Best Banana Cream Pie

My father spent his whole life hating bananas in pies or desserts. That was until I introduced him to the best banana cream pie he has ever had.

Jump to Recipe

The Story

This recipe was first printed in the Brainerd Daily Dispatch well over ten years ago. I still have the newspaper clipping. I value it so much at one point I did the ol’ self lamination tactic of covering the whole thing with scotch tape.

Fifteen-year-old me came across this recipe one Sunday afternoon. What drew my attention was the headline, “Getting pie with a little help from my friend”. I thought it was hilarious and as a teenager going through a Beatles phase I was compelled to give the pie a go.

The recipe was shared by Diane Hoglin who had this to say:

“This week I would like to share a wonderful recipe for creamy, tasty, homemade banana cream pie that I’ve had in my recipe box since 1987. I got this recipe from a dear friend, Verlette, who is 89 and still cooks up a storm.”

Verlette would now be well over 100 if she is still cooking away. All I know is her recipe will always be around so long as I too am cooking up a storm.

Many thanks to Diane and Verlette for putting this scrumptious pie into the world.

Ingredients for Banana Cream Pie

One of the best things about this pie is it doesn’t call for anything fancy and you can whip it up in about fifteen minutes.

Filling

• 2 Cups Scalded Milk (more on that below)
• 2/3 Cup Sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Cornstarch
• 1/4 Cup Flour
• 2 Eggs
• 1 Tsp Vanilla
• 3-4 Bananas

Crust

• 1 1/2 Cups Graham Cracker Crumbs
• 3 Tablespoons Sugar
• 1/3 Cup Butter, melted

Topping

• Heavy Whipping Cream
• Sugar
• Vanilla

Supplies for Banana Cream Pie

• Medium Sized Stock Pot
• Spatula
• Whisk
• Pie Plate
• 2 Medium sized Mixing Bowls
• Hand Mixer or way to whip cream

How to Scald Milk

Milk is heated to about 170 degrees or when a skin starts to form. At that point you have scalded your milk. Give it a good stir up from the bottom with a rubber spatula to keep it from scorching on the bottom of the pan.

Traditionally this was done to basically pasteurize milk before using it. Milk is still scalded for bread recipes as it breaks down the proteins and makes it easier for yeast to digest them and allows the gluten to better form, giving you a better loaf of bread.

In this recipe I honestly don’t know that the scalding is necessary. But! If Verlette is telling me to scald the milk I’m going to scald the milk.

How to Make the Best Banana Cream Pie

Crust

First let’s make the crust. Start by heating your oven to 350 degrees F. Next, mix the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter until they are thoroughly incorporated. Set aside two tablespoons of the crumb mixture for later.

Press the remaining crumbs into the bottom and sides of a pie pan.

Bake this for 5-10 minutes. Once it is a toasty brown color and is all sticking together well it is done. Allow it to cool.

The Filling

While the crust is baking you can get started on the filling.

Begin by scalding two cups of milk in a medium sized stock pot over medium heat. Once the milk reaches 170 degrees F or it has a skin on top, off the heat.

Next, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, and flour in a bowl and set aside.

Crack both eggs into a medium sized bowl. Take 1/2 cup of the scalded milk and slowly whisk it into the eggs. This is tempering the eggs, which means slowly bringing up their temperature so you don’t end up scrambling them.

Add the sugar/cornstarch/flour mixture to the eggs, then stir them into the the hot milk on the stove.

Gently simmer this mixture on medium-medium high heat until it starts to get good and thick like a pudding. Remove from the heat.

Next, add 1/4 cup of butter and 1 tsp vanilla to the pudding and stir in.

Whipped Topping

For the topping, make a simple whipped cream by mixing 1-2 cups of cream on medium high with a stand mixer. Once it forms stiff peaks, add in sugar 1 tsp at a time until you like the taste. Add 1-2 tsp vanilla and blend thoroughly.

The amount of whipped cream you make is entirely up to you.

Assembling the Pie

Slice up the three peeled bananas. I recommend slicing them the short way into little bite sized hunks. Cover the bottom of the cooled cracker crust.

Pour half the puding mixture on top.

Add another layer of banana slices on top of the pudding.

Pour the rest of the pudding over top. Allow it to cool completely.

Gently spread the whipped cream across the top for an even topping. You can get fancy here and pipe it on, swirl it on, etc. I will say, if you plan to eat most of the pie in one sitting go ahead and cover it with the whipped cream. If you plan to eat on it for a few days, keep the whipped cream in a separate container and top individual pieces. It keeps better that way.

Sprinkle with the two tablespoons of graham cracker you set aside earlier.

Just prior to serving, you can add decorative slices of banana to the pie. Only do this right before you dish it up, bananas turn brown fast

Keeps well for up to three days in the fridge.

Variations on Banana Cream Pie

Fruits

This pie could truly be made with many types of fresh fruit. Sliced strawberries or peaches would be amazing. Or you could do layers of strawberries, bananas, and kiwis. The sky is the limit.

Booze it Up

Add a tasty spin by adding 2 tsp of brandy to the whipped cream.

Looking for another tasty and hearty meal? May I suggest some homemade mac and cheese?

Pin it for Later