How to make THE perfect Banana Cream Pie! My recipe is made with a creamy vanilla pudding, flavored with a thick layer of bananas, served on a crisp vanilla wafer crust and topped off with a fluffy crown of homemade whipped cream! Recipe includes a how-to video!
If you just so happen to be scrambling last minute for something completely perfect and delicious to make for Mother’s Day, this Banana Cream Pie is it.
The filling is silky smooth and made completely from scratch (NO pudding mixes or pre-made mix here) and incredibly flavored with a layer of sliced bananas (oh, and I’m going to tell you how to keep them from browning, too). The topping is my simple, thick and fluffy homemade whipped cream (please skip the Cool Whip for this one!).
While I have a few crust options you can choose from for your own banana cream pie, I strongly recommend you try it with the vanilla wafer crust. It pairs perfectly with the banana flavor, and I have a feeling Mom will love it, too.
For the Crust:
For today’s Banana Cream Pie recipe, I opted to use a vanilla wafer cookie crust. I love the way the banana flavor pairs with the cookie flavors (like banana pudding!), but I do have a few other options you can check out:
- Graham Cracker Crust — Bake according to instructions and allow to cool.
- Easy Pie Crust Recipe — this is a classic, nearly fool-proof pie crust. Blind-bake according to recipe instructions then allow to cool before filling.
- You can also try the macadamia graham cracker crust that I use in my Coconut Cream Pie. A fun twist on the traditional!
If you opt to use a store-bought graham cracker crust (the kind sold pre-made in tins, usually sold near pudding mixes) keep in mind these are much smaller and more shallow than the pie plate that I used here, and you’ll have a lot of filling left over.
How to Make Banana Cream Pie
Banana cream pie is easy to make. Each step below corresponds to the numbered step-by-step photo above.
- Whisk together sugar, cornstarch, and salt in saucepan. Add egg yolks, milk, and heavy cream and whisk until well-combined.
- Cook over medium heat and whisk constantly until mixture is thickened and coats the back of a spoon.
- Remove from heat and whisk in butter and vanilla extract until butter is melted and mixture is smooth.
- Pour through a fine mesh strainer to remove any possible lumps.
- Let filling cool. Cover with plastic wrap so it doesn’t develop a thick film on the surface.
- Once cooled, pour half of banana cream pie filling into prepared graham cracker crust.
- Layer evenly with bananas. To keep the bananas from browning, dip them in lemon juice and pat them dry before layering in the pie.
- Top with remaining half of filling.
- Top with homemade whipped cream. Chill for several hours before slicing and serving.
Easy as pie 😉
I was a little worried when making this recipe that the layer of (just two!) bananas in the center wouldn’t be enough to give this pie an adequate banana flavor. I was wrong. After chilling for a just few hours in the refrigerator, the banana flavor permeates the rest of the pie and it takes on a very distinct banana flavor.
Enjoy!
More Pies to Try!
Check out some of my favorite Pie Recipes!
Be sure to check out my video at the bottom of the recipe! If you enjoy watching, make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel where I’ve already uploaded over 100 recipe videos that you can watch for free!
Banana Cream Pie Recipe
Ingredients
CRUST¹
- 65 vanilla wafer cookies
- 3 Tablespoons brown sugar firmly packed
- 7 Tablespoons salted butter melted
BANANA CREAM PIE FILLING
- ¾ cup granulated sugar (150g)
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 5 large egg yolks
- 1 ½ cups milk (355ml)
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream (355ml)
- 3 Tablespoons butter cut into pieces (softened)
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 bananas
- ¼ cup lemon or lime juice
HOMEMADE WHIPPED CREAM
- ¾ cup heavy cream very cold (175ml)
- ¼ cup powdered sugar (30g)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
CRUST
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C).
- Place wafer cookies in the basin of a food processor and pulse until mixture is nothing but crumbs²
- Add brown sugar and pulse until combined.
- Add crumbs to melted butter (in a medium/large bowl) and stir until mixture is evenly combined and crumbs are moistened.
- Transfer crumbs to a 9 ½” pie plate and use the clean bottom of a measuring cup to tamp crumbs into the bottom and up the sides of the pie plate to form the crust.
- Transfer to 350F (175C) oven and bake for 13 minutes. Prepare your banana cream pie filling while your pie crust cools completely.
- Whisk together sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a medium-sized, heavy duty saucepan until combined.
- Add egg yolks, milk, and heavy cream and whisk until all ingredients are combined.
- Place saucepan over medium heat and use a whisk to stir constantly until the mixture comes to a simmer/begins to bubble (this can take 10 minutes or so, do not crank the heat above medium or you can ruin your filling).
- Once simmering, continue to whisk constantly and allow to bubble for 1 minute. Once 1 minute has passed, immediately remove from heat and add butter, 1 Tbsp at a time, whisking until melted and combined after each addition.
- Whisk in vanilla extract.
- Pour banana cream pie filling through a fine mesh strainer into a large heatproof bowl. Cover surface with plastic wrap (make sure the plastic wrap is covering the surface of the pudding to prevent a skin from forming) and allow to cool for 20 minutes.
- Once cooled, pour half of pudding mixture into your prepared pie crust and spread evenly.
- Slice 2 bananas and dip each slice in lemon or lime juice³. Gently pat dry and place bananas in an even layer over the first layer of pudding. Top banana slices with remaining pudding and smooth with spatula.
- Cover the surface of the pie with plastic wrap and transfer to refrigerator. Chill at least several hours.
