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PREPARATION
1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. To make the pastry crust, sift the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder into a bowl. Using a pastry cutter or 2 knives, cut in the shortening until coarse crumbs form. Add the ice water, working it thoroughly into the flour mixture until well blended. If necessary, use your hands to bring the dough together into a ball.
3. Turn the dough out onto
a well-floured pastry cloth and press down to form a round. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough into a
10 1⁄2- to 11-inch circle.
(The key to a flaky crust is
to roll out the dough only once.) Turn the pie dish
over and use it as a guide to ensure the dough is large enough to cover the bottom and sides, leaving a small amount of excess to fold and form the crust. Roll the dough around the rolling pin, then transfer it to the pie dish and unroll. Fold under the excess dough and flute the edges.
4. Bake until the edges be- gin to turn golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let the pie shell cool completely.
5. To make the salted caramel, in a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the sugar and water and bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Raise the heat to medium-high, occasionally swirling the pan (do not stir) until the sugar reaches an amber color, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the cream and butter until combined (the mixture may be bub- bly). Let cool until thickened but not hardened. Pour the caramel into the cooled pie shell. Put the salt in the palm of your hand, pinch a little at a time and sprinkle evenly over
the caramel.
6. To fill and finish the pie, sprinkle the candied pecans over the caramel (use enough to cover the bottom of the pie). Hold the chocolate chunk in your hands to warm it, then use a vegetable peeler and peel the chocolate until
it curls. Place the curls on the pecans. Fill the pie shell with the banana slices until they are even with the top of the pie dish.
7. Placethecreamandconfec- tioners’ sugar in a large bowl. Using a handheld mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip on medium-high speed until soft peaks form. Top the bananas with the whipped cream and garnish with more chocolate curls.
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