Banoffee Pie

This pie was devoured by my cousins, the minute they entered through my door. I did look for that opportunity to make this provided someone were to come over so that me and my husband didn't have to finish it all up(wink)! I barely finished making this pie and started taking the pics, when the door just opened and the entire party of boys just arrived. What's this chechi?!! Can we eat this now?? Well I wanted this to sit in the refrigerator for the biscuit base to set, but then you can't have em waiting can you? Served them without waiting! Better still, it tastes better the next day, and the base just sets perfectly for that extra crunch effect!

Ingredients:
Dulce De Leche (Condensed Milk) - 1 can (400gm)
Bananas-3, large
Heavy Cream -2 cups, whipped
Digestive biscuits or Marie biscuit- 200gms
Butter- 100gms
Grated chocolate/ Cocoa powder or Chocolate Sprinkles/ Chocolate Sauce to decorate

To make the Dulche De Leche

Place the can of condensed milk, unopened, in a large pot of water. Bring to boiling point and boil for 3 hours, topping up with boiling water from a kettle as needed. Ensure that the can remains covered in water, as otherwise there is a risk of the can bursting open. Remove and leave to cool completely. You can make this ahead of time or even boil several tins at one go and store the unopened cans in the fridge for several months. There are other ways of making the dulche which could either be David's way or Divya Kudua's pressure cooker way!
I wasn't sure which method to choose, but made my mind to resort to the safer method of placing it in a pot of water. No harm that way!

Now to get to making of this pie. Process the biscuits in the food processor and mix in the melted butter biscuit. Line a 10 inch pie pan with the biscuit mixture and place in the fridge for about an hour or else bake in the oven for 10 minutes at 160C. Open the of dulche de leche and spread this over the layer of biscuit.
Peel and thinly slice the bananas, and arrange in a layer over the toffee.Whip the cream until thick and stiff and spread over the bananas. And finally, decorate with grated chocolate or dust the cocoa powder on top using a sieve or with chocolate sprinkles. Drizzle with chocolate sauce if you desire too.

Italian Hot Chocolate

 AJ (my bro) just returned from his trip from Milan, hey he didn't go there for a pleasure trip; but as a part of his studies which he is currently pursuing. So while we were catching up on the culture and the place, he insisted that I concoct this drink? Pudding? It's a thick, dense and a definite chocolate rush  - all in a cup.

From Milan With Love!!

Ingredients:
[Serves - 4 cups]
Whole Milk - 1 cup, separated in 3/4 cup and 1/4 cup
Heavy Cream - 1 cup
Cornstarch - 1 1/2 teaspoons
Granulated Sugar - 4 tablespoons
Chocolate - 4 1/2 ounces high quality, finely chopped
Whipped Cream - a cup

Combine the 3/4 cup milk, cream and sugar in a saucepan. Heat until it starts to bubble around the edges. While the milk mixture is heating, whisk together the 1/4 milk and the cornstarch till smooth. Once the milk mixture starts to bubble around the edges, add the milk and cornstarch mixture. Whisk until it's heated through. Add the chocolate and whisk together, till hot and thick enough to coat a spoon. Pour into mugs and serve with whipped cream if desired.

Berried Panna Cotta

It's a rich dessert, serve this with big spoonfuls of blackberries and strawberries. You could impress anyone with this easy- no effort involved dessert.

Recipe Source: David Lebovitz

Ingredients:
Heavy Cream - 4cups (1litre)
Sugar - 1/2cup (100g)
Vanilla Extract - 2tsps or 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
Powdered Gelatin - 4 1/2tsp
Cold Water - 6tbs
For the topping
Canned Blackberry Pie Filling
Fresh Hulled Strawberries

Heat the heavy cream and sugar in a saucepan. Once the sugar is dissolved, remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract.If using a vanilla bean, scrape the seeds from the bean into the cream and add the bean pod. Cover, and let infuse for 30 minutes. Remove the bean then rewarm the mixture before continuing. Lightly oil eight custard cups with a neutral-tasting oil. Sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water in a medium-sized bowl and let stand 5 to 10 minutes.Pour the very warm panna cotta mixture over the gelatin and stir until the gelatin is completely dissolved. Divide the pannacotta mixture into the prepared cups, then chill them until firm, which will take at least two hours but I let them stand at least four to six hours. If you’re pressed for time, pour the Panna Cotta mixture into wine goblets so you can serve them in the glasses, without unmolding. Run a sharp knife around the edge of each pannacotta and un-mold each onto a serving plate, and garnish as desired with the blackberries and strawberries.

Note: To make Panna Cotta with sheet gelatin: Soften 25g (approximately six sheets) in a liter of cold water for 5 to 10 minutes. Wring the sheets out and stir them into the warm Panna Cotta mixture until dissolved.