This delicious twist on the classic banana cream pie has become a new crowd favorite in our home. With a graham cracker crust that sneaks in a touch of cinnamon, 2 types of simple homemade custards, and a fresh whipped cream, this might be your new favorite version of banana cream pie!
Recipe FAQ’s
Can I swap out the graham cracker crust?
Of course! You can use a store bought crust in a bind or a classic flakey crust or a sugar cone crust would be an amazing substitution as well.
How else could I top this pie?
The images in this recipe have chocolate shavings. I used a bar of chocolate and a peeler – easy as pie! Topped banana slices, graham cracker crumbs, or a combination of those things would also be beautiful and delicious!
How long does this pie last?
You can freeze the graham cracker crust in advance, but I I don’t recommend freezing the assembled pie. You can make it up to 2 days in advance though! For ultimate freshness, cover the pie with plastic wrap, with the plastic wrap touching the top layer of custard to prevent a film from forming, and then top with whipped cream the day of or night prior to serving.
Happy baking!
Black Bottom Banana Cream Pie
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs (11 sheets)
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 6 TB melted butter
- ¼ tsp cinnamon
Filling
- 3 cups whole milk
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 4 large egg yolks
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste or 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup corn starch
- 2 TB butter
- 3.5 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped and melted
- 2 bananas
Whipped Cream + Topping
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- chocolate shavings, optional
Instructions
Crust
- Preheat oven to 350°F. In a food processor blend graham crackers (or mash in a plastic bag) until blended into fine crumbs. Combine sugar, cinnamon, and butter. Mix until evenly blended.
- Press into a 9" pie dish. Bake for 8 minutes. Set aside.
Filling
- Put milk in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a gentle simmer. In a separate bowl whisk together eggs yolks, sugar, and corn starch.
- Slowly stream in about a half cup of the milk into the egg yolk mixture. Then slowly combine the egg yolk mixture back in the sauce pan with the remaining milk. Mix together quickly and steadily until mixture begins to bubble and get thick.
- Take off the heat and remove about ⅓ - ½ of the mixture and put in a separate bowl. In the smaller portion add the melted chocolate and whisk together well until fully combined. In the saucepan with the remaining second half of the custard, whisk in vanilla and butter until combined. Set aside to begin to cool.
Whipped Cream
- Beat together heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla with a hand or stand mixer. Starting on medium speed and increase to high speed. Beat until stiff peaks form.
Assembly
- Place the chocolate custard over the graham cracker crust. Layer with sliced bananas, then layer with the vanilla custard. Top with whipped cream and chocolate shavings or topping of choice (sliced bananas, etc.).
