Venezuelan Torta de Plátano with Cheese

Venezuelan torta de plátano, served in a crystal cake plate.

4.80 from 10 votes

Venezuelan Torta de Plátano with Cheese

This delicious plantain casserole is made with baked rather than fried ripe plantain slices, and layers of slices of fresh white cheese. Everything is sweetened and cohesive with a mixture of eggs and papelón syrup. The result is a sweet and savory dish that is served as a side dish and is a classic of Venezuelan cuisine.

Prep Time15

Cook Time1 25

Cooling down15

Total Time1 55

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Venezuelan

Diet: Gluten Free

Keyword: How to make Venezuelan torta de plátano, Sweet plantain recipes, Venezuelan plantain and cheese casserole, Venezuelan ripe plantain and cheese bake, Venezuelan torta de plátano recipe

Servings:

Calories: 538kcal

Ingredients

1 ¼ cups water
8 ounces 2 small disks papelón, panela, or piloncillo, about 200 grams
4 very ripe plantains with black skin
1 pound Venezuelan queso palmita, sliced queso llanero, queso fresco, or grated pizza mozzarella
3 large eggs
1 pinch of salt

Instructions

Bring the water and the papelón to a boil in a small to medium saucepan. Once it boils and the papelón has completely dissolved, lower the heat and simmer until it reaches the consistency of a syrup, about 30 minutes. Let cool completely.
Preheat oven to 350F.
While the papelón syrup is simmering, peel the plantains and slice them as if you were going to fry them.
Cover a tray with parchment paper and arrange the plantain slices on it.
Bake the plantains for 20-25 minutes until they look golden. They don't need to be flipped or overcooked. Take the plantains out of the oven and let them cool down.
Slice the cheese.
Using a silicone brush, brush the bottom of a 6-inch diameter cake pan with vegetable shortening, and cover the bottom with a parchment paper circle. Spray the bottom and sides of the pan with cake baking spray.
Arrange a layer of plantain slices on the bottom, spread about two tablespoons of papelón syrup, and then layer with cheese. Repeat until you end up with the last plantain layer.
In a bowl, beat the eggs with 5-6 tablespoons of syrup and a pinch of salt.
With a fine-point knife, make some incisions in the casserole.
Add the eggs and syrup mixture on top of the cake pan.
Put the cake pan on a tray and bake for 40 minutes or until the casserole is golden brown and has completely set.
Let cool for at least 15 minutes before unmolding.
To unmold, pass a knife or a small spatula along the sides of the pan, and with a not-very-wide spatula, unmold the cake and place it on the serving plate.

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