This Banoffee Pie recipe combines fresh bananas with banana-infused caramel filling in a buttery graham cracker crust with lashings of homemade whipped cream on top.
Banoffee Pie Recipe Snapshot
What it is: Fresh bananas in silky caramel, on a buttery biscuit base, topped with whipped cream.
Why you'll love it: The caramel is infused with the banana for an incredible and unique flavor.
How to make it: Heat the caramel ingredients in a saucepan, then add chopped bananas while warm. Pour onto biscuit base, then top with more bananas and whipped cream.
Most banoffee pie recipes will tell you to just dump a can of dulce de leche over a layer of sliced bananas. But THIS banoffee pie is in a completely different league. After lots of experimenting, I found an easy way to infuse the caramel with real banana flavor, so you get a taste of that winning banana toffee combo in every bite.
It still ticks all the easy, 'no-bake' boxes, but this unique method of making banoffee pie will have people pausing mid-bite saying "Wait… what is this magic?!" And yes, they'll absolutely ask for the recipe.
Jump to:
What is Banoffee Pie?
Traditional banoffee pie is a classic British dessert that marries the flavors of banana and toffee, hence the name 'banoffee'. It is usually on a buttery biscuit base (graham cracker crust) and topped with copious amounts of whipped cream.
Though the original recipe does technically use a toffee filling, it is more similar in flavor and consistency to caramel, which is why I would describe this as more of a banana caramel pie.
I was shocked to learn that this is not a super popular dessert in North America, as it is kind of an institution in the UK. It does seem to be gaining popularity in the last few years in the US, but the American Banoffee pies are typically a simplification of the classic British Banoffee pie.
So if you have stumbled across this and want to make a really good banoffee pie, I urge you to try it this way! It is absolutely worth the extra steps.
Ingredients
This great recipe only needs a few basic ingredients. I have used both the US and UK names of the ingredients - you can read more about the differences in my UK vs US ingredients guide.
- Bananas - Use ripe bananas, but not overripe. Still mostly yellow, but a couple of brown spots is okay.
- Light Brown Sugar - This will be used in the caramel filling.
- Butter - Unsalted butter is best, but if you use salted, just leave out the additional salt in the recipe.
- Graham Crackers - Or Digestive Biscuits if you're in the UK.
- Condensed Milk - Use sweetened condensed milk, you can usually find it near the baking aisle of the supermarket. Do not confuse with evaporated milk.
- Heavy Cream - Or heavy whipping cream, or double cream. It needs to have at least 36% fat content so it will whip up nicely and hold its shape on the pie.
- Powdered Sugar - (Icing sugar) This is optional, but it will help to stabilize the whipped cream as well as add a touch of sweetness.
- Decoration - You can leave the pie plain or decorate with anything you like. I like to use caramel sauce and chocolate curls.
See the recipe card for quantities.
What You'll Need
- Pie Dish - A 9-inch pie pan is good. I actually like to use a loose-bottomed tart pan for this recipe, because it means I can easily transfer it onto a serving plate and you can see the pretty sides of the crunchy graham cracker crust.
- Saucepan
- Electric Whisk - You may want to use an electric mixer or stand mixer to whip the cream, but you can also do it by hand.
- Food Processor - This is not necessary; it's just a quick and easy way to make the graham cracker crust. If you don't have a food processor, just put the crackers in a Ziploc bag and crush them with a rolling pin instead.
How to Make Banoffee Pie
I would go as far as to call this a 'real' banoffee pie. You'll see from the step-by-step instructions below that it doesn't take much more effort, but you'll have a proper, tasty dessert to wow your guests.
Make the Crust
To make the graham cracker crust, pulse the graham crackers in a food processor until they are fine crumbs, then add the melted butter and pulse until it resembles wet sand.
If you squeeze the mixture in your hand, it should clump together.
Don't have a food processor? Just put them in a Ziploc bag and use a rolling pin to crush into crumbs.
Shape the Crust
Tip the mixture into your pie plate and use your hand, or a glass, to press it up the sides and along the base of the pie dish.
I like to bake it for 10 minute just to help it hold together better when sliced later - but this is totally optional.
Slice the Bananas
Peel the bananas and slice them into ¼-inch thick slices.
Reserve enough banana slices to make a layer of bananas over the top of the pie, then cut the rest into quarters so you have small banana chunks.
Melt the Sugar
Put the light brown sugar and butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat and stir until the sugar dissolves. (1-2 minutes)
Add Condensed Milk
Add the condensed milk and salt to the pan and mix it in completely. Keep heating, stirring constantly to prevent burning, until it begins to boil. (4 minutes)
Boil
Once you see very thick bubbles bursting on the surface of the caramel, boil it for 1-2 minutes.
You should have a visibly thickened, glossy caramel that is golden brown in color.
It is important not to undercook the caramel filling or it won't set properly.
Add the Bananas
Put the quartered banana chunks into the hot caramel immediately and gently stir them in.
The warmth will cause the caramel to become infused with the flavor of the bananas.
This is what makes this banoffee pie recipe so special!
