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Bananas for Christmas

  • Steps
  • Ingredients

Steps

  • Preheat oven to 180°C fan forced.
  • Preheat the oven 165°C fan forced.
  • Preheat a deep fryer to 165°C.
  • For the Roasted Banana Cake roast bananas with skins in an oven at 180°C for about 15 minutes, or until skins turn black. Remove from the oven.
  • In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream butter, brown sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy.
  • Peel the skins off the bananas and mash lightly with a whisk or fork. Do not break down completely.
  • Gradually add eggs into butter and sugar until completely mixed, then fold in the bananas.
  • Sift dry ingredients together, then gradually spoon into the wet mixture stiring until combined. Do not overmix.
  • Portion batter into 4 x 16cm greased cake rings.
  • Bake for about 20 to 30 minutes, or until completely cooked. Check the cake is cooked by inserting a skewer. Remove and place on a wire rack.
  • Leave to cool completely before removing from the cake rings and using to build the cake.
  • Turn the oven down to 170°C fan forced.
  • For the Banana Palm Sugar Jam, place all ingredients into a large saucepan and cook at low heat until reduced and jam like consisitancy.
  • Leave to cool completely before use.
  • For the salted caramel buttercream, in a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, start whisking egg yolks until they reach ribbon stage.
  • Place the caster sugar in a large saucepan and caramelise caster sugar until dark brown, then deglaze with the hot water.
  • Continue to boil until no more lumps are found in the caramel.
  • Pour into egg yolks and whisk continually.
  • Add in butter and continue to whisk, sprinkle in sea salt to taste. Leave to cool before use.
  • For the gingerbread, in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, place the butter and caster sugar in the bowl and cream until light and fluffy.
  • Add in whole egg and treacle and whisk until combined.
  • Place all the dry ingredients in a sieve and sift into the mixture and stir until a dough is formed.
  • Remove from the mixing bowl and roll out between 2 sheets of baking paper to about 0.3cm in thickness, then cut into desired shapes.
  • Bake at 170°C for about 10 minutes, then remove from the oven.
  • Cool down before using.
  • For the gingerbread icing, place the icing sugar in a bowl and add the hot water to make a pastey consistency to pipe onto gingerbread cookies. If the icing is not pastey enough, add some more hot water.
  • For the kuih kodok kodok, preheat a deep fryer to about 165°C.
  • In a medium size bowl, mix all ingredients together to form a thick batter.
  • Shape batter into irregular balls with two round spoons and drop into the deep fryer. Cook until golden brown.
  • Once cool, dust with snow sugar.
  • To assemble, line a 16cm cake ring with acetate on a flay tray.
  • Place a round of roasted banana cake on the bottom and pipe a little salted caramel butter cream on the top, then some of the banana palm sugar jam. Sprinkle with a little dark chocolate crunchy pearls. Repeat again with another piece of roasted banana cake, salted caramel buttercream, banana palm sugar jam and dark chocolate crunchy pearls. Finish with one more piece of roasted banana cake. Leave in the fridge while decorating gingerbread.
  • To decorate gingerbread, fill a piping bag with a little of the icing, and cut a small hole to pipe. Outline the gingerbread shapes and leave icing to crystalise.
  • Once cake is completely cool and buttercream has firmed up, remove from cake ring and acetate. Covered with a thin later of buttercream.
  • To decorate, use the buttercream to stick gingerbread shapes to the side of the cake and place the kuih kodok on the top in a pile before dusting with more snow sugar.