Banana Cream Pie

If you ever go to Tartine Bakery in San Francisco, you must try their banana cream tart. I tried it for the first time about 10 years ago, and I immediately knew I had to find a way to recreate it at home. I didn’t grow up a big fan of banana cream pie, but the added layers of chocolate and caramel and the homemade pastry cream make this thing something to obsess over. Apparently, when it comes to banana cream pie, more is more. I’ve been making this pie every year on Thanksgiving for a good 8 years now, and it’s still the thing I get the most recipe requests for. Each fall, I promise myself I’ll post the recipe in time for Thanksgiving, but I’ve never managed to! I have yet to snag a decent picture of one of these pies, because Thanksgiving day is chaotic and they always get devoured too quickly. So please excuse the iphone photos, we just couldn’t wait another year to share this incredible creation with you!

Please note, there are quite a few components to this recipe, but you can break it up and do most of it in advance, so it’s quite hands off on the day you want to serve it. I promise it’s so worth it. Take a glance at the recipe notes at the bottom to see how to make this ahead of time.

Banana Cream Pie
Yields 1 9-inch pie

Ingredients:

• 1 pie crust

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 475º.
2. Roll out single pie crust, place in a pie plate, and freeze for 15 minutes.
3. Remove from freezer, cover with foil, and weigh down with 1 cup of uncooked, dry rice or pie weights. Place pie plate on a cookie sheet to catch any dripping butter.
4. Bake for about 6 minutes, until crust begins to set. Remove foil and weights, and continue to bake until golden brown, about 3-5 more minutes. Allow to cool completely.

For the Pastry Cream:
Ingredients:

• 1/4 c cornstarch
• 1/2 c plus 1 tbsp sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 c whole milk
• 1/2 a vanilla bean or 1 tsp vanilla extract/vanilla bean paste
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 4 tbsp salted butter, cut into 4 pieces

Method:

1. Have a medium bowl at the ready for cooling the pastry cream.
2. In another medium bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and sugar. Add the eggs and whisk until smooth. Set aside.
3. Pour milk into a heavy saucepan. Add the vanilla. Add the salt and place the saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to just under a boil, whisking continually to ensure the milk solids are not sticking to the bottom of the pan.
4. When the milk is steaming, slowly ladle about one-third of the hot milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Pour the egg-milk mixture back into the saucepan with the remaining hot milk, and continue to whisk over medium heat until the mixture is as thick as whipped cream. It must come to just a boil––there is a fine line between thickened and curdled cream. Beware, it thickens very quickly once you whisk it altogether over the heat! It usually takes mine about 30 seconds into the boil, so watch carefully to ensure it doesn’t curdle. You want it to look like vanilla pudding.
5. Once thickened, remove from heat and immediately pour into the empty bowl. Let cool for 10 minutes, gently stirring occasionally to release heat.
6. When the pastry cream has cooled but is still warm (to about 140º), stir in the butter one piece at a time, whisking until smooth before adding the next piece.
7. To cool, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and press the plastic onto the surface of the pastry cream. This will keep it from developing a skin. Place in the refrigerator to chill for up to 24 hours. Do not whisk the pastry cream again once it is cold. Doing so will break down and thin the cream.

For the Salted Caramel:
Ingredients:

• 1/2 c sugar
• 2 tbsp water
• 1/4 c plus 2 tbsp heavy cream, warmed
• 2 tbsp salted butter
• 1 tsp sea salt or kosher salt

Method:

1. In a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the sugar and water over medium-low heat until the sugar dissolves.
2. Increase the heat to medium and bring to a boil without stirring. If necessary, use a moistened pastry brush to wash down any crystals on the sides of the pan.
3. Boil until the syrup is a deep amber color, about 4-6 minutes. Do not walk or look away, as caramel can burn quickly!
4. Remove the sugar from the heat and carefully whisk in heavy cream. The mixture will bubble. Stir in the butter and salt. Transfer to a dish and allow to cool.

To Assemble Pie:
Additional Ingredients:

• 3 tbsp heavy cream
• 1/3 c semisweet chocolate chips
• 2 bananas
• Freshly whipped cream
• 1 semi sweet or dark chocolate bar, shaved with a vegetable peeler (you won’t use the whole bar)

Method:

1. In a small, microwave-safe bowl, heat 3 tbsp heavy cream in the microwave for about 10-15 seconds, until steaming. Add 1/3 c semisweet chocolate chips to the hot cream, and gently stir until melted together.
2. Spread chocolate all over the bottom of the baked and cooled crust, then refrigerate.
3. Once chocolate is set, pour room temperature caramel on top and gently spread around until it covers the bottom. Refrigerate again until cooled.
4. When ready to serve, carefully spread cold pastry cream on top of caramel, then top with 2 sliced bananas, followed by freshly whipped cream and chocolate shavings.

NOTES:

• This recipe can (and should) be made ahead of time. The day before you want to serve, bake the crust, make the caramel, and cook the pastry cream. I like to spread the chocolate and caramel in the baked shell on the day before as well.
• On the day you want to serve it, spread the pastry cream into the shell and assemble the rest of the way according to the directions. I like to add the bananas and whipped cream at the last minute to avoid any browning bananas.
• If you don’t want to make your own caramel, you can absolutely sub a jarred one. I love trader joe’s fleur de sel caramel!