This Post was sponsored by Paderno. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I was tempted to name this pie “Strawboffee.” Doesn’t seem to roll off the tongue as well as Banoffee does it. But in all fairness, I wanted to pay homage to the infamous British pie the Banoffee: a portmanteau of its two main ingredients. Bananas and toffee.
So instead I called it a Strawberry Dulce de Leche Pie which doesn’t do the tart justice. But I couldn’t name it “Crushed digestive cookie crust, layered with a rich dulce de leche, with red strawberries macerated in Grand Marnier, topped up with a massive fluffy cloud of Chantilly cream and shaved chocolate Pie,” now could I?
In this recipe, I made the dulce de leche by cooking the milk slowly in a Bain-Marie. Feel free to make your own homemade dulce de leche or boiling down the can of sweetened condensed milk in a pot. Frankly, I have never tried doing the method of boiling the entire can for an hour. I’ve read a few horror stories of it exploding mid boll! If you do boil the can please make sure the can of condensed milk is constantly and fully submerged in the boiling pot of water the entire time it is boiling. About 1 hour to boil is what I read online. The trick I’ve used below is cooking the condensed milk in the oven for an hour and a half in a Bain-Marie, a hot water bath. To slowly and evenly cook the condensed milk into a thick caramel toffee.
The recipe calls for digestive cookies. However, you can substitute with Graham crackers or even shortbread cookies. Just make sure you whiz it in your Paderno Power Blender in short pulses. I recommend breaking up the cookie first with your hands before placing in the blender and alternating between the melted butter and biscuits.
I prefer to make cookie crumbs in the Paderno Power Blender rather than a plastic sandwich bag for two reasons. Paderno’s blender jar is BPA-free. I try to avoid single plastic use wherever I can to help reduce waste.
Pictured above is the Paderno Variable Speed Immersion Blender. The 10 speeds make whipping the cream precise and successful. Before whipping, pop your Paderno Immersion Blender whisk and cup into the freezer for 10 minutes. Chilled tools and cream make for fluffier whipped cream.
To make this a family/child-friendly dessert, omit the Grand Marnier when macerating the strawberries. Alternatively, to make this a naughtier dessert, save the juices from the macerated strawberries and drizzle over the pie just before serving for a boozy citrus tang.
Either way, you’re sure to please your family and friends with this super easy and delicious recipe. Bon Ap!
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- 110 grams or 1/2 cup unsalted butter melted
- 225 grams or about 21 digestive cookies
- 300 ml canned sweetened condensed milk (do NOT use low fat)
- 464 grams or 1 lb. fresh strawberries
- 50 grams or 1/4 cup white granulated sugar
- 60 ml or 1/4 cup Grand Marnier
- 480 ml or 2 cups cold heavy whipping cream
- 30 grams or 1/4 cup icing sugar
- 1 teaspoon syrup from macerated strawberries
- fresh strawberries to garnish (optional)
- about 10 grams Shaved chocolate (optional)
- Pour the sweetened condensed milk into a baking tin and cover with aluminum foil.
- Place in a large roasting tin and pop into oven.
- Pour hot water halfway up the roasting tin. Bake at 375F for 2 hours until it has thickened and caramelized. However, check halfway at about 1 hour to add a bit more water into roasting tin as some H20 will have evaporated.
- Remove the dulce de leche from oven and allow to cool down completely.
- Meanwhile, take the broken digestive cookies and pulse in the Paderno Power Blender alternating between the cookies and the melted butter. Turn Paderno Power Blender off to loosen up sides with a spatula a couple of times and blend until you're left with a sandy but paste-like consistency. About 45 seconds pulsing at most.
- Dump your cookie mix into a 9-inch pie pan and spread out evenly all over bottom and sides to create a crust using a spatula. Pop in fridge for at least 20 minutes.
- Slice your strawberries and toss in bowl with 1/4 cup white sugar and 1/4 cup Grand Marnier. Allow to macerate for 20 minutes. Save the juices from the maceration if you plan to add to your whipped cream or drizzle over your dessert.
- Once your dulce de leche has cooled, spread a layer with your spatula onto the crust. Layer the macerated strawberries (just the strawberries not the juices) over the dulce de leche.
- While preparing the whipped cream, pop the pie into the fridge. Pour the cold cream, icing sugar, Grand Marnier macerated juice (optional) into your Paderno Variable Speed Immersion Blender Cup.
- With your whisk attachment, beat on medium-high until medium peaks are formed about 2 minutes. Medium peaks hold their form well except the tip peak curls slightly.
- Make sure you check your cream frequently while whipping. You don't want to over whip your cream.
- Pie can be stored in fridge for up to 5 days covered.
This is a sponsored post in collaboration with SweeTango. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 
I honestly thought this would be an odds and sods kinda dessert. Two pears, a couple stalks of rhubarb, a bag of tea…nothing special. So I thought. I was in for a surprise. The flakey crust, the sweet (pear and caramel) and the tart (rhubarb) with the soft perfume and spice from the chai was exquisite. And of course, sprinkled with a few chopped walnuts and its a party. 
