 teaspoon vanilla extract
-1/4 teaspoon salt
-1 egg
-1 cup and one tablespoon all purpose flour

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. In a bowl, toss together the blueberries and peaches and cinnamon.  Set aside. 
3. In a second bowl, put all the ingredients for the crust and mix together with a wooden spoon until well combined.
4. Fill six ramekins {or small mugs that are oven safe if you don't have ramekins} with the fruit and top each ramekin with the dough.  I started with a small handful of dough, flattened it into a disc shape, and spread it over the top of the fruit.  Once the dough is pushed to the edge of each ramekin, use a sharp knife and mark the top of each pie with an X.
5. Put the ramekins on a baking sheet {they will spill over!} and bake for about 20 minutes or until the fruit is bubbly and the crust is golden.

I ate mine with a small scoop of vanilla ice cream.  It was perfection.

Snickerdoodle Pear Mini Pies

This pie was a total accident.  Luckily, it was a delicious accident.

My husband loves snickerdoodles and always asks me to make them.  I usually just ignore the request, but since it was Thanksgiving weekend, I decided to indulge him.  


The night before Thanksgiving, I whipped up a batch of snickerdoodle dough and baked off half of it.   I stored the rest in the fridge thinking I would finish baking it later that weekend.


The next day {Thanksgiving}, I decided to make two different pies - banana cream and mini pear pies.  I am not a huge pie crust fan, so I used the left over snickerdoodle dough for the mini pear pies.


I wasn't too sure how they would turn out...but they ended up being a-maz-ing.  So good and so easy.  Pie crust can be a bit fussy, but this snickerdoodle crust was the opposite of fussy. If you can make cookies - you can make this crust!

Snickerdoodle Pear Mini Pies {makes 8 pies}


For the filling:
-4 pears, diced {you can also use apples or four cups of fresh berries}
-1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
-2 tablespoons brown sugar


For the Snickerdoodle Crust:
-2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
-1 teaspoon baking soda
-1/2 teaspoon salt
-1/2 cup shortening
-1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
-1 1/2 cup white sugar
-1 teaspoon vanilla extract
-2 large eggs
-cinnamon + a little sugar for dusting


**Note - you will have snickerdoodle dough left over, feel free to bake it into cookies, freeze it for later, or do what I do - eat it!  I love cookie dough :).


1. In a medium saucepan, cook the pears, brown sugar, and vanilla extract over low heat for about 10 minutes - until they are nice and syrupy.  Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
2. Using an electric mixer, cream together the butter, shortening, and sugar {for the dough}.  Add in the eggs - one at a time - and the vanilla extract.  Mix until all is completely incorporated.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.  Slowly add these dry ingredients to the mixer and blend until just incorporated.
4. Put the dough into the refrigerator for a few hours so it is nice and firm when you use it for the pies.

5. Line the bottom of small ramekins with a small amount of dough.  Since this dough is much sweeter than traditional pie crust - don't make the lining too thick.  Sprinkle a little cinnamon on top of each pie base and fill the ramekin with the cooked pears.
6. Take another small piece of dough and flatten it into a disc the size of the ramekin.  Cover the top of each dish with one of these discs and sprinkle with a little cinnamon and sugar.  Cut an X into the top of each mini pie and place them all onto a baking sheet lined with foil {mine bubbled over a little}.  
7. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes - until the top is golden brown. 
8. Allow the pies to cool a little before serving. 

Enjoy these amazing little pies!