This Banana Cream Pie is made with a homemade pie crust, lots of fresh bananas and a secret ingredient in the homemade custard filling that takes it to the next level!
*This post is generously sponsored by Egg Farmers of Canada and I was compensated for my time in creating this recipe. All opinions are my own. For more information, check out eggs.ca.
Happy almost-Easter weekend, friends!
I’m squeezing in one last Easter dessert for you, and I guarantee that it is easy enough to prep that you’ll still have some time to put your feet up! (Plus I’ve included tips to make it even easier if you really need to cut yourself some slack)
I know I’ve mentioned it before, but my cream pies are at the top of my list when it comes to dessert picks.
A fruit pie?
I could pass.
But smooth and silky custard with chocolate or peanut butter or lemon or coconut or over bananas? Take your slice and just pass me the pan.
What makes homemade pudding pie filling so luscious and thick is all of those glorious eggs.
Eggs play a central part in our Easter celebrations around here: from breakfast (this ham quiche or this breakfast casserole are favorites!), to dinner, to dessert (these Sunny Side Up Pavlovas are on my list to try with family and friends this year!).
We love eggs because they are delicious, nutritious and they’re an essential part of so many of our favorite recipes (and non-recipes — it’s “scrambled eggs for dinner” night around here often!).
Another thing we love?
Knowing that the eggs we grab — from the local grocery store to the big chains — are all fresh, Canadian eggs, thanks to the farmers from coast to coast that work year-round to keep Canadians well-fed.
What forms will your eggs take this Easter weekend? Devilled? French toast? Casseroles, cakes or quiche? Share your creations on social media and use the hashtag #Eastertaining to join in the fun!
How to make Banana Cream Pie:
In an attempt to live up to The Recipe Rebel name, I like to cut a few corners to make delicious food even easier to get on the table. So while this isn’t the most traditional method for making homemade banana cream pie, it works (and if you don’t believe me, believe Cooks Illustrated).
- Make our pie crust: I use a simple, homemade pie crust in this recipe, but I’ve included a few cheats below if you’d like to skip this step or you’re short on time. The keys to homemade pastry are cold butter and a good chill in the fridge. To make this step even easier, I like to roll our my pastry on a piece of wax paper for easy clean up and an easy transfer.
- Bake our pie crust: you can either place a piece of parchment paper on top of your pastry and add pie weights on top to prevent shrinking, or you can poke it all over with a fork to allow the steam to escape. Both methods work, and there are pros and cons to both.
- Pie weights are more effective, but can be a little more finnicky since you still have to remove them to bake the bottom of the pie crust.
- Docking the pie crust, or giving it a good poke, I have found to be less effective in preventing shrinking and bubbling, but it’s a little easier.
- Make your filling: this is the easy part! Mix everything together, then cook gently and stir, stir, stir.
- Add your bananas: I like to stir them into the filling so that they are all coated and I get an even distribution.
- Top with sweetened whipped cream — not optional.
How to make this easy Banana Cream Pie even easier:
- You can swap out the homemade pastry with a simple homemade or even store bough graham cracker crust (or go chocolate!).
- You can swap out the homemade pastry with a refrigerated pie crust, simply roll it out and bake as directed in the recipe.
- I don’t condone skipping out on the homemade custard filling (you guys — there is no comparison!), but I suppose it could be done.
Variations on this Banana Cream Pie recipe:
- I add a little bit of smooth peanut butter to my filling at the end, because peanut butter and bananas are meant to be together. However, you can absolutely skip this part and the rest of the recipe won’t change at all.
- Add a tablespoonful of cocoa powder (at the beginning) or a handful of chocolate chips (at the end) to the custard filling for a chocolatey twist — even better if you’re also including the peanut butter!
- Swap the sweetened whipped cream for the homemade marshmallow creme from this S’mores Pie.
- Grab a can of dulce de leche (or make your own) and spread a good thick layer in the bottom of your pastry before adding your filling for a Banoffee twist!
Banana Cream Pie
This Banana Cream Pie is made with a homemade pie crust, lots of fresh bananas and a secret ingredient in the homemade custard filling that takes it to the next level!
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Servings 8 servings
Calories 417kcal
Ingredients
Pie Crust
- 1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 cup butter cold, cut into cubes
- 1/4 cup cold water
Banana Cream Pie Filling
- 2 cups half and half (or sub whole milk)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons corn starch
- 3 whole eggs (or sub 6 yolks)
- 2 tablespoons smooth peanut butter (optional)
- 1 tablespoons vanilla extract
- 4 bananas sliced
- sweetened whipped cream for serving
Instructions
Pie Crust*
Add flour, salt and sugar to a food processor. Pulse to combine.
Add butter cubes, and pulse until the largest pieces of butter are about the size of a pea.
Add the cold water, and pulse until the dough comes together. It should not be wet or sticky.
Shape into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (can be refrigerated up to several days).
To bake, preheat oven to 425 degrees. Roll out pastry on a piece of wax paper so that it is a couple inches larger than a 9″ pie plate. Place into the pie plate, and fold edges over and pinch together so that the top edge is thick (this helps to prevent overcooking while the bottom bakes).
Prick the bottom and the sides with a fork, then place a piece of parchment paper inside the crust and will with pie weights or dried beans (this step is optional — see notes above). Bake for 10 minutes or until top edge is light golden brown.
Remove pie weights and parchment, and bake until bottom crust is light golden brown, about 8-10 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack.
Banana Cream Pie Filling
In a medium saucepan, whisk together half and half, sugar, corn starch and eggs until very smooth.
Place over medium heat, and cook until very thick, whisking constantly. This can take up to 15 minutes — be patient! You need to heat the filling gradually, stirring constantly, so that it doesn’t become lumpy.
Remove from heat. Stir in peanut butter (if using) and vanilla. Stir in sliced bananas and pour into prepared pie crust.
Cover and refrigerate until chilled and set, at least 4 hours or overnight. Top with whipped cream and serve.
Notes
*To make pie crust by hand, stir together flour, salt and sugar. Cut in cold butter with a pastry cutter until about the size of peas. Add cold water and stir until a dough comes together.
Nutrition (this is an estimate)
Nutrition Facts
Banana Cream Pie
Amount Per Serving
Calories 417 Calories from Fat 189
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 21g 32%
Saturated Fat 12g 60%
Cholesterol 114mg 38%
Sodium 466mg 19%
Potassium 363mg 10%
Total Carbohydrates 48g 16%
Dietary Fiber 2g 8%
Sugars 21g
Protein 7g 14%
Vitamin A 13.9%
Vitamin C 6.9%
Calcium 8.4%
Iron 8.2%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
