Tuesday 7 April 2009

Pardon me while I wipe the drool from my chin . . .



DAY - OHH
DAY - AA- AA - OHHH
DAY LIGHT COMING ME WANNA GO HOME . . .

Oops, so sorry . . . I was lost there for a moment in a caribbean paradise! The palm trees were swaying back and forth in the warm breeze and I could hear the field worker's singing the banana song as they made their way home from work . . . but then, reality smacked me in the face and I found myself sitting in an English cottage kitchen, nestled in the English countryside . . . the caribbean only a dream . . . sigh . . .

Welcome to Tuesdays With Dorie, the way cool baking group that gets together every week and bakes one recipe, the same recipe, from that delicious baking book, Baking, from my home to yours, by the delicious Dorie Greenspan! We reveal our results in unison every Tuesday, and each week I am amazed at the beautiful pictures and versions of the chosen recipe that each member manages to come up with!

This week's recipe was "Banana Cream Pie" on pages 342-343 as chosen by Amy of Sing For Your Supper. I was really looking forward to this challenge from the "get-go" Amy because I love Banana Cream pie. Thanks so much for making this choice!



When I was growing up, Banana Cream pie meant only one thing, and a most delicious thing it was too! My mother's flakey pastry filled with Jello Banana Cream pie and pudding mix layered over top of sliced banana and finally topped with my mother's lucious whipped and toasted meringue. We were all pie nuts in my house and banana cream was one of our favourites!!!

I was really excited to be trying out Dorie's version as it sounded equally delicious, if not more so, and let's face it, homemade has to be infinitely better than from a mix, right???



You are right. Your eyes are not deceiving you. That is not a pie.

The pastry cream filling is very easy to make, not much harder than making a cooked pudding really. Mine came out really thick though, and it looked kind of lumpy, even though I knew that I had done everything properly. I beat it with a whisk for about 5 minutes and it seemed to become silkier, which was a good sign. It was still really thick though and upon tasting it, I thought it resembled the flavour of Graham Crackers, which I was not entirely sure I quite liked???



This was a first for me . . . a Dorie recipe that I was not fond of . . . hmmm . . . could this actually be possible???

As the filling cooled I mulled this possibility over in my mind. Todd and I both have high cholesterol, and in fact I am on medication for it. I thought about whether I wanted to waste the treat of a pie crust on a pudding I didn't really like all that much . . . I finally decided that I would opt out of making a crust and make parfaits instead and so that's just what I did.



I layered up the cooled pudding and sliced bananas in the parfait glasses. It kinda didn't look all that good, as it was a very thick pudding, and kinda glopped instead of flowed, but I just tried to compact it with the bananas.



I topped it with the whipped cream and sour cream topping and it kind of looked quite pretty, if I don't say so myself, and I know . . . I just did.

I threw in a shortbread biscuit, because, to be honest, it started to look to me like a bit of crunch might be a good thing.



I thought it looked rather delicious sitting there.



I dug in . . .



OH MY GOODNESS!!! OH MY GOODNESS!!!!!



This was F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S!!!

I nibbled on some of it spread on one of the biscuits . . . making sure I got some banana and some of the pastry cream, and um . . . some of that delicious topping.



It was S-P-L-E-N-D-I-F-E-R-O-U-S!!!

I just had to dip again and I found myself wishing that I had opted to make a pie instead of parfaits.

RUN, don't walk, to your nearest store and pick up some bananas NOW! You MUST make this pie. It's gorgeous, even in parfait form. I can't wait to make it again, only as a pie next time. This one, surprisingly, turned into one of my favourites!



Just goes to show . . . you can't judge a book by it's cover, or a pie by it's filling . . . Trust in the power of Dorie. Hop on over to Amy's page and grab the recipe. You won't be sorry you did.

Next week's recipe is Minute Magic: Chocolate Amaretti Torte, pages 276 and 277, as chosen by Holly of Phe/MOM/enon . hmmm . . . chocolate, my only weakness . . . Todd's only hate . . . we'll just have to wait and see how this goes . . .

Don't forget to check out the Dorie Blog Roll to see how all the other ladies did! I am quite sure there are some drool worthy examples to oggle!

26 comments:

  1. Marie that really looks good! I don't usually like desserts but you've sold me that one!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Glad it grew on you! I wasn't that crazy about this one and stopped eating my pie, basically 'cause I thought it was a waste of calories!

