Banana Caramel Sauce

With Fortunato Conte

 Many who have tried to make a caramel sauce have tales of burnt pans and ruined sauce only to go back to the overly sweet sauces you can buy in a jar. If you learn the basic technique from a master baker such as Fortunato Conte, you will be enjoying your own homemade caramel sauce for years to come.

There are many uses for caramel sauce in case you do not already know them. Nearly everyone likes to spread it over his or her ice cream, whether it is an ice cream sundae or just plain. Another use is to drizzle over baked goods, such as a pear pie or apple pie. (Such as the Quick Apple Pie in another video this week.) Try putting it in coffee or latte for a treat. It can also be used as a dipping sauce for apples. Whatever the use, make ahead of time and store in the refrigerator.

This sauce is made with 3 cups of sugar, 1 cup of water and glucose. The glucose is used to prevent crystallization of the caramel base. You want to bring the pot to 340 degrees F. over medium heat. Once it reaches that temperature you need to take it off the heat and slowly add 2 and ½ cups warm, heavy cream, being careful not to put in too fast. You can warm the cream in a microwave for about 2 minutes. If you add anything too cold to the caramel it will start to crystallize. After you have added the heavy cream put it back onto the stove to return to a boil for about 1 minute.

After the caramel sauce is all made you can use as is or flavor it with bananas the way this recipe does. Take 2 or 2 and ½ very ripe bananas and blend them into the caramel with a hand blender. Then strain the sauce through a fine mesh strainer and it is all ready to enjoy.

Ingredients

1 cup water
3 cups granulated sugar
¼ cup corn syrup or glucose
2 ½ cups heavy cream
2 ripe bananas

Instructions

1. Cook water, sugar and syrup to 340 degrees F. and shut off the heat.
2. Warm the cream in the microwave for about 2 minutes (depending on the microwave) and slowly add to the pot. Be careful that the sides of the pan are high enough so that it does not overflow.
3. Return to the heat and boil about 1 minute.
4. Remove from heat and add the ripe bananas. Blend in the bananas with a hand blender to infuse the sauce with flavor.
5. Strain the sauce through a fine wire mesh strainer.

Store sauce at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.

Recipe courtesy of Fortunato Conte, Pastry Chef, Restaurant Dante and Il Casale, 2011.

Fortunato was born in Salerno Italy, just 30 minutes south of Naples. He began working as a baker In1992 for the Pasticceria Pantaleone, one of the oldest Pastry Shoppes in Italy. (A pasticceria is a cake shop, where they have small tables, espresso coffee, tea and freshly baked pastry.) After one year he decided to move on and work for several other pasticcerie in his home town, mastering all of the traditional and regional desserts, including savory items such as filled canastas, focaccia breads, and canapés.

Fortunato went to work for three months in the town of Courmayeur, Northern Italy, as an assistant pastry chef for the Grand Hotel Royal and Golf. It was here, working with master baker Paul Castriscer from Switzerland, where Fortunato realized that there was much more to know about desserts than just regional and classic pastries.

In 1999 he came to Boston and began his adventure working at Il Panino at Franklin Street for Frank De Pasquale. He then managed Biscotti bakery in the North End of Boston for about nine months. In 2001 he went to work for Modern Pastry Shoppe, also in the North End, and remained there until 2008. Fortunato continued his study of pastry baking as a student of the World Pastry Forum in Nashville, TN. He also took several classes with world pastry champions. He continued studying with the New England French master baker at the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts.

Fortunato now makes desserts for two well regarded Italian restaurants in the Boston area, Il Casale in Belmont and Dante’s in Cambridge. Working with a Chef/Owner like Dante De Magistris forces him to improve in order to meet the demand for high-quality Italian desserts.