Imposter Pud: Salted Caramel Banoffee Trifle

Let me start by saying just how much I hate traditional trifle.

I won't bore you with the details. I'm guessing you probably loathe the stuff too.

Soggy, sherry soaked biscuits smothered in overly sweet, fake tasting jelly topped with crappy custard and watery cream.

I think it's only fair we give the old goat a make-over just in time for the weekend.

What do you think?

Sure, it's got custard, a fruit element, hits of booze and it's smothered with cream, but this is a new take on an old classic with a really nice twist.

I've whipped them up for countless dinner parties over the years and I think I've finally got the recipe down to a T

...rifle. Sorry.

To make a pud big enough for 6-8 guests, you're going to need:

2 packs of Lady Fingers (also known as savoiardi biscuits)

5 tablespoons dark rum

5 tablespoons good quality maple syrup

2 tins Carnation Caramel

1 teaspoon Maldon sea salt flakes

4 ripe bananas

Bird's instant custard powder. I'd definitely recommend this over ready made custards. As tempting as they might be, they don't set well and make the trifle very liquidy (technical term). Otherwise, feel free to make your own from scratch if you're that way inclined!

300g double cream

100g walnuts

40g golden caster sugar

1 tablespoon butter

A chunk of dark chocolate, grated for decoration

Firstly, get your custard on the go. Whip it up according to the packet instructions, adding milk and heating on the hob without over stirring as you go.

When it's ready, pop it in the fridge to cool it's jiggly little self down.

Boring bit done, grab the rest of your ingredients.

Stir together your syrup and rum. One by one, dunk your biscuits in the bowl for a couple of seconds on each side, you don't want them soggy, just nicely coated.

Lay them out in a large trifle bowl in one flat layer, squishing them down as you go.

Pour over any leftover liquid and slice up your bananas in long, diagonal slithers.

Spread them out over your biscuits and grab your cans of caramel.

In a bowl, combine with the salt and stir. Have a taste and see what you think. Too much will ruin the flavour, you just want little hits of saltiness dotted about here and there.

Once you're salt-isfied, glug your sweet, salty gloop over the bananas and spread!

Coooor, look at those layers! Makes you want to lick the screen doesn't it.

Go ahead, nobody's watching, I won't judge you, I'm an avid screen licker in private too but that's just between us.

Go fetch your cooled custard from the fridge and spread it out over the caramel.

You should have something that looks a little bit like this:

Pop everything back in the fridge and whilst your layers are getting well acquainted, turn the oven up to 200.

Place your walnuts in a baking tray and leave them to toast for ten minutes. Meanwhile, make your toffee candy coating.

This bit requires a beady little eye and a stroke of luck.

Too hot and your toffee will burn. Too cold and your toffee falls flat. On a low heat, slowly simmer the 90ml water with the sugar until it completely dissolves. Don't be tempted to stir it at this point, just be on the lookout, scout.

Add the butter, a pinch of salt and turn up the heat. You want your toffee thick and brown, so after a few minutes of boiling away, it should be ready.

Turn off the heat and grab yo' nuts!

Pour them into the toffee and stir well. Once they're good and coated, lay them out on a sheet of baking paper until you're ready to serve.

The trifle needs an hour or so to chill, but depending on dinner deadlines you can keep it there for as long as you wish. I sometimes even leave mine overnight if I'm being an organised little cook and it comes out just fine.

Either way, whip your cream just before serving up and spread over the chilly trifle.

Top with your crunchy, candied walnuts.

And finely grate over a little chunk of dark chocolate to finish things off.

Take your pud to the table and prepare for some top button popping "oooohs!" and "ahhhhhs!" from your dinner guests.

If they weren't already madly in love with you, you've just bagged yourself some brand new admirers.

Peanut Butter Banana Fudge Muffins

These right here are a little variation of my banuffins you liked so much.

I'd love to say they were born from a culinary stroke of genius, but that would be a big, chubby fib. The truth be told, I drunkenly finished off the Nutella tub with a teaspoon the night before I'd planned to bake a batch for Sunday brunch.

Hungover, desperate (and a little disgusted with myself), I reached for the Skippy.

The method's exactly the same as before, but since my Banuffin post I've been adding Xanthan Gum to the mix for the benefit of us gluten free'ers.

If you're using normal flour then leave out the gum. If you're using gluten free flour like me, then just a 1/4 teaspoon of the stuff goes a very long way. It reduces crumbling and makes your muffins good 'n' squidgy for a few more days. Win.

You know the drill by now. For 12 muffins, here's what you need:

4 overly ripe bananas, mashed

6 tbsp crunchy peanut butter, I like the Skippy variety

1 tsp vanilla extract

100g fudge pieces (I get mine from here)

2 eggs
120g melted salted butter
225g self raising flour
170g granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt

Whack the oven up to 180C and grease your muffin tray.

