Peanut Butter Banana Cream Pie

Yes, you may be noticing a trend. Banana bread (which I spread with peanut butter) and now this. Full disclosure, my go-to quick breakfast happens to be a slice of whole-wheat toast, smothered with cruncy peanut butter then topped with banana slices and acacia flower honey (THAT stuff is amazing, thanks sister). I’d almost go so far as to say that peanut butter and banana ranks up there with the combination of peanut butter and chocolate. I said almost.

Banana cream pie was never on my radar prior to a couple years ago. I signed up to be a recipe tester for Cook’s Country magazine (part of the Cook’s Illustrated portfolio) and their ultimate banana pudding was the first “assignment” I received. I’d never even made pudding before. The result was one of the most decadent, comforting desserts I’ve ever tasted. Fat free, to boot! (Where’s the sarcasm formatting button, again?)

Soon after making that, I figured it’d be an excellent starting point for banana cream pie. So, instead of layers of banana pudding and vanilla wafers topped with whipped cream, I made a pie with a vanilla wafer crust, thickened banana pudding filling and whipped cream on top. The problem in the couple times I made it was figuring out the best way to get the pudding to a consistency that it could actually come out of the pie plate as a slice, not a blob. This time, I nailed it--just the right amount of cornstarch.

Cook’s Country gets all the credit for the incredible deliciousness of the banana pudding filling, but I’m gonna go ahead and claim the bonus points for execution on the pie as a whole. Helloooooo, peanut butter whipped cream on top? Jackpot! For what it’s worth, one change I made to the original pudding recipe was switching up the milk product, adjusting from all half-and-half (10-18% butterfat) to part half-and-half, part whole milk (3.25% butterfat). Now wasn’t that kind of me?

Do yourself a favor and set aside a couple hours to make this pie. I promise you won’t regret it (and neither will the friends and family you share it with... you will share, right?).
 

Adapted from Cook’s Country Magazine’s banana pudding recipe via The Faux Martha

Makes one 9-inch pie.

Ingredients
Crust
2 1/2 cups vanilla wafers (plus 16-18 reserved wafers for garnish)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Banana Pudding
4 slightly underripe bananas (bright yellow, even a greenish stem is okay) 

3/4 cup sugar
4 large egg yolks
6 tablespoons cornstarch
1 1/2 cups half and half
1 1/2 cups whole milk 

1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter 

1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Peanut Butter Whipped Cream
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened 

1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
2 teaspoons milk (skim, 2% or whole), or as needed 

1/2 cup sifted powdered sugar
1 cup heavy whipping cream

Preparation
Crust
1. Adjust oven rack to upper middle position and preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. In a food processor, pulse vanilla wafers into very coarse crumbs. Add melted butter and pulse a few times until incorporated.
3. Press into pie plate and up the sides a little bit. Bake until crust is golden brown, about 15 minutes.

Banana Pudding
1. Place 3 unpeeled bananas on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. Bake until skins are completely black, about 20 minutes, turning half way through. Let cool for at least 5 minutes.
2. Whisk 1/2 cup of sugar, egg yolks and cornstarch in a medium bowl until smooth. Set aside.
3. Bring half and half, milk, remaining 1/4 cup of sugar and salt to a simmer over medium heat in a medium-sized saucepan.
4. Whisk 1/2 cup of simmering milk mixture into yolk mixture (whisk quickly and constantly to keep yolks from cooking). Whisk tempered yolk mixture into saucepan. Cook, whisking constantly, until mixture thickens and large bubbles start to appear, 2 to 3 minutes.
4. Remove pudding from heat and stir in butter and vanilla extract.
5. Strain pudding into a large bowl using a fine-mesh strainer or sieve. This removes any cooked eggs and other bits you don’t want in the pudding.
6. Peel and place roast bananas into food processor with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, and process until smooth.
7. Stir processed bananas into strained pudding. Quarter and dice the last banana (not roasted) and stir into the pudding.
8. Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on top of pudding and refrigerate until cool, at least 45 minutes.

Peanut Butter Whipped Cream
Note: I used about 1/3 cup of peanut butter frosting left over from the Ode to Chubby Hubby Cupcake recipe, heated it in the microwave to loosen it, then mixed it with the whipped cream, sugar and vanilla extract.
1. Place butter and peanut butter into bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until combined.
2. Gradually add powdered sugar and add milk one tablespoon at a time if necessary. Beat for at least 3 minutes, until light and fluffy.
3. Clean or replace the bowl and switch to whisk attachment. Pour in heavy whipping cream and start beating on medium. After about 30 seconds, add stream in sugar and vanilla. Whip mixture until stiff peaks form.
4. Combine 1/3 of whipped cream with peanut butter mixture. Slowly fold in remaining whipped cream in two additions, keeping the mixture light and fluffy.

Assembly
1. Pour cooled banana pudding mixture into pie crust and smooth to the edges. Spread whipped cream frosting on top of the pudding and cover all the way to the edges of the pie plate. (You could also make the whipped cream later in time to add it just before serving, but chilling it all together is just fine, as well.)
2. Push vanilla wafers into the edges of the pie for a decorative garnish, if desired.
3. Refrigerate for at least 6-8 hours before serving. (YES, you must do this. And yes, it is torture.)

Now, if you’re anything like my family... eat nearly the entire pie in one evening.