Ingredients

• 85g/3oz butter
• 100g/3½oz plain flour
• 3 free-range eggs
• 3 bananas
• skin on
• 1 vanilla pod
• cut into 3
• 2 tbsp runny honey
• pinch ground cinnamon
• 250g/9oz double cream
• lightly whipped
• 250g/9oz mascarpone
• 250g/9oz caster sugar
• splash bourbon whiskey
• to taste
• 250g/9oz double cream
• 3 bananas
• peeled and sliced at an angle
• 200g/7oz caster sugar
• plus extra for caramelising the bananas
• icing sugar
• for dusting

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6 and line a large baking tray with baking paper.
• To make the choux pastry
• melt the butter with 220ml/8fl oz water in a saucepan and bring to the boil
• tip in the flour and
• using a wooden spoon
• immediately beat it until smooth. Remove the pan from the heat and continue to beat until it has cooled slightly.
• Beat in the eggs one at a time until fully incorporated and glossy. Set aside to cool.
• Spoon into a piping bag. Pipe balls of the pastry onto the prepared baking tray
• leaving a generous gap between each. Bake for 25 minutes. Hollow out a small hole in the pastry and bake for another 5 minutes. Set aside.
• To make the banana filling
• turn the oven down to 190C/170C Fan/Gas 5.
• Make a slit down each banana and fill with a third of the vanilla pod
• honey and cinnamon. Wrap in kitchen foil and bake for 20 minutes. Scrape the flesh out of the skin and push through a sieve into a clean bowl. Mix with the lightly whipped cream and mascarpone. Pour into a piping bag and pipe into the buns. Set aside.
• To make the whiskey caramel
• heat the sugar over a low heat until melted. Remove from the heat then stir in a splash of whiskey and the double cream
• then place over a low heat to warm. Set aside.
• To serve
• place the caster sugar in a pan over a low heat until melted. Dip each choux bun into the caramel and make a cone-shaped tower. Sprinkle caster sugar over the sliced banana and caramelise with a cook’s blowtorch. Scatter over the tower. Spoon over some whiskey caramel and finish with a dusting of icing sugar.