My First Recipe Video for Mauritian Style Banana Pie (Tarte à la banane)

A nice cup of tea in the mid-afternoon becomes a little feast when accompanied by a piece of this scrumptious banana pie. Indeed, much loved by young and old alike, this banana pie is a very popular pastry in Mauritius. Dessert or afternoon tea time snack, for me this is just an anytime heaven in the mouth.

Banana pie is something I make quite often at the Lovlie Cocoon. It has made its way a number of times to bake sales and friends' parties. So, it's about time I share this recipe.

Right. Now, not just the recipe, I have also made a video. Yay! This is my first recipe video and I had so much fun doing it. I hope you like it too! A million thanks to Boyfriendlovlie who encouraged me in doing this. And for his patience behind the camera while I was turning the kitchen upside down (which he cleaned afterward, niahahaha!) Well, what? Ok, I helped him a bit, but banana pie is his favourite sweet treat after all. So, I deserved some pampering for it, no?

Enjoy!



Ingredients (for a 28-cm pie mould)
Shortcrust pastry:
400g plain flour
175g vegan margarine (cold)
100ml water (cold)
1/4 teaspoon salt

Banana filling:
5-6 ripe bananas
1/2 cup soft dark brown sugar
water as required

Oats milk for glazing


Prepare banana filling:

• Peel and slice the bananas.
• Add sugar and mix well until sugar starts to melt.
• Place in a thick bottom pan and cook over medium for about 20 minutes.
• Mash and stir bananas occasionally.
• Then add about 1/2 cup water and stir well.
• Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

To make the dough:

• Place flour in a bowl. Add salt.
• Cut margarine into small pieces and fold into flour. Keep cutting and folding until margarine are small and well mix. Then work the mixture between the fingers by rubbing in and lifting the flour. Mixture should ressemble fine breadcrumbs.
• Add water and knead to form a nice and smooth dough. The dough should not be sticky and the inside should look like the texture of the inside of bread. Divide roughly into 1/3 and 2/3 portions.
• Refrigerate for 1/2 hour.

Prepare the crust for pre-baking:

• Preheat oven at 180 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Farenheit).
  
• Then, take out the larger dough and spead out to 4mm thickness and large enough to fit into a 28-cm pie mould.
• Transfer dough into mould by loosely rolling it around the rolling pin then unroll into the mould.
• To work the fluted edge, take a piece of dough and dip into some flour. Press into the fluted edge to shape it.
• Line the dough with baking paper and place some dry beans onto it. (I am using mung beans, but any dry beans will do, even rice). This is only to prevent the dough from rising or forming bubbles during the pre-baking.
• Bake for 15 minutes.

Make the strips for the lattice top:

• Meanwhile, prepare the strips for the lattice top.
• Take the other portion of dough and roll out to approximately 30cm diameter.
• Cut strips of 1cm width.

Fill and make the pie:

• Remove crust (after 15 minutes) from the oven.
• Save the beans for later use in other pie baking recipes. These beans can be used a few times.
• Fill the crust with the banana paste, even out.
• Make the lattice top:
• Take the longest strip and line it in the middle. Press to secure on one side only.
• Take every other strip and line a little distance apart.
• Then, lift and pull back alternating strips.
• Place one strip across (to make a criss-cross pattern).
• Fold back the strips.
• Then lift alternating ones (i.e. the strips that are now under) and place another strip across.
• Continue in this way of alternating each row until lattice is complete.
• Trim off excess strip length.
• Brush with some non-dairy (I used oats milk) milk.
• Place in oven and bake for 45 minutes or until crust is golden.