Banana Cream Pie

Have you noticed I'm in a pie-making mode lately? After trying to pies I'd never made before—strawberry rhubarb and buttermilk—I decided it was time to go with an old favorite I used to love when I was younger. Banana cream. Yum.

Only this time, rather than using the version that calls for instant pudding (easy, yes), I opted for a recipe that has you make the filling from scratch. It goes a little something like this (adapted from the Better Homes & Gardens Cookbook):

INGREDIENTS
1 baked pastry shell
4 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 1/2 cups half-and-half
1 tbsp butter or margarine
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
3 medium bananas
whipped cream

RECIPE
1. Prepare baked pastry shell (any good single-crust pastry recipe will do the trick)

2. Separate egg yolk from whites; discard the whites.

3. In a medium saucepan combine sugar and cornstarch. Gradually stir in half-and-half.


Cook and stir over medium-high heat until thickened and bubbly; reduce heat. Cook and stir for about 2 minutes more. Remove from heat. Lightly beat egg yolks with a fork. Gradually stire about 1 cup of the hot filling into yolks. Add egg yolk mixture to filling in saucepan.

Bring to gentle boil; reduce heat. Cook and stir 2 more minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla and butter.


No—not that kind of Butter!

This kind.


4. Slice and arrange 3 medium bananas over the bottom of the shell.


Pour warm filling in shell and bake in a 325-degree oven for about 30 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for about one hour. Chill 3 to 6 hours (or as long as possible before you can't resist eating it). Top with whipped cream and take blurry photos before serving.


(Pardon those blurry photos. Have I mentioned lately how much I'm dying for a digital SLR? Please contact me if you would like to donate to my cause. Or if you have any requests for my next pie-making adventure.)