Peanut, caramelised banana, sorbet and banana cake

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Follow this intricate and elaborate peanut and banana dessert recipe from Nigel Mendham to produce an outstanding dish that would grace the most prestigious of occasions. Mendham displays his signature flair for textures and temperatures in this dish, if you want to keep things a little more straightforward, however, perhaps just concentrate on a couple of the elements.

First published in 2015

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

Peanut parfait

  • 110g of peanut butter, smooth
  • 2 eggs
  • 45g of icing sugar
  • 120g of double cream
  • 2 gelatine leaves, soaked

Banana cake

  • 1.2kg banana, grated
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 orange, zested
  • 262g of dark brown sugar
  • 225ml of olive oil
  • 4 1/2 tsp mixed spice
  • 1 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 300g of wholemeal flour

Sweet base syrup

  • 67g of powdered glucose
  • 233g of sugar
  • 3g of sorbet stabiliser
  • 333ml of water

Banana sherbet

Banana purée

  • 300g of banana, ripe
  • 150g of water
  • 150g of sugar
  • 3g of ascorbic acid

Peanut crunch

Banana crisps

To garnish

  • 1 banana
  • caster sugar for dusting

Equipment

  • Blender
  • Dehydrator
  • 28 x 13cm loaf tin
  • 6cm pastry cutter
  • Sous vide equipment
  • Silicone dome moulds

Method

1
Prepare the banana crisps the day before you make the rest of the dessert. Slice the banana as thinly as possible and place in the dehydrator overnight to crisp up. Store in an airtight container until ready to use
2
For the banana sherbet, start by making a sweet base syrup. Combine all the ingredients in a medium saucepan and place over a high heat. Bring to the boil, whisking occasionally until the sugars and completely dissolved. Remove from the heat and allow to cool before storing in the fridge until required
  • 67g of powdered glucose
  • 233g of sugar
  • 3g of sorbet stabiliser
  • 333ml of water
3
Turn on the ice cream maker once the syrup has been chilling for a while - this will ensure it is cold by the time you pour in the sherbet
4
Combine the milk and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, remove from the heat and stir to dissolve. Allow to cool completely before pouring into a blender, along with the bananas, orange juice and 325g of the sweet base syrup. Blitz until smooth and pass through a fine strainer
5
Pour directly into the cold ice cream maker and churn according to manufacturer instructions. Store in the freezer until required
6
To make the banana purée, bring the water and sugar to the boil, then remove from the heat and set aside to chill
  • 150g of water
  • 150g of sugar
7
Once cool, add the banana and ascorbic acid, stir and add everything to a vac pac bag. Seal the bag and cook in the water bath at 85°C for 1 hour
  • 300g of banana, ripe
  • 3g of ascorbic acid
8
After 1 hour, remove from the water bath and allow to cool completely. Blend the contents of the bag, pass through a fine strainer and store in a squeezy bottle. Store in the fridge until required
9
For the peanut crunch, melt together the cocoa butter and chocolate in a pan - be careful not to overheat the chocolate as it will sieze. Meanwhile, mix together the peanut butter and chopped peanuts in a bowl then fold into the pan
10
Fold the feuilletine into the mix, then spread out onto a sheet of greaseproof paper. Place another sheet on top and roll the mixture out until around 7mm in thickness. Freeze until required
  • 55g of feuilletine
11
For the parfait, bring the cream to the boil, remove from the heat and allow to cool for 5 minutes before whisking in the soaked gelatine. Pass through a fine strainer, whisk in the peanut butter and allow to cool completely in the fridge
  • 110g of peanut butter, smooth
  • 120g of double cream
  • 2 gelatine leaves, soaked
12
Combine the eggs and sugar in a large bowl and place over a pan of gently simmering water. Whisk vigorously until the mixture doubles in size and forms a thick ribbon. Remove from the heat and continue to whisk for an additional 2 minutes as it cools
  • 2 eggs
  • 45g of icing sugar
13
Slowly and gently fold the peanut butter cream mixture into the sabayon until just combined. Pour into silicon dome moulds and leave to set in the freezer until firm
14
Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4. Line a non-stick loaf tin with baking parchment
15
For the banana cake, whisk the eggs, zest, sugar and oil until the sugar has dissolved. In a separate bowl, mix together the mixed spice, bicarbonate of soda and wholemeal flour
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 orange, zested
  • 262g of dark brown sugar
  • 225ml of olive oil
  • 300g of wholemeal flour
  • 4 1/2 tsp mixed spice
  • 1 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
16
Fold the dry ingredients into the egg mixture, then add the grated banana. Bake for 20-25 minutes, then remove and allow to cool
17
To make the garnish, cut the banana on the angle into small, trunk-like pieces. Sprinkle one side of each piece with the caster sugar and caramelise with a blowtorch
  • 1 banana
  • caster sugar for dusting
18
Remove the sheet of peanut crunch from the freezer and carefully cut into circles using metal pastry rings. Pull the banana cake into bite-sized, rustic pieces
19
Place a disc of peanut crunch disc onto each plate and top with the dome of peanut parfait. Arrange the cake pieces and caramelised banana around a quenelle of the banana sherbet, and top with a dehydrated banana crisp
First published in 2015

Nigel Mendham has proved himself to be as adaptable as he is talented, prospering in restaurants all over Britain and winning great acclaim for his deftly classical cuisine.

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