- Once you are ready to serve (or several hour before serving), prepare whipped cream. Combine heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract in a large bowl (preferably a metal bowl that you’ve chilled in the refrigerator or freezer for 10 minutes) and use an electric mixer to beat until stiff peaks form⁴.
- Dollop or pipe⁵ whipped cream over chilled pie and slice⁶ and serve. Enjoy!
- If desired, serve topped with homemade whipped cream and pipe or dollop whipped cream
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Becky
Hi! I live in the mountains of Mexico and can’t find heavy cream. Do you think I could just double up on whole milk? Would it make a big difference in the consistency? Thanks!
Sam
Hi Becky! Do you have double cream available? I think the milk would be too thin.
Karli
Amazing! I am not a banana cream pie fan, but I made this and it was a hit with both myself and banana cream pie fans!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, Karli! 🙂
Patty Johnson
I cooked this desert yesterday and it was so delicious! My husband asked for it and said it reminded him to his grandma’s cooking, sooooooo good!
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, Patty! 🙂
Janice
I haven’t cooked this yet but definitely will very soon! Your tip about dipping the bananas in lemon juice ( from the bottle type) made my day as I was always told the pie had to be consumed in one day due to the bananas going yucky!!
I was wondering if I could use regular milk and heavy cream together for this recipe! For a richer flavor?
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you found the lemon juice trick helpful, Janice! I am excited for you to try this recipe! The pie is already rich in flavor but the combination of milk and heavy cream should be fine. I hope that you enjoy it. 🙂
Natasha Valle
Was easy to make and all my friends who wanted to be my taste testers enjoyed it! I will make it again. Thank you!
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed it, Natasha! 🙂
Sheep
This was so delicious! My sibling said it was better than the lemon cream pie…although I still think that both are yummy! Thank you so much! 🙂
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you both enjoyed it, Sheep! Thank you for trying another one of my recipes. 🙂
Brittini Smith
I have never made a banana cream pie before but I’ve had it loads of times, and this was exceptional! Thank you for your clear instructions!
The only problem I faced it that my pie crust stuck to the bottom of my pie tin. I even sprayed it with Pam before putting the crust in. Is that where I went wrong?
Either way, absolutely delicious and you were 100% right on that vanilla wafer crust!
Thanks again!
Sam
Hi Brittini! I’m so sorry that happened. I have never sprayed the pan so that might be the issue. I have never experienced this, but I’m glad you were able to enjoy it anyway. 🙂
Anna
This was my first banana cream pie, it tasted good but did not set AT ALL. I chilled it for a whole day before eating. When I tried to cut a piece it turned into soupy pudding. I followed the recipe and cooked the filling on the stove for like 12 minutes, what did I do wrong?
Sugar Spun Run
I am so sorry that you experienced an issue with this recipe, Anna! This is the result of undercooking your pudding. One trick to check the doneness is to coat the back of the spoon with pudding and run your finger right through the middle. This recipe includes a video where I show my process in making this dessert that you may find helpful. Again, I am sorry that this happened. 🙁
Anna
Thank you for the tip! I wanted to make sure I wasn’t overcooking but maybe my heat wasn’t high enough. I will try again 🙂
Sugar Spun Run
That could be it too. Again, I am so sorry that this happened. 🙁
Liz
The only adjustment to the recipe is that you need to specify whole milk.
Sugar Spun Run
Thank you for your feedback, Liz! 🙂
Amy
How long can this pie hold in the fridge?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Amy! The banana cream pie will last about 3 to 4 days in the fridge. I recommend covering it loosely with aluminum foil or plastic wrap. Enjoy! 🙂
Veronica
Hi! I have made and loved many of your recipes! Thank you.
I am making this Banana Cream Pie today and I don’t have salted butter on hand!
How much salt should I add to my unsalted butter for the nilla wafer crust?
Thank you!
Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much, Veronica! I am so glad that you have enjoyed many of my recipes. I hope that you enjoy the Banana Cream Pie just as much! You want to add ¼ teaspoon of salt for every stick or ½ cup of butter. I hope that helps! 🙂
Leslie Bleau
The lime or lemon juice.. Is it fresh or bottled?
Sam
I use bottled but either would be fine
Lynn
I printed the recipe and will try. I just would not use salted butter. I never use salted butter in any of my baking. I like you use the vanilla wafers as your crust. For your pudding filling, a way to cool faster is to spread in a 13×9 sheet pan. They are small and I find when I spread my pastry cream in it and put my plastic wrap on it and put in the fridge, it cools so much faster. When I take out, I give it a good whisk before putting in the pie.
Sam
I hope you love the banana cream pie, Lynn! 🙂
Michelle
So amazingly simple and delicious 😋 can you freeze this ahead of time with the whipped cream or freeze the pie alone and only after taking it out of the freezer then put the whipped cream?
Sam
Hi Michelle! Unfortunately I don’t recommend freezing this pie. It tends to become watery when thawing. I’m glad you enjoyed the pie though! 🙂
Audrey Chavez
Can I use splenda
Sam
Hi Audrey! I have not tried this pie with splenda and am honestly not familiar with baking with sugar substitutes, I’m hoping somebody who is can chime in though.
Audrey Chavez
I made the banana cream with splenda it came out delicious, thank you for the recipe.
Sam
I’m so happy to hear that it worked! Thanks for commenting, Audrey, I’m sure this will be helpful to other people in the future, too. 🙂