banana. caramel. buttery. need i say more!? { banana caramel cobbler with maple syrup }

disclaimer:

if anguish creeps up on you after eating dessert,

or if the thought of stepping on a scale gives you the creeps,

i hate having to break it to you, but...

your job is done here.

no need to check how delicious this thing can be,

no need to see how easy-peasy this recipe is.

to put it plainly:

i ate half cake...

...straight out of the oven.

~

I seldom crave cake (wonder why...), but when I do, besides being hauled by a trilion recipes begging me to be baked, I actually feel like it is a bit stupid not to satisfy my foolish gluttony.

I mean... am I or am I not a food blogger!?

Point taken - yesterday, I couldn't help but feel like I was ready to succumb to anything that I could just open the door of my oven to - which, in my daydream, would impregnate the whole apartment with a magnificent buttery aroma and finally almost melt in my mouth, still warm, all moist, hidding a bed of smooth caramel and - oh well, why not - silky banana.

This brought me back to a cake I baked right before I started Between Kitchens, at a time I was incipiently experimenting with my own cake-from-scratch recipes.

Remember I said I like cooking main dishes the most? At that time I barely baked at all.

At that time I also weighted less 13kg. Just saying ;)

(those 13kg were actually fully needed, not a consequence of the kind that what I'm about to show you may bring.)

I have a perfectly nitid memory of baking and eating that cake - a gooey slightly undercooked mess, looking up at us from a rectangular deep dish, crummed with mashed banana and chocolate chips. My middle brother had invited a friend over for lunch and videogames and I decided to invent something for dessert. Me,... the incipient baker.

I guess I've always had a passion for challenging myself.

Although my expectations grew just as high as the cake - which basically translates into not much, - the final result was surprisingly delicious, and I think that, from that day on - oh, wow, that was 6 years ago! - I've been oblivious to the fact that I bore a burning desire to bake with banana.

Well... Yesternight was the night.

I needed something and I needed it fast. Under 30 minutes sounded about perfect. So I whipped up a grown-up version of my teenager banana mess - quite more confident and mature, and maybe even more delicious.

If you find yourself stuck with a cake craving at about midnight and cannot get over it, this is just the thing for you to try. Or if you have some spare half hour and a desire for dessert.

Go on, read the recipe!

~

cobbler de banana e caramelo com maple syrup

ou como fazer aparecer e desaparecer um bolo em menos de uma hora.

4 a 6 bananas bem maduras

10 caramelos de nata tipo toffee

40ml de maple syrup ou mel /OU/ 80ml de doce de leite ou leite condensado cozido

3/4 de chávena de farinha

1/4 de chávena de açúcar

2 colheres de chá de fermento

1/2 colher de chá de sal

100g de manteiga à temperatura ambiente, em pedaços

1 ovo

1/2 chávena de leite

Pré-aquecer o forno a 180ºC.

Misturar a farinha, o açúcar, o fermento e o sal.

Com as pontas dos dedos, incorporar a manteiga, até obter uma mistura de migalhas heterogénea.

Também com as pontas dos dedos, incorporar finalmente o leite e o ovo. A mistura final deve ser também ligeiramente heterogénea.

Descascar e cortar as bananas em rodelas, colocar no fundo de um pyrex.

Partir os caramelos em pedaços e espalhar sobre a banana; cobrir com o maple syrup e misturar bem.

Espalhar a massa sobre a banana e levar ao forno cerca de 15-30 minutos, testando com um palito pelo menos após 20 minutos - a massa deve ficar firme mas não demasiado seca.

Retirar do forno e regar ou pincelar com um pouco de maple syrup, que carameliza ligeiramente,

Servir imediatamente - com uma bola de gelado, natas ou até mesmo... ONDE ESTÁ O BOLO!?

Nota: o meu ficou mais bolo que cobbler porque eu não tinha bananas suficientes!

~

banana caramel cobbler with maple syrup

or how to whip up and make a cake vanish in less than one hour.

4 to 6 fairly ripe bananas

10 soft caramels

40ml maple syrup or honey /OR/ 80ml dulce de leche or boiled condensed milk

3/4 cup flour

1/4 cup sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

100g butter, room temperature, diced

1 egg

1/2 cup milk

Pre-heat oven to 180ºC.

Mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.

Rub the butter in the flour mixture with your fingertips until reaching a coarse meal.

Mix in the milk and egg with your fingertips. The final batter should be slightly lumpy.

Peel and slice the bananas, place on the bottom of a deep baking dish.

Chop the caramels and spread over the banana; pour maple syrup over and give it a slight stir.

Spread the batter over and bake for about 15-30 minutes, testing with a toothpick after at least 20 minutes - the batter should never overbake.

Remove from oven and varnish with extra maple syrup, which will slightly caramelize.

Serve immediately, with a scoop of ice cream, cream or even... WHERE'S THE CAKE!?

Note: mine is more of a cake than a real cobbler because I didn't possess enough bananas!

~

I would like to dedicate this post to my friend Betty, who just got a job in MANHATTAN !

xoxo,

Inês