Making Banana Tarte Tatin

I sat through a grueling midterm yesterday and was looking forward to sleep in on the weekend when I remembered that earlier during the week I agreed to take some food pictures for Graha. I had to make the puff pastry from scratch. At 10PM. He owes me big and he knows it. I’m thinking lunch at our usual Korean BBQ place will cover for this favour very nicely indeed.

So angst aside, this is Jamie Oliver’s recipe for banana tarte tatin. You can always swap the bananas for any other fruits; stone fruits, strawberries, or go for the classic by using apples. If you have frozen puff pastry available then this recipe; the prep and cooking will take about 30 minutes. And it’s unbelievably good served warm with ice cream.

Banana Tarte Tatin:

Caramel & Banana:

[ 60g unsalted butter + 160g caster sugar + 1 teaspoon zest of orange + 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon powder + 4 bananas ]

Preheat your oven to 180°C/350°F/gas 4
Cut your butter into cubes and put into a sturdy deep-sided baking tray approximately 19 x 30cm

Place the tray on a low heat, let the butter melt, then add the sugar and stir constantly until completely combined

Continue to cook for about 5 minutes or until the sugar has all dissolved and the mixture is golden and caramelized. By the time this happens the mixture will be roasting hot so be very careful and whatever you do, DON’T be tempted to put your fingers in the mixture as you’ll give yourself a nasty burn

Meanwhile, peel the bananas, halve them lengthways, and lay them carefully on top of the golden caramel

Remove from the heat, then sprinkle over the cinnamon and finely grate over the zest of half your orange

ASSEMBLY:

Dust a clean work surface and rolling pin with flour

Roll out your puff pastry (homemade or store-bought) until you have a rectangle shape (or any other shape) about the same size as your tray and about 0.5cm thick.

Drape your pastry over your rolling pin and carefully lay it on the baking tray, gently tucking it around the bananas to make sure they’re well covered, with no gaps

Using a knife or fork, prick the pastry a few times

Place the tray at the top of the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden

Serve warm with some ice cream, crème fraîche or any other fluffy dairy product you like. I served mine with some whipped cream and honey with an extra pinch of cinnamon.