This classic banana cream pie is sure to impress! Made of a silky banana pastry cream, plenty of fresh sliced bananas, sweet whipped cream, and a homemade buttery pie crust.
What sets this pie apart!
- It is made with a natural banana pastry cream, not just a vanilla filling or boxed pudding mix.
- Everything is 100% homemade! Crust, filling, and whipped cream!
- It is light and creamy, while still being indulgent.
- There are 2 layers of sliced bananas for maximum banana flavor!
- This pie is also a great make ahead dessert. Just add the sliced bananas and whipped cream right before serving.
How to make Banana Cream Pie
Prepare the Crust
First, begin with your homemade pie dough. I use this all butter pie dough recipe and make a half quantity, for just a single layer crust. (Check the recipe card below for the exact quantities!) That post also includes several helpful visuals and tips for creating the perfect pie dough.
- Make your pie dough and allow to chill for at least an hour.
- Once well chilled, roll out the dough into a 12″ circle and gently fit into a 9″ pie pan. Crimp the edges as desired.
- Chill the dough again for 1 hour in the fridge prior to baking. This will help prevent your crust from shrinking when it hits the hot oven.
- Dock the pie all over the bottom and sides with a fork. Then line with foil and fill with pie weights. Both steps help to keep the dough from bubbling up to much.
- Bake at 425°F for 15 minutes, until the dough starts to look dry and is turning a pale brown color.
- Remove the foil and pie weights and continue baking for another 10-15 minutes, until the crust is dry, crisp and golden in color.
TIP: use a light colored metal or ceramic pie plate to help get an evenly baked crust. These types of pans conduct & distribute heat more efficiently, helping to achieve even baking along the bottom and sides of the crust.
Make Banana Pastry Cream
A unique feature of this pie recipe is that it is filled with a BANANA pastry cream, instead of the usual vanilla flavor. To achieve this we will infuse the milk/cream mixture with banana prior to making the custard filling.
Start by sautéing a few sliced bananas in butter until slightly soft. Add in the milk and heavy cream and bring to a boil for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and allow the mixture to infuse for 1 hour.
Once the liquid mixture has steeped, you can proceed with making the pastry cream. Whisk together the sugar, egg yolks and salt. Then whisk in the cornstarch until the mixture is smooth and pale yellow. It’s best to whisk the cornstarch in after the sugar/yolks are combined, as the cornstarch will thicken the mixture and could be trickier to evenly mix in.
Strain the cooled milk into the eggs, discarding the cooked bananas. Transfer to a pot on the stove and cook over a medium heat, whisking gently, until the filling has become the consistency of a thick pudding. Remove from the heat and whisk in butter and vanilla extract for added flavor.
Place plastic wrap directly on the surface of the filling to prevent a skin from forming, and let cool for 1 hour.
Assembly
To the bottom of the fully baked pie crust, add a thin layer of the banana pastry cream filling. Layer on sliced bananas, covering the bottom of the pie. Next, fill with remaining cream, smoothing the top.
At this point, cover the pie with plastic wrap and place in the fridge until the filling has set.
Right before serving, add on the second layer of fresh sliced bananas. Brush each banana slice with a little orange juice (or lemon juice) to help decrease the browning. I promise, no hint of orange juice flavor is noticeable!
Lastly, whisk up some fresh sweetened whipped cream and either dollop, plop, or pipe onto the pie! If you like, garnish with additional fresh banana slices or dried banana chips, as seen in the photos.
If you made this recipe be sure to leave a rating and comment letting me know what you thought!
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Banana Cream Pie
- Prep Time: 4 hours
- Cook Time: 30 min
- Total Time: 8 hours
- Yield: one 9” pie, 8 servings 1x
Description
A flaky homemade pie crust filled with luscious banana pastry cream, fresh sliced bananas, and topped with sweetened whipped cream.
Ingredients
Pie Dough:
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ tbsp granulated sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter, very cold & diced
- ¼ cup water, ice cold
Filling:
- 4–5 large bananas, divided
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature, divided
- 1 ½ cups whole milk
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- 4 large egg yolks
- ¼ tsp salt
- ⅓ cup cornstarch
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp orange juice (or lemon juice)
Whipped Cream:
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 tbsp powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Pie Dough:
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Mix together the flour, sugar and salt in a food processor by pulsing a few times, or whisk together in a large bowl. Add cold diced butter to the flour and use the food processor, or a pastry cutter, to cut the butter into the flour until the butter is well coated and about the size of large pebbles.
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Add in half of the ice cold water, then quickly pulse/mix a few times to begin incorporating. Continue adding the remaining cold water and pulsing/mixing just until the dough begins to come together, being careful not to overmix. The dough should hold together when pressed between your fingers but should not feel wet. (You may not need all of the liquid.)
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Dump the dough out onto a clean surface and knead together gently to form a large ball. Press the dough ball into a 1-inch thick disk. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour or up to a few days.
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Blind Bake Crust: Roll dough out to roughly a 12” circle on a floured surface. Place into a 9” pie pan and gently ease the dough into the bottom and sides of the pan. Trim the excess dough around the edges so it is about ½ inch beyond the lip of the pie pan. Tuck the overhang under itself so it is even with the edge of the pan. Crimp the outside edge of the dough as desired. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30-60 minutes.
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Heat the oven to 425°F. Dock the bottom & sides of the chilled pie shell all over with a fork. Next, line with aluminum foil, covering the edges to prevent burning, and fill with pie weights. Bake for 15 minutes, the pie dough should begin to look dry and light golden brown in color. Remove foil and pie weights and continue baking for 10-15 minutes, until the crust is dry, crisp and golden in color. Allow to cool on a wire rack.
Banana Pastry Cream:
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While the pie crust is baking, peel and slice 2 bananas ½” thick. Melt 1 tbsp butter in a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Add in the bananas and cook until soft, about 2-3 minutes. Add the whole milk and heavy cream and bring to a boil. Remove from heat, cover, and let steep for 45-60 minutes.
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In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, egg yolks and salt until smooth. Whisk in the cornstarch. Next, strain in the cooled milk mixture through a fine mesh strainer and whisk until incorporated. (Do not press on the bananas.) Discard the cooked bananas.
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Return mixture to a clean saucepan and cook over medium heat, gently whisking, until the mixture has thickened to the texture of thick pudding. Remove from the heat and whisk in remaining 2 tbsp softened butter and vanilla extract. Transfer to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap directly touching the surface of the filling. Let cool for 1 hour.
Assembly:
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Peel and slice the remaining two or three bananas ¼” thick, and brush each slice with orange (or lemon) juice to reduce browning. Whisk the banana pastry cream filling a few times to loosen, then spread a thin layer over the bottom of the cooled crust. Arrange sliced bananas over the thin layer of filling, covering the bottom of the pie. Spread the remaining pastry cream over the top and smooth the surface. Cover again with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the filling is set, about 4 hours or overnight. Prior to serving, layer the top of the pie with more sliced bananas and fresh whipped cream.
Whipped Cream:
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Use a hand mixer, or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, and whip the cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla on a medium high speed until stiff peaks form. Spread or pipe the whipped cream on top of the pie.
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