Banana, Caramel and Chocolate Ganache Tart

Admittedly this wasn’t the prettiest of tarts I’ve had but God was it tasty!

I still have that problem of surplus shortcrust pastry in the freezer so this was another sweet way of using it up.

Please do not do what I did and cut the pastry before putting it into the oven.  The rolled out pastry should hang over the sides of the flan tin and this extra should be trimmed off after it has been baked because pastry does and will shrink in the oven.

I know this.  I really do but I still cut it. Why?  Because I’m greedy.  That’s why.  I wanted the extra bits of pastry to make into cheesy twists, that’s why.  And they were so nice and cheesy that it was worth it.  Almost.

Try not to trim the pastry until after it’s baked.  Unless you’re like me and can’t resist cheesy twists.

This is a very easy tart to make but as with most tarts, a bit ‘stagey’.  You have to blind bake the pastry first, allow it to cool slightly then pour in the ganache and allow it to set before you can start layering on the bananas and caramel. 

Everything came from a tub.  Including the caramel and even, I admit, the crème Chantilly which is something I make at home often as its one of the best ways to utilise a vanilla pod.  But again this was rushing against time as I was taking this over to a relative’s house for dessert after dinner.  In situations like that convenience wins every time for me.  But do be careful and mindful of my advice on the pastry, it should really be trimmed after being baked.

This tart is very satisfying with its combination of fresh bananas and luxurious chocolate.  I love the taste and smell of freshly sliced bananas, there is something so refreshing but sweet about it.  I deliberately made the ganache sweet by using half milk chocolate because the shortcrust pastry I was using was the unsweetened kind.  The ganache is also made with single cream which is why the ratio of chocolate needed to be more than the cream otherwise it just wouldn’t set very well.  There’s almost a saucy consistency to the ganache at room temperature which is why it is best to chill it well before adding the bananas.

Banana, Caramel and Chocolate Ganache Tart

·         500g shortcrust pastry

·         300ml single cream

·         200g dark chocolate

·         200g milk chocolate

·         2 bananas, chopped into slices diagonally

·         4 tbsp caramel, from a bottle or homemade (whatever you have to hand)

·         500g crème Chantilly, from a tub (or made by mixing together 500g double cream, one vanilla pod and 50g icing sugar)

Preheat oven to 200C, grease your tart tin.  I used a 14 x 4.5” (36 x 12cm) rectangular tin but you can also use a standard 9” round tin.

Roll the pastry out to roughly the shape of your tart tin.  Make sure it is not too thick, about 3-5mm is about ok and also try to make it consistently thick throughout.

Line your tart tin with the pastry, allow the extra pastry to ‘dangle’ over the edges of the tin but don’t trim to size just yet.  If the pastry is really excessively more than the tin and difficult to handle then cut it a little so that it is easier to manage. 

Prick the base all over with a fork.  Line with greaseproof paper or foil, fill with baking beans (or rice) and bake for about 20 minutes, then remove the baking beans and foil and bake for another 15 minutes until done (remember that this is the only baking stage so make sure your pastry is properly done and not raw – if it needs another 10 minutes then bake it further).  Allow to cool.

Make the ganache by breaking up the chocolate into pieces and placing in a medium bowl, then bringing the single cream to just before a boil.  When you start to see the bubbles on the edge, take the cream off the heat and pour over the chocolate.  Leave for a minute to allow the cream to heat the chocolate.  Then, using a smaller whisk if you have one, gently start stirring the mixture from the middle.  Don’t use very large or vigorous motions just yet.  Let the chocolate and cream emulsify with gentle small circles, keeping to the middle of the bowl, before whisking properly.  Allow to cool slightly.

Pour the ganache into the pastry case and chill in the fridge for about 2 hours (I put mine in the freezer for about 40 minutes).

Slice the bananas and place them over the now set ganache.  Drizzle over the caramel, then spoon or pipe over the crème Chantilly.