Cool Banana Cheesecake
The banana, a natural remedy for many ills. When you compare it to an apple, it has four times the protein, twice the carbohydrate, three times the phosphorus, five times the vitamin A and iron, and twice the other vitamins and minerals. It is also rich in potassium and is one of the best value foods around. So maybe its time to change the old adage ‘a banana a day keeps the doctor at bay’!
This small, boomerang shaped fruit, whose name it is believed originated from the Arabic word ‘banan’, meaning finger, began its journey somewhere in South Asia. From there, the banana spread rapidly as people moved from one country to another, taking the banana plant with them and searching out new areas in which to grow their fruit. The first Europeans to meet the banana were almost certainly the ancient Greeks. When Alexander the Great travelled to India, he described a strange new fruit that was later identified as a variety of banana. Strangely, although both the Greeks and the Romans travelled extensively, they do not appear to have taken the banana to their colonies in Western Asia or Eastern Africa, and most believe the banana’s first arrival in the Middle East and Northern Egypt was on Arab trading boats, or “dhows” as we know them.
Today we all love the banana for its versatility and health giving properties. With an average banana containing about 400 mg of potassium – more than 10% of the recommended daily intake of this important mineral – doctors could well start recommending eating this fruit on a daily basis, especially if suffering from high blood pressure. It is a proven fact that bananas play a vital role in reducing blood pressure and doctors recommend between 2-5 ripe bananas should be consumed daily.
Bananas are, in my mind, a great ‘super-food’; if you want a quick fix for flagging energy levels then there’s no better snack than a banana. Containing three natural sugars – sucrose, fructose and glucose – combined with fibre, a banana gives an instant, sustained and substantial boost of energy. Research has proved that just two bananas provide enough energy for a strenuous 90-minute workout. No wonder the banana is the number one fruit with the world’s leading athletes.
Ingredients
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Biscuit Mix:
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400g Digestive biscuits- broken into bits
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150g butter- melted
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Pinch of ground nutmeg
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½ tsp ground cinnamon
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Banana Filling:
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4 medium ripe bananas
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1 lemon- juice and rind
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½ tsp vanilla essence
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2 x 200g packs full-fat cream cheese
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4 tbsp full fat firm laban- or thick plain Greek yoghurt
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100g light brown sugar
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Gelatine set - optional
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3 tsp powdered gelatine
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¼ cup water
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Decoration
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Fresh strawberries or bananas
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Digestive biscuit crumbs- crushed and sieved over the top
Instructions
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Prepare biscuit base:
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01 Place biscuits and spices into a food processor and crush to a fine crumb.
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02 Melt butter and mix with biscuits.
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03 Press crumb mixture into cake tin using the back of a large spoon. Either leave as a flat base or build up the sides (see picture).
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04 Put in the fridge to chill and firm.
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Prepare gelatine:
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05 Sprinkle gelatine over water in a small heatproof jug; stand jug in a small saucepan of simmering water. Stir until gelatine dissolves. Cool 5 minutes.
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Prepare filling:
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06 Place all ingredients in a food processor, adding bananas and lemon juice last. Pulse until smooth whilst adding a thin stream of cooled melted gelatine. Do not over process.
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07 Spoon the banana cheesecake mixture on top of the biscuit base. Level the surface then cover with cling film and leave in the fridge until set (at least 4 hours) or overnight.
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08 Decorate with slices of fresh banana or strawberries and dust with biscuit crumbs.
Notes
Ingredients will fill a 24cm spring-release cake tin. To prevent the bananas discolouring mix lemon juice and bananas before processing. The addition of gelatine is optional; for a firmer banana mousse centre add gelatine, otherwise omit and enjoy a softer textured cheesecake. The dusted biscuit crumb effect is very simple – just push a biscuit through a fine sieve and shake all over the top. This cheesecake can be frozen but tastes and looks so much better if it is not, as the freezing can cause the banana filling to slightly discolour.
