For some people, dessert is the best part of dinner, and a nutritious dessert can be hard to find. While a banana pie with a vanilla cookie crust is still a sugary dessert, the bananas do bring some nutrients to the table, including potassium and fiber. Even better, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that bananas are the most popular fresh fruit in the United States. As an added bonus, the pie allows you to make good use of any ripe bananas you have around your kitchen.
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Irma Rombauer, author of "The Joy of Cooking," suggests that you position the rack in the middle of the oven.
Step 2
Place the vanilla cookies into a sturdy plastic bag, close the bag and crush the cookies by rolling over them with a rolling pin, repeating as needed.
Step 3
Cover the bottom of a 9-inch pie pan with the vanilla cookie crumbs and stir in 1 tbsp. sugar.
Step 4
Drizzle 1/3 cup melted butter over the crumb/sugar mixture, combine well and press the dough evenly across the bottom and sides of the pie pan.
Step 5
Bake the pie crust for 10 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. The crust should appear golden-brown when set.
Step 6
Remove the pie plate from the oven with pot holders and set it aside. Let the crust stand until it is completely cooled.
Step 7
Slice the bananas and arrange the slices evenly in the bottom of the cooled crust.
Step 8
Mix the remaining 2/3 cup sugar, flour, cornstarch and salt together in a saucepan.
Step 9
Stir in the milk or light cream until well-blended, and then beat in the egg yolks.
Step 10
Heat the mixture over a low light, stirring frequently, until it thickens and just begins to bubble.
Step 11
Stir in the vanilla and 2 tbsp. butter, and remove the saucepan from heat.
Step 12
Allow the pudding to cool for 15 minutes before pouring it evenly into the pie pan.
Step 13
Scatter banana slices over the top of the pie.
Step 14
Place the completed pie in the refrigerator and chill the banana pie for two hours or until it is set.
Step 15
Remove the pie from the refrigerator when it's ready to serve and top it with whipped cream, if desired.
Tips and Warnings
- You can also make this pie with a commercially packaged banana or vanilla pudding mix. Follow the instructions on the pudding package. As an attractive alternative, you can line the sides of the pie with whole vanilla cookies instead of pressing the crust along the pan's side; add the cookies after baking the bottom of the crust and before adding the filling.
Things You'll Need
- 3 to 4 medium bananas
- Measuring cup and spoons
- 2 cups vanilla cookies
- 1 tbsp. plus 2/3 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup plus 2 tbsp. butter
- Pie pan
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 tbsp. cornstarch
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 2 cups milk or light cream
- 4 large egg yolks
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- Pot holders
- Saucepan
- Whipped cream
References
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Banana
- "The Joy of Cooking"; Irma S. Rombauer, Marion Rombauer, Ethan Becker; 1997
- CDKitchen; Vanilla Wafer Banana Cream Pie; 2011
- The Prepared Pantry: Banana Cream Pie in a Vanilla Wafer Crust
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