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.

Salted Peanut & Chocolate Fudge Sundaes

When the time calls for a day in the kitchen, whipping this, chilling that, stirring furiously and watching the timer tick by, it had better be for something special.

I'm all for putting in the leg work when it comes to a show-stopper of a meal, but my favourite recipes tend to be as simple as they are delicious.

This, my friend, is exactly that. And it couldn't be more utterly satisfying.

 

Spoonful upon spoonful of ice cream drenched in warm peanut and chocolate sauce and crunchy peanuts makes this the ultimate after supper treat.

Nobody judges you for licking the bowl on this blog. Nobody at all.

To make two large sundaes you're going to need:

175ml double cream

100g smooth peanut butter

3 tablespoons golden syrup

150g chopped milk chocolate

4 scoops caramel ice cream

4 scoops chocolate ice cream

4 scoops vanilla ice cream

Big handful of salted peanuts, bashed into crumbs

In a saucepan over a low heat, add your cream, peanut butter, golden syrup and milk chocolate, stirring until totally combined.

When it's thick, glossy and 100% delicious, it's done. Simple as that.

Now go fetch your prettiest glasses.

Starting with the vanilla, layer your ice cream scoop on scoop (on scoop on scoop...)

When your glasses are full, drizzle over your chocolatey, peanuty sauce and quickly top with crushed peanuts. (I usually pop mine in a plastic bag and batter it with a rolling pin a few times - no washing up, no spilt nuts, no grumpy Charlotte. Win.)

And that is pretty much it.

Nestle down on a comfy chair, grab a loved one and chow down.

Just remember to jar your leftover fudge sauce, stow it away at the back of the fridge and keep it hidden away for a particularly rainy day.

 

I'll take mine smothered on toast and topped with chopped banana, please!

Cookies & Cream Hot Fudge Melts

I’m not sure I should even be sharing this with you.

What you’re about to witness is classed as a criminal offence in seventeen countries and is punishable by death. Baring that in mind, this stays between you and me. Ok?

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Cookies & Cream Hot Fudge Melts.

  

I’m actually sat here eating one as I type. My hands are sticky and I’ve got fudge sauce dripping down my chin, but I’m afraid that’s just how the cookie crumbles.

Getddit?! The cookie crumbles! Ok. I'm sorry.

As you can probably tell, I’ve totally ditched the January diet. If you, like me, would rather eat your own foot than face another bowl of shrubbery, this one's for you.

If you, unlike me, are still nibbling on green beans for lunch, then get that sculpted ass of yours back in the kitchen. You’re right on time for a well-deserved reward.



I don't need to tell you that these are a total crowd pleaser, you already know that.

To make four Cookies & Cream Hot Fudge Melts, go fetch yourself:

1 x tub of your favourite ice cream - I like the vanilla Häagen-Dazs variety
1 x pack of ready made cookie dough (obviously you could make this yourself, but with this sneaky trick you can have your Melts ready to go in under 20 minutes)

And for the hot fudge sauce:
100g dark chocolate, 70% cocoa minimum
1/2 cup golden syrup
1/2 cup icing sugar
1/2 cup double cream
2 tbsp coca powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
A pinch of salt

Preheat your oven to 200°c and follow the instructions on the packet. Simples.

(If you're making your cookies from scratch, divide your dough into eight, place on a lined baking tray about 6cm apart and bake for 10 - 15 minutes.)

Done? Good. Whilst your cookies are in the oven, get your hot fudge sauce going.

Break your chocolate into little pieces and heat in a bowl over a saucepan filled with boiling water. When it's melted, add your cocoa powder and stir until combined.

Remove from the heat and pour in your golden syrup, cream, sugar and vanilla.

Give it a good stir and add a touch of salt. You really don't want to over salt it, you just want to counteract the bitterness of the chocolate.

Have a taste and exercise every ounce of self control you possess by banning yourself from drinking the whole lot right then and there. Keep it somewhere warm and go check on your cookies.

You want them soft, chewy and beautiful. Put them to one side to cool (remember they'll keep cooking for a few minutes) and grab your ice cream.

Scoop out a ball of ice cream and pop it on top of a cookie. I was very greedy with my serving and ended up squidging a good hunk of it back out - you've been warned.

Drizzle your warm chocolate fudge on top (ohmigod!) and stay in that position until you feel you can drizzle no more, without going up a full dress size within the hour.

The ice cream will melt from the heat of your fudge, so grab your hat nickety split!

Pop it on top and give everything a little squish. Check out the ooze on that, right?

I was feeling especially naughty and topped mine with even more fudge sauce. I read somewhere that this was the recommended approach among professional cookie samplers and was forced to oblige. Who am I to disagree?

Once you've polished it off, play with the melted excess whilst recovering from your food coma. You're going to need some serious recovery time after this one. Promise.

Let me know how yours turn out. I absolutely LOVE seeing your photos which you've been instagramming me right here. Make sure you tag me @petticoatandpie

You can also upload them to Petticoat and Pie's brand new Facebook page right here where you can keep up to date with new posts, pictures and my little rants.