    ReplyDelete
  3. It looks AMAZING!! So glad it turned out that you liked it :) Thanks for the compliments on the photos, tastespotting and foodgawker didn't agree though. LMAO! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Shame on you! Here I am dreaming of sitting in a quaint English cottage in the lovely English countryside and just started weight watchers! HEHEE ! That looks scrump-dittli-umptious!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I made mini trifles....similar to you! Looks delicious!

    ReplyDelete
  6. uh-oh...now I am wishing I had made this one....great post :).

    ReplyDelete
  7. OH MY GOODNESS MARIE!!!! Look GEORGEOUS!! and fantastic, so nice, and the pictures wonderful, Oh Marie I can eat one right now!!! xxxxxxxxGloria

    ReplyDelete
  8. Pass me a napkin please!! hehehe...Oh, that looks so good, Marie! Love how you have presented this dessert. Funny, when I was younger I didn't like coconut cream pie...didn't like coconut much either--now I like both! Still workingi on warming up to bananas though, just never one of my favorites--LOL! But you are converting me with this dessert! :o) Hope so much we get to chat on Messenger tonight...I'll be looking out for you! :o) LOVE YOU HEAPS, dear friend ((BIG HUGS))

    ReplyDelete
  9. Ok I definetly have to make this now your making me crazy with how much you love it!!

    ReplyDelete
  10. It's a good thing I brought a banana to work with me today...at least I have that much anyway. Your pictures always leave me wanting what you've made. I'm also doing lots of tropical dreaming as the snow is blowing full force outside my window today.
    'On Ya'-ma

    ReplyDelete
  11. This was such a fabulous dessert.

    ReplyDelete
  12. oh, that does look divine!!! i'll have to try that asap!!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Wow, the parfaits look delicious! I'm so glad they were! :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Great post! These look delicious!! So glad you ended up liking it in the end!
    Thanks for baking with me this week!

    -Amy
    www.singforyoursupperblog.com

    ReplyDelete
  15. Those parfaits look absolutely lovely....and splendiferous! :) Glad you liked this so much!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Oh, Marie. So sorry you didn't really like this pie. HeeHee!!! Your parfaits are inspired.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Be interesting to see, now you found you like this with the shortcakes, whether you might like it now as a pie.

    Gosh, you do make me hungry!!

    love, Ange, xx

    ReplyDelete
  18. I will try this as a parfait in the future!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Marie, I have enjoyed your blog so much that I decided to do a blog review on it for my readers. If you go to my blog you will see it there today. I hope you get some new readers because of it, I am sure you will.

    ReplyDelete
  20. I think if you put anything on a shortbread biscuit it would be delicious, no? LOL

    ReplyDelete
  21. I like the pie parfaits! I think that's a brilliant twist!

    ReplyDelete
  22. YUM YUM YUM!!!!!!! I love banana pudding anything!! Especially good ole Southern Banana pudding in any form!

    ReplyDelete
  23. Marie, I could just hug you! You said pudding and meant it the same way I do! I really miss those instant puddings. I used them for so many recipes! Oh Marie, this looks like heaven! Definitely island (tropical) Time!

    ReplyDelete
  24. Isn't it fun that it turned out to be delicious after all. The parfaits do look pretty. I am glad that they tasted good too.

    I appreciate your prayers in our behalf. We are all so thankful and happy. It was touch and go for a little while but thankfully had such a happy ending. Little Calan is just perfect and Erin and Patrick are the happiest new parents in the whole world. They are so cute...it takes both of them to change him...and dress him...he is one lucky baby boy.

    I am lucky that I get to hold him so much. They are letting me store up lots of cuddle time to take with me in my heart when we have to leave.

    I am smiling all over... and I did hear your shouts of joy when you got the news yesterday. Thank you....XOXOX Lura

    ReplyDelete
  25. (I didn't like this one either!)

    Your parfaits look smashing. I wish I'd done that. :)

    ReplyDelete
  26. Hi

    I pop in every now and again because I so enjoy your recipes. Have you tried Artichoke tablets for your cholesterol? My mom started using them and her high levels plummeted - she has tried changing diet etc but nothing worked like Artichoke tablets

    ReplyDelete

Your comments mean the world to me, and while I may not be able to address each one individually, each one is important to me and each one counts. Thanks so much!