Delia Smith banana and butterscotch trifle is her rich pudding for special days, with Madeira-soaked sponges, butterscotch, bananas, custard and cream, for 6 to 8. You make the butterscotch sauce and the custard, soak the sponges in Madeira for 20 minutes, then layer everything. In all, it takes about 55 minutes of work, then time in the fridge.
In 1998 it was the newest of her many trifles (How to Cook Book One, page 64), and her website has the same recipe. The trifle asks for one full quantity of her English custard. So the custard on the card comes from page 62 of that book.
It is best made on the day you serve it, Delia says. She used to add the pecans at the last minute, but forgot them so often that she now scatters them on straight after the cream. For a Christmas classic instead, try her English trifle.
Delia Smith Butterscotch Banana Trifle with Madeira
Course: DessertCuisine: BritishDifficulty: Easy8
servings30
minutes25
minutes950
kcalSponges sandwiched with homemade butterscotch and soaked in Madeira, layered with banana, more butterscotch, vanilla custard, whipped cream and toasted pecans.
Ingredients
- For the trifle:
150ml (5fl oz) Madeira
3 medium bananas
- For the butterscotch sauce:
150g (5oz) golden syrup
50g (2oz) butter
75g (3oz) soft brown sugar
50g (2oz) granulated sugar
150ml (5fl oz) double cream
a few drops vanilla extract
- For the custard:
570ml (1 pint) double cream
6 large egg yolks
1 dessertspoon cornflour
50g (2oz) caster sugar
- For the topping:
50g (2oz) pecan nuts
275ml (10fl oz) double cream
Directions
- Butterscotch: Put the syrup, butter and both sugars in a small saucepan. Melt them slowly over a gentle heat for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring now and then.
- Sauce: Let it cook for about 5 minutes more, then stir in the 150ml of cream and the vanilla and leave it to cool.
- Custard: Split the vanilla pod, scrape out the seeds and heat the pod and seeds with the 570ml of cream to just below simmering point. Meanwhile whisk the yolks, cornflour and sugar in a bowl.
- Thicken: Take out the pod and whisk the hot cream into the egg mixture, then return it to the pan. Whisk over the same gentle heat until thick, cover the surface with clingfilm and leave it to cool.
- Sponges: Split the sponges lengthways, spread each half with butterscotch and sandwich them back together. Cut each one into 3 and arrange them in a 1.75 litre glass bowl.
- Madeira: Stab the sponges a few times, pour the Madeira evenly over them and leave them to soak for about 20 minutes.
- Layer: Slice the bananas about 5mm thick and scatter them round the sponges. Pour the rest of the butterscotch over, then the custard, cover and chill to firm up.
- Finish: Toast the pecans on foil under the grill for about 4 minutes. Whip the 275ml of cream until floppy, spread it over and scatter the pecans on top, then cover and chill.
Notes
- If the custard looks grainy, pour it into a jug and keep whisking until it is smooth.
- Delia uses the unrefined kind of both the granulated and the caster sugar.
FAQs
How do I weigh the syrup?
Put the empty saucepan on the scales, add 150g to the reading, then pour the syrup straight in. That is Delia’s own trick for this banana trifle, and it saves scraping sticky syrup off a spoon.
Which custard should I use?
Her own English custard is the one on the card, made with double cream because a special trifle deserves it. In that recipe she says single cream or creamy whole milk suit a pouring custard better. Pure vanilla extract can stand in for the pod, too.
A good chilled ready-made custard would be my own shortcut on a busy day.
Why toast the pecans under the grill?
Four minutes under a hot grill on a sheet of foil is all the pecans need to turn crisp and toasty. Watch them the whole time, because they burn easily, as Delia warns.
Is it a banoffee trifle?
Not by name, though the bananas and butterscotch give this trifle the same toffee and banana idea. Her true banoffee recipe is a cheesecake with toffee pecan sauce, in her Winter Collection (1995, page 184).
This trifle has no biscuit base and no condensed milk.
Can I use the butterscotch sauce without the trifle?
Yes, her Butterscotch and Banana Sundaes use almost the same butterscotch sauce, with light muscovado sugar in place of the soft brown. There are no sponges or custard to make, because sliced bananas go over scoops of vanilla ice cream with broken Spanish turrón. The sauce goes on top and they are served straight away.
Her website has that recipe for 6, from her Christmas magazine of 2003.
