Banana Truffle

I love bananas! Banana with milk; fried sliced bananas; banana-q (banana drenched in sugar, then fried); turon (banana wrapped in lumpia wrapper, sugared, then fried); bananas dipped in sour cream (yummmm); banana cream pie; and of course, banana and dark chocolate.

This cake is wholly my own. An invention I carried to perfection. What you see on top is mashed bananas flambed with rum, drizzled with caramel. I filled the banana cake base with dark chocolate ganache, and proceeded to cover everything else with it, too! The rosettes added a nice immaculate contrast to the darkness of it all.

There are no nuts in it, but, of course, walnuts or cashew nuts may be added. I avoid using peanuts, I feel that it fails to add quality to the exquisiteness of the cake.

The banana cake base can be made ahead and frozen, with no loss in quality. The bananas help preserve the flavor and moistness of the cake. So, this cake isn't really as time consuming to prepare as other cakes.

A word of advice: refrain from using banana extracts! They give off an overwhelming smell and would only make the cake seem like a cheap imitation. Trying to scrimp on the ingredients is false economy.