level: easy   Makes one 9-inch pie, 6 to 8 slices

Crust:
1 prebaked 9-inch Traditional Pastry Piecrust shell, cooled

Banana Cream Filling:
½ cup sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/3 cups whole milk
¾ cup water
3 large egg yolks, beaten

Filling:
1 cup thinly sliced bananas

Garnish:
2 cups Whipped Cream

Method:
To prepare the banana cream filling, in a medium saucepan, whisk together the sugar, salt, and flour. Add the milk and water and heat the saucepan over medium heat, constantly whisking and scraping the sides of the pan.

Monitor the mixture carefully; when it begins to simmer and becomes thick and bubbly (after approximately 4 minutes), cook for 1 more minute.

Once the cream thickens to the point when you can insert a spoon into the mixture and the cream sticks to the spoon when removed (with none of the actual spoon visible), remove the pan from the heat.

Place the egg yolks in a small bowl and stir in ¼ cup of the heated mixture. Pour the egg yolks mixture into the cream and simmer for 2 minutes, stirring and scraping the sides constantly to prevent burning.

Remove the saucepan from the heat.

To assemble the pie, place the sliced bananas in the pie shell, making sure the bananas completely cover the bottom. Pour the warm cream over the bananas.

Place the pie in the refrigerator to cool for about 1 hour. Once it is chilled, remove the pie from the refrigerator and evenly distribute the whipped cream across the top of the pie.

If you choose, use a pastry bag to pipe the whipped cream or offset spatula to spread it to create a more finished look.

Banana Cream Pie should be served cold. It can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Notes and Tips:
For optimal results, be sure to use ripe bananas as they’re more flavor packed and they maximize the creamy texture that’s the hallmark of a perfect Banana Cream Pie.

Easy Banana Cream Pie