Banana Coconut Cream Pie Recipe

May I introduce to you a HEALTHY(er) bake

(which is technically a no bake)...

Banana Coconut Cream Pie 

For those of you wanting a treat but not wanting all the added calories of sugar and ingredients you can’t actually pronounce, this is perfect for you! (As long as you like and can eat the ingredients that are used)

(I may add that the icing sugar isn't exactly healthy... but there's not a lot of it if you were to calculate it per portion)

Eating a ‘healthy’ labelled or 'low calorie' dessert doesn’t always mean it has actual health benefits or much in it that’s actually any good to your health. For example, if something is labelled ‘low fat’ then it’s probably got quite a few added teaspoons of sugar in instead to replace the taste of the fat taken out. So, yes you may not be consuming as many calories… but you’re consuming more sugar than something that hasn’t had the fat taken out, I won’t go into it but I’m sure most of you are aware that sugar is not something you want to be eating a lot of! (And something I’ve learnt myself over time is that fat is not all that bad for you as long as you’re eating the right fats and not the fats in processed foods)

So having said that, I will go through some of the ingredients in this bake and why they are better for you than the typical ‘low fat’ desserts you will find on the shelves in the supermarket!

Quark is such a great alternative to your regular soft cheese, it is low in fat and sugar! However it doesn’t have that creamy cheese flavour as your bog standard cream cheese but that doesn’t matter for this dessert as we are adding other flavours to it.

The dates and walnuts used for the base are a great alternative to a biscuit and butter base (and perfect for those gluten intolerant). Walnuts are packed with Omega 3 fatty acids and they contain antioxidants that boost heart health. Dates are rich in dietary fibre and are also an excellent source of iron and potassium.

Bananas, I’m sure you all know bananas are healthy but a few benefits you may or may not know. They too are a great source of potassium, they help with the production of white blood cells and can also help aid digestion.

Dark chocolate, yes that’s right CHOCOLATE! But in moderation, a couple of squares of dark chocolate is great for satisfying that chocolatey tooth! Dark chocolate contains antioxidants (the 70% cocoa + stuff), so the higher the cocoa content the better it is for your health… in moderation.

Ingredients

• 100g Dates
• 150g Walnuts
• 300g Quark
• 2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
• 2 Tsp Vanilla Essence
• 50g Icing sugar 
• 60g Desiccated Coconut
• 3 Ripe bananas
• Dark chocolate for decorating(optional)

Method

1. Soak your dates in a bowl of warm water for 10-15 minutes.
2. Whilst the dates are soaking, line a cake tin (or you could use a baking tray) with greaseproof paper.
3. Drain the water and add the dates and walnuts to a food processor and blitz.
4. Once well blitzed, spoon out on to your tin/tray and even out with a fork and press down, place in the fridge.
5. In a mixing bowl whisk the quark for 2-3 minutes. Then add the lemon juice, vanilla extract, desiccated coconut, one banana, icing sugar and whisk until all combined.
6. Slice up the remaining two bananas and place on the walnut and date base.
7. Pour the coconut mix on top, leaving a little room around the edges.
8. Leave to set in the fridge for at least 3 hours.
9. Finish with sprinkling on desiccated coconut and grated dark chocolate (optional). 

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