There are so many varieties of banana in Vanuatu (and throughout the Pacific)   - small finger bananas, giant green ones as thick as your forearm, bunches of slender yellow bananas and more – as well as coconuts everywhere being used for their milk, water and flesh in food and cosmetics, the husks as firewood, the shells as vessels etc.

Put these two abundant ingredients together into a pie and you’re in for a treat!

30g butter

2 heaped tbsps brown sugar

1 egg

¼ cup shredded coconut

1 ¼ cups plain flour

2 tbsps sesame seeds

Splash of milk

4 ripe bananas, sliced thinly

2 tbsps brown sugar

3/4 cup coconut milk 

1. Preheat oven to 180 C. Grease and line a 22cm square cake tin with baking paper.
2. Cream the butter and sugar and beat in the egg. Add dry ingredients and mix until combined.
3. Splash in some milk and continue beating until you have a dough as sticky as a cookie dough, rather than cake batter.
4. Scrape into the tin and spread evenly. Use the back of a wet tablespoon to smooth it.
5. Top with banana slices and sprinkle second measure of brown sugar over then pour over coconut milk.
6. Bake until topping is firm and dough is cooked – about 40 minutes.
7. Serve with cream and/or icecream.

Note: The measurements don’t need to be exact.