The Mouthwatering Tarte A La Banane!

Superb Tarte Banane without the lattice!

The island of Mauritius, a piece of paradise in the Indian Ocean East coast of Southern Africa. Mauritius was uninhabited then taken over by the French and subsequently the British. Indians were brought to the island as indentured labourers and the Chinese came to invest in small businesses. Slaves were brought from Africa. The beauty of this multicultural society lies in the fusion of its food. The food of Mauritius is a unique blend of French, Indian, African and Chinese cuisines. Mauritians in general have a sweet tooth and when it comes to pastries one that stands out from everything else is undoubtedly the Banana Pie or Tarte à la Bananes: Rich buttery flaky crust with a sweet smooth banana paste. This is a must have with a great cup of tea on any afternoon whilst relaxing!

TIP: When making tart shell Do not add water and try to handle dough as little as you can. This will give you a nice flaky shortcrust shell.

Ingredients:

For Tart Shell:

• 150g Plain flour
• 100g Lurpak unsalted butter, cubed 

For Filling:

• 5-6 medium sized or 4 large bananas
• 4-5 tbsps. sugar
• 2 tsps. toasted coconut (optional)
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract (optional)

For Lattice: Optional

• 150g Plain flour
• 75g Lurpak unsalted butter, cubed.
• Milk, for glazing

Method:

• Place 100g butter in a bowl and sift in flour. Knead into a soft dough. You may need to add extra flour to achieve the correct consistency. 
• Use good quality butter like Lurpak or President to give a rich buttery flavor  You do not need to bring it down to room temperature.
• Press dough into a 9 inch fluted tart pan with removable bottom.
• Use a flat bottomed glass to level the surface till crust is uniform in thickness. Refrigerate crust for about an hour.
• Now prepare the lattice in the same way as you did for the tart shell. Knead into a soft ball and flatten into a disc. Wrap in clingfilm and refrigerate for 15-20 minutes.
• Remove tart shell from fridge and prick all over with a fork. Bake in oven preheated at 180C/350F/Gas 20 minutes. 

• Meanwhile prepare banana filling. Overripe bananas with brown to black skin are ideal for this. Peel and mash well with 3-4 tbsps sugar.
• Add toasted coconut and vanilla extract and mix well. (optional)
• In a heavy based pan, cook bananas under high heat till it turns a shade darker and comes together in a mass. It will stop sticking to base and sides of pan. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.
• Cooking will not cause the bananas to brown as in the finished tart. The final brown colour is a result of baking, so don't overcook.
• Your tart shell should also be done by now. Remove from oven.

• Drop tablespoons of filling in shell and level surface. Do not be tempted to overfill as it may overflow during baking.
• Remove lattice from fridge. Roll out between sheets of parchment paper until 1/4 inch thick. Cut into long strips 1 cm wide with a knife or pizza cutter.
• Layer strips in a crisscross pattern over filling. Press ends into crust.
• Brush lattice generously with milk glaze and return to oven.