Inspired by the banoffee pie scene in Love Actually, I decided to have a go at making some. I was unsure whether I’d like them or not, but with their buttery pastry, dark caramel and fluffy whipped cream topping, even a banana-hater like myself thoroughly enjoyed them.

Ingredients
395g sweetened condensed milk
3 small bananas
Juice of ½ lemon
300ml thickened cream
2 tablespoons grated chocolate

Pastry
1 ⅔ cups plain flour, sifted
110g butter, chilled
110g pure icing sugar
1 egg yolk

Method
Remove and discard label from the condensed milk can, then using a can opener, make 2 small holes in the top. Place in a saucepan, open-side up. Fill pan with cold water to come almost to the top of the can (about 1cm to the top). Bring to the boil, then reduce to medium-low and simmer for 3 hours until a caramel forms, topping up water to keep the same level. Carefully remove cans and cool.

For the pastry, place flour, butter and icing sugar in a food processor and process until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add egg yolk and 2 tblspns cold water and process until the mixture comes together in a smooth ball. Enclose in a plastic wrap and chill for 30mins.

Preheat the oven to 190°C.

Roll out pastry on a lightly floured surface and use to line eight 10cm loose-bottomed tart pans. Chill for a further 15mins. Line the pastry with baking paper and fill with pastry weights. Blind-bake for 10mins, then remove paper and weights and return to the oven for 5mins or until crisp and golden. Allow to cool.

Open the condensed milk can, then spoon the caramel toffee into each pastry shell to almost fill. Thinly slice bananas, toss in the lemon juice, then place an overlapping layer over the toffee. Whip the cream and pile on top. Decorate with chocolate curls.

Adapted from delicious. ‘Sweet’ cookbook.