Grab two mixing bowls, one for the dry ingredients and one for the wet stuff. In one, combine your flour, sugar, salt and Xanthan Gum if you're going gluten free.

In the other bowl, mash your bananas with a fork until smooth. Stir in the eggs, melted butter, fudge chunks and vanilla before sifting in the dry ingredients. 

Divide your mixture into twelve and pop a dollop of peanut butter on top.



Gently swirl the peanut butter into the mixture with a cocktail stick or skewer and bake in your pre-warmed oven for 20-25 minutes until golden brown.

Leave them to cool in the tray for a couple of minutes before easing them out one by one with a spoon. Serve whilst warm with big mugs of coffee and get creating crumbs!

[WF] Banana & Chocolate Chunk Loaf

I really, really loaf this little banana and chocolate cake.

It's designed for lazy afternoons sat in the garden in a dressing gown and slippers, sipping hot coffee and reading a book.

Essentially, it's Sunday, baked.

I stole the original recipe from Nigella about a million years ago and have tweaked it over time to make it wheat free friendly and dare I say it, even more delicious.

NB. I may or may not have increased the chocolate quantity by around 25%, but I won't tell if you don't. Sorry Nige, I genuinely don't know what happened.

Anyway, for one 2lb loaf cake you're going to need:

110g butter, softened

125g caster sugar

125g gluten free self raising flour

1tsp baking powder

1tbsp cocoa powder

3 brown, spotted bananas, roughly mashed

100g good quality dark chocolate 

2 eggs

One extra banana for decoration

Start by pre-heating the oven to 180C and line your loaf tin.

In a big bowl, mash your bananas, cream the butter and crack in the eggs. When it's looking good and horrific, sift in the baking powder, flour, cocoa and caster sugar, stirring as you go.

Lastly, chop your chocolate into fat chunks and throw it in the bowl.

Mission accomplished.

Pour the cake mixture into the loaf tin and give it gentle tap to even out the surface. Leave it in the oven for around 45-50 minutes, or until a skewer popped into the middle comes out clean.

You might also know it's done from the outrageous smells wafting through the house.

Remove from the oven and leave it to cool before wriggling it out of the tin and serving up. I top mine with slices of fresh banana and a dusting of icing sugar.

Have a great Sunday, everybody!

Banana & Nutella Breakfast Muffins

I like to call these little creations of mine 'Banuffins'.

Incredibly light, sweet enough to tickle your tastebuds and stuffed full of chunky banana.

They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and when I've got a freshly baked batch of these babies waiting for me in the kitchen, I totally agree.



The second best thing about my Banuffins is the smell which fills the house whilst they're in the oven. Whenever I've had a good spring clean, I like to whip up a batch to round off the job. And why the hell not? A thorough vacuuming session burns around 315 calories, after all...

To make twelve Banuffins, you'll need:

3 x large, overly ripe bananas, mashed. The blacker the better, I just couldn't wait any longer!
6 x tbsp of warmed Nutella
1 x tsp vanilla extract
2 x eggs
120g melted unsalted butter
225g self raising flour (I use gluten free, but go ahead and use the wheaty stuff, you lucky duck)
170g granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt

First up, whack the oven up to 180C whilst you grease your muffin tins. I like to present mine in their most natural state, no pretty cases, no crisp paper liners, no 'nuffin'. Sorry. I couldn't resist it.

Grab two mixing bowls, one for your dry ingredients and one for the wet stuff. A quick game of eeny-meeny-miny-moe to decide which one you'll use for what is advised but optional.
Combine your flour, sugar and salt.



Then in the other bowl, start on the bananas. Literally. Start on them like the only thing saving your bacon against three thuggish overly-ripe bananas is one, single dinner fork.

Mash, but leave a fair few chunky bits. Add your eggs, melted butter and vanilla. Then pour your dry ingredients into the bowl and gently fold.

You're after a lumpy, bumpy batter to rival the contents of a Saturday morning sick bowl. Let there be no airs and graces about it, it should look thoroughly revolting.

The chunkier it is, the better the batter, babycake. Trust me.

Divide your mixture up into twelve and fill each muffin hole (technical term) up to around the half way mark.



Then pop a dollop of warm nutella on top of each soon-to-be muffin.

Grab a cocktail stick and swirl the Nutella into the rest of the batter. You don't want the whole thing to turn chocolatey, you just want it to get good 'n' blended.

Bake the muffins in your pre-warmed oven for around 22 minutes and wait anxiously for their birth.

I enjoyed spending this small amount of respite time prancing around the kitchen and singing along to the Wicked soundtrack. I understand this might not be everyones cup of tea, but it's highly recommended.

When the buzzer sounds, feast your eyes (and tummy) on these:

I can see you eyeing them up. Cheeky.

Leave to cool for a few moments before gently spooning out and placing them on a cooling tray.

Pour yourself a tall glass of frosty milk and grab the morning newspaper. Although these are best served warm, I defy anyone who can resist a Banuffin without knowingly accepting a burnt tongue...