I THINK Jamie was one of the first to bring this to the masses and rightly so, it’s a cracking great recipe and a super modern day twist on the classic French dessert. This dish was brought back to my mind after seeing a recent article and a version that incorporated some black pepper. Marmalade on toast with sausages may seem a taste that only some could manage, but having tried it, I soon changed my mind, as I did with the introduction of pepper to my bananas.
So, readymade puff pastry, slice a few bananas, salt and pepper and you are ready to rock.
WHAT YOU NEED
60g unsalted butter
150g caster sugar
4 large bananas
small teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 orange
plain flour, for dusting
250g puff pastry
salt and pepper
crème fraîche
vanilla ice cream and a few tablespoons of desiccated coconut
WHAT TO DO
for the 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.
At this point, add in some sea salt flakes and four or five turns from the pepper mill.
Meanwhile, peel the bananas, thinly slice 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.
for the pastry
Dust a clean work surface and rolling pin with flour. Rather than putting your pastry down flat and rolling it out, place it on its side and roll it from there, as this will give you a lighter, crisper texture. Roll it out until you have a rectangle shape about the same size as your tray and about half a centimetre 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.
to serve
When your tarte tatin is ready you must turn it out at once or it will end up sticking to the baking tray. Again, you want to be very careful and make sure you don’t burn yourself on that hot caramel mixture.
To turn the tarte out, cover your hand with a folded tea towel, carefully hold the tray with a serving plate or board on top and gently turn it over
Using the tip of a knife, pull a corner of the pastry up to check if it’s all cooked underneath (if not, pop it back into the oven for another couple of minutes), then ease the whole thing out of the tray.
If using crème fraîche, put it into a bowl, grate over the rest of your orange zest and stir well.
If using vanilla ice cream, sprinkle a few tablespoons of desiccated coconut on a plate and quickly roll a scoop of ice cream in it until coated
Serve your tarte tatin with a dollop of crème fraîche or coated ice cream and eat immediately.