Fill the Pie
Pour the banana-infused caramel into the pie crust and spread it out evenly.
Add Banana Layer
Take the reserved slices of banana and lay them all over the top of the caramel to make an even layer.
Cover with plastic wrap and let the filling cool to room temperature, then chill in the refrigerator for 20 minutes before adding the cream.
Do not put whipped cream onto a warm pie or it will melt!
Whip the Cream
Once the caramel is cool to the touch, whip the heavy cream and powdered sugar together to stiff peaks.
Spread or pipe the whipped cream all over the top of the pie. The beauty of cream pies is that they look gorgeous even when messy!
Chill for at least two hours.
Decorate
If you want to, you can add decoration on top (though it doesn't really need it!)
I melt a little caramel sauce in the microwave and drizzle it over the top of the pie, then use a potato peeler to make some dark chocolate shavings.
But you can use whatever you have, such as melted chocolate, sprinkles, or even just a dusting of cocoa powder.
Storage
Store your Banoffee Pie in the refrigerator inside an airtight container. It will be good like this for 3-5 days.
FAQ
If you have any questions about this banoffee pie recipe that arne't answered here, please write them in the comments and I'll get back to you asap.
Banoffee pie gets its name from a combination of the words 'banana' and 'toffee', which are the main ingredients in the recipe.
The main difference between caramel and toffee is in the ingredients used and the consistency of the end product.
Toffee is usually made with brown sugar and butter, and caramel is typically made with just sugar (sometimes with cream or other ingredients).
Usually, toffee is cooked for longer than caramel so it has more of a chewy texture, whereas caramel is more like a sauce.
But in the case of this Banoffee pie recipe, even though the filling is technically toffee, it is soft and gooey, similar to caramel.
Though both desserts feature bananas and are topped with sweetened whipped cream, Banana Cream Pie has a pastry cream filling inside a flaky pie crust, whereas Banoffee Pie has a caramel/toffee filling in a graham cracker crust.
Show Me Your Bakes!
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More No-Bake Desserts
Looking for more desserts you can whip up without an oven? Try some of these no-bake dessert recipes:
Recipe
Banoffee Pie Recipe
Ingredients
- 180 g (1½ cups) Digestive Biscuits (graham cracker crumbs)
- 85 g (¾ stick) Unsalted Butter (melted)
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- 113 g (1 stick) Unsalted Butter
- 110 g (½ cup) Light Brown Sugar
- 395 g (14 oz) Condensed Milk
- 2 Bananas 2 large or 3 medium
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- 480 ml (2 cups) Double Cream (heavy whipping cream)
- 30 g (¼ cup) Icing Sugar (powdered sugar)
- 2 tablespoon Caramel Sauce (optional)
Equipment
- Medium Saucepan
- 9-inch Pie or Tart Pan
Instructions
- Crush the graham crackers in a food processor, then add the melted butter and salt, and pulse until it resembles wet sand and clumps together when you squeeze it. If you don't have a food processor, you can put the crackers in a Ziploc bag and use a rolling pin to crush them into crumbs.180 g (1½ cups) Digestive Biscuits, 85 g (¾ stick) Unsalted Butter, ¼ teaspoon Salt
- Tip the mixture into your pie dish and press it into the bottom and sides of the pan.
- Optional. If you want to make the crust extra sturdy, bake it at 350°F / 180°C for 10 minutes to help it solidify. This is not necessary, but it will help the pie to hold together when you slice it later.
- Chop bananas into slices about ¼ inch thick. Reserve enough banana slices to cover the top of the pie in a layer of banana, then chop the remaining slices into quarters to make banana chunks.2 Bananas
- Melt the butter and brown sugar in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring slowly but constantly until the sugar has dissolved. (About 1-2 minutes).113 g (1 stick) Unsalted Butter, 110 g (½ cup) Light Brown Sugar
- Add the condensed milk and salt and bring to a boil. (About 4 minutes.Once you see very thick bubbles bursting on the surface, boil for a further 1-2 minutes, then remove from the heat. It is important not to undercook the caramel, or it won't set.395 g (14 oz) Condensed Milk, ¼ teaspoon Salt
- Immediately put the quartered banana chunks into the hot caramel and stir to combine. The heat will cause the banana flavor to infuse into the caramel filling.
- Pour the banoffee filling into the pie dish and lay the reserved banana slices on top. Cover with plastic wrap and let the pie cool to room temperature before transferring to the fridge for 20 minutes.
- Once the caramel is cool to the touch, whip the cream and powdered sugar up to stiff peaks, and pipe or spread it all over the pie.480 ml (2 cups) Double Cream, 30 g (¼ cup) Icing Sugar
- Chill for at least two hours before serving.
- If you like, you can decorate the pie with caramel sauce, chocolate shavings, cocoa powder, or whatever you want.2 tablespoon Caramel Sauce
Dan
This a no bake pie?
Jules Grasekamp
Hi Dan,
Yes that's correct, the caramel is made in a saucepan and then the filling sets in the fridge - there is no need to bake it 🙂
Jules
Andrea
Sounds crazy but ladies if you want really hook your man this is the pie!