Banana Cream Pie
A rich and velvety vanilla bean custard layered between fresh bananas tucked into a Biscoff-Banana-Graham Cracker crust, crowned with whipped cream, a drizzle of caramel and chocolate sauce, and banana filled crust crumbles. Every bite is a delightful combination of textures and flavors.
Servings: 9 inch pie
Equipment
- 9” pie pan (or 8” pie pan)
- Small cookie sheet
Ingredients
Vanilla Bean Custard:
- 5 large egg yolks
- ¼ cup (28g) cornstarch
- 1 cup (227g) heavy cream
- 2 cups (454g) heavy cream
- 1 ½ cups (297g) granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon (14g) vanilla bean paste
Crust:
- 1 sleeve (143g) graham crackers
- 15 (116g) Biscoff cookies
- ½ ripe banana sliced or mashed
- ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter melted
Caramel Drizzle Sauce:
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 8 Tablespoons (120g) water
- 2 teaspoons (14g) light corn syrup
- 1 cup (227g) heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Chocolate Drizzle Sauce:
- ¼ cup half and half
- 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 1/3 cup (57g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- ¼ tsp. vanilla
Banana Cream Pie:
- 1 Crust (recipe above)
- 1 recipe Vanilla Bean Custard (recipe above)
- 3 pounds bananas cut crosswise into ½-inch slices
- ¾ cup caramel drizzle sauce (recipe above)
- ¾ cup chocolate drizzle sauce (recipe above)
- 2 cups heavy cream whipped to stiff peaks with ½ teaspoon vanilla and 2 teaspoons sugar
- crust crumbles
Instructions
Vanilla Bean Custard:
- In a small mixing bowl, combine the egg yolks, cornstarch and 1 cup of the heavy cream. Whisk to blend well. Set aside.
- Combine the remaining 2 cups cream and sugar in a large heavy-bottom saucepan over medium heat. Whisk to dissolve the sugar and bring to a gentle all-over boil.
- While whisking, slowly add the egg yolk mixture. Continue whisking constantly until it thickens, about 5 minutes. Blend vanilla bean paste into the mixture.
- Pour mixture into a glass bowl. Press a piece of plastic wrap down over the surface of the mixture to prevent a skin from forming. Let cool completely at room temperature.
- When cooled, use an electric mixer at a medium-speed to combine the mixture and whip until you have a thick and creamy custard. Let chill in refrigerator until ready to assemble the pie.
Crust:
- Preheat oven to 350° F.
- In a food processor, combine the graham crackers and Biscoff cookies. Pulse until cookies are crumbs.
- Add melted butter and pulse until combined. Add banana slices and pulse until mixture is combined and clumping.
- Reserve 1/8 cup of crust mixture and press into small cookie sheet until ½-inch thick. An uneven shape is expected and after being baked will make the crust crumbles.
- Press the mixture into a 9-inch pie pan. Bake both pie crust and crust crumbles in the same oven at 350° F for 20-25 minutes, or until browned. (Bake 8-inch crust for 17-20 minutes). Remove the pans from the oven and cool for about 10 minutes.
Caramel Drizzle Sauce:
- Heat the cream in the microwave for 1 minute. Set aside.
- Combine the sugar, water, and corn syrup in a heavy bottom saucepan over medium heat. Stir until sugar is dissolved (just before boiling) and then stop stirring (since stirring will create crystallization). But if you notice sugar crystalizing on the sides of the pan, use a pastry brush dipped in water to wash the crystals back into the caramel mixture.
- Once the caramel becomes amber in color, remove the pan from the heat. While vigorously stirring, slowly add the cream. It will bubble up.
- Pour into a glass bowl without scraping the edges of the pan. Stir in the vanilla. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
Chocolate Drizzle Sauce:
- Combine the half and half and butter in a microwave safe bowl. Heat mixture in microwave for 20-30 seconds. Do not boil.
- Add the chocolate and vanilla and stir until the chocolate melts and the mixture is smooth.
- Let cool. The sauce can be kept refrigerated for several days, but it must be returned to room temperature before serving.
To Assemble Pie:
- Spread about ½ cup of the custard on the bottom of the crust. Arrange about a third of the banana slices, crowding them close together over the custard.
- Next, spread 1 cup of the custard over the bananas. Arrange another third of the banana slices close together over the custard.
- Top with 1 cup custard and the remaining banana slices.
- Top with remaining custard, covering the bananas completely to prevent them from turning brown.
- Top edges of pie with whipped cream. Top the center with crust crumbles. Drizzle chocolate sauce. Drizzle caramel sauce. Chill in fridge for at least 2 hours.
- To serve, cut pie into wedges and drizzle more caramel sauce and chocolate sauce.