Last weekend, two of my friends and I indulged in an extravagant luncheon at Karma, the new vegan and raw foods restaurant on Main Street in Northampton. (A full-length restaurant review is soon to come.) We ended with two desserts, one of which was a slice of perhaps the most successful vegan banana cream pie in the area (although, I’ll admit, I don’t have much exposure to its competitors, so I can’t guarantee an accurate ranking). We asked our waitress if the pastry chef was around, and she modestly revealed that she was, in fact, the baker. She happily shared the recipe.
Crust:
3.5 cups walnuts
2 tbsp. agave nectar
2 tsp. vanilla
2 tbsp. salt
Pulverize these ingredients and press them into a pie tin.
Filling: (This actually makes enough for 3 pies, so adjust accordingly.)
3 cups mashed banana
2 cups soaked cashew
1 cup agave nectar
2 tbsp. lemon juice
2 tbsp. vanilla
1.5 cup coconut oil
Mix together and pour into piecrust. Sprinkle a layer of coconut flakes on top and refrigerate until set.
(My dining companion and friend, a raw foods enthusiast, informed me that professional kitchens like that at Karma probably use a tool called a Vita-Mix, an extremely high-powered blender that sells for $500. Worth it for an amateur? No. And a regular food processor would probably be fine. But I do strongly recommend Karma’s pie.)
No comments:
Post a Comment