This post is sponsored by Pyrex. I made us the perfect transitional dessert for these late summer days. A healthier take on Banoffee pie! It’s lighter than most pies and almost no-bake. Great for these still hot days, but also rich and cozy for the cooler September days ahead. I knew right away that my new Pyrex Deep baking dish would be the perfect way to showcase the beautiful layers and colors of this banoffee pie. That’s because they’re up to 50% deeper than the Pyrex basic dishes we all know and love. This makes them ideal for recipes like this that need more room. I’ve been using Pyrex in my kitchen since…well, since as long as I can remember. My mom religiously made her famous Special K-Bars (this was my 2nd post on HBH!) and chocolate chip cookie bars in her 9×13″ Pyrex pan. Now I’m the one using Pyrex to bake up the desserts (and pasta too). I especially love how these deep baking dishes show off layered desserts like this pie. The presentation is effortlessly pretty. One of the great things about this pie is that it’s SO EASY to make. Plus, you can easily adapt it to your own personal style. Need a Banoffee pie recipe that’s gluten-free, vegan, and all-around healthier? PERFECT, this is your recipe, and my gosh, it’s so good. Want a more classic Banoffee Pie? No problem, I can tell you how to make that too! The swaps are simple and easy. Here I how I make my healthier version of Banoffee Pie. First, start with the crust. It’s a simple graham cracker crust made with a little melted butter and sweetened with real maple syrup. I love to bake this crust. It ensures that it will hold up well when cutting, plus gives it a nice deep toasted flavor. You can use melted butter or melted coconut oil, either is truly great! For the graham crackers, I love to use these, they’re just a little healthier. While the crust is baking, make the caramel. To make the caramel healthier, I make a very easy “date caramel”. It’s simply pureed dates, coconut milk, creamy peanut butter, and a touch of vanilla, plus flaky sea salt. The key when making this caramel is to get the dates incredibly soft before pureeing them in the food processor. To do this, I like to boil the dates in water, drain, and then puree. The heat from the water really moistens the dates, therefore making them incredibly easy to puree. This date caramel is truly just as delicious as any other. It’s super sweet, creamy, rich, and a touch salty. I love the hints of peanut butter throughout. Almond butter would be great to use too. SO, that’s how you make the “healthy…ish” version of this pie, but if you want to keep the pie classic, you can easily use store-bought Dulce de Leche in place of the date caramel. That is just as delicious! Once the crust has finished baking, let it cool, then spread the caramel over top. Layer on plenty of bananas, drizzle with peanut butter, and then top with generous dollops of vanilla whipped cream. You can use regular whipped cream or coconut whipped cream, either will be great! At this point, the pie needs to be chilled for an hour or so. It sets up beautifully in the Pyrex Deep baking dish. I love that I can clearly see all of the pie’s beautiful layers. The last step is one of the more important steps…the chocolate. I love topping this pie with a generous amount of chocolate shavings. The perfect finisher to a sweet and salty pie. With every bite you get a little crunch from the crust, major sweetness from the caramel, hints of peanut butter and bananas throughout, light cream, and just the right amount of chocolate… Big, DELICIOUS, bites. With Labor Day just a few days away, I’m excited to recreate this (almost no-bake) pie. It’s perfect for feeding family and friends and all the layers make it a real show stopper. Bonus? You can make the pie entirely ahead of time for easy, no stress, entertaining. If you make this healthier banoffee pie be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite! {This post is sponsored by Pyrex. Thank you for supporting the brands that keep Half Baked Harvest cooking!}
