Banana Cream Pie combines a baked pastry crust, two sliced bananas, and a no-cook vanilla pudding filling made from instant pudding mix, cold milk, and whipped topping. The pie chills for at least 4 hours before serving and yields 8 slices from one 9-inch pie, with a 15-minute prep time and a 10-minute cook time.
This American-style dessert falls under the dessert and pie category and is built from five ingredients: a baked and cooled pie crust, two bananas, cold milk, instant vanilla pudding mix, and whipped topping. Every stage below, from blind baking the crust to folding in the topping, follows the same ingredients, quantities, and order used in the recipe itself, so each step lines up directly with what appears in the recipe card at the end of this page.
Why This Banana Cream Pie Works
This Banana Cream Pie keeps two textures distinct instead of blending together: a baked crust on the bottom and a chilled pudding layer with sliced bananas on top.
The crust is fully baked and cooled completely before the bananas or filling are added, exactly as the recipe specifies. Blind baking with parchment paper and dried beans or pie weights for the first 15 minutes, followed by baking uncovered for another 12 to 15 minutes until golden, is the process the recipe calls for before the crust is ready to fill.
The filling relies on instant vanilla pudding mix whisked with cold milk, which rests for 3 minutes before whipped topping is folded in. Spreading this mixture over the banana layer and refrigerating the pie for at least 4 hours, or overnight, are the remaining steps the recipe calls for before serving.
Recipe Details at a Glance
This Banana Cream Pie recipe is listed under the dessert and pie category and follows American cuisine. It yields 8 servings from a single 9-inch pie. The recipe lists a prep time of 15 minutes and a cook time of 10 minutes, for a total time of 25 minutes; this total covers the hands-on steps in the recipe and does not include the separate refrigeration period of at least 4 hours, or overnight, that the recipe also calls for before serving. The oven temperature listed in the recipe, 425°F, applies to the pastry crust baking steps.
Ingredients That Do the Real Work
The ingredient list for this Banana Cream Pie is short, so each item carries specific weight in the finished pie. Here is what the recipe calls for and how each ingredient is used.
The Pie Crust
The recipe calls for a single pie crust that is already baked and cooled before the pie is assembled. If making a pastry crust from scratch, roll it into a 12-inch circle, line a 9-inch pie plate with it, fold the edges under, and crimp as desired. Poke the bottom of the crust with a fork, then preheat the oven to 425°F. Line the crust with an 11-inch circle of parchment paper filled with dried beans or pie weights, bake for 15 minutes, remove the parchment and weights, and bake for an additional 12 to 15 minutes, or until golden. Cool the crust completely before adding bananas or filling.
Because the ingredient list only specifies a pie crust that is already baked and cooled, the recipe does not require a specific crust type beyond that. The 425°F oven temperature and the baking times listed apply specifically to the pastry crust method described in the recipe steps.
Bananas
Two bananas are sliced and arranged directly over the cooled crust, forming the layer between the crust and the pudding filling. The ingredient list calls for 2 bananas plus extra for decorating, so keep at least one additional banana on hand beyond the two sliced into the pie. A few extra banana slices are reserved for decorating the top of the pie once it has chilled. For another simple way to use ripe bananas, a simple two-ingredient banana ice cream uses the same kind of ripe bananas this pie calls for.
Cold Milk and Instant Pudding Mix
Two boxes of instant vanilla pudding mix are whisked with two cups of cold milk in a medium bowl until the mixture is smooth. Each box of instant vanilla pudding mix used in this recipe is 3.4 ounces, and both boxes are whisked into the milk at the same time. The recipe calls for a 3-minute rest so the mixture can thicken before whipped topping is folded in.
Whipped Topping
The recipe uses two cups of whipped topping, thawed and divided between two separate steps. One cup is folded into the pudding mixture after it has rested, and the remaining cup is spread over the top of the chilled pie, along with the reserved banana slices and, if desired, caramel or chocolate shavings. For other easy desserts that use whipped topping and bananas, a banana cream cheese roll-up and a frozen banana peanut butter bark both use similar ingredients in smaller, handheld forms.
Step by Step: Building the Pie
Banana Cream Pie comes together in three stages: baking the crust, layering the bananas and mixing the filling, and chilling the assembled pie until it is ready to serve.
Blind Baking the Crust
If making a pastry crust, preheat the oven to 425°F. Roll the crust into a 12-inch circle and line a 9-inch pie plate with it, folding the edges under and crimping as desired. Poke the bottom of the crust with a fork, as the recipe specifies. The crust bakes at 425°F for both stages of blind baking.
Cut an 11-inch circle of parchment paper, set it inside the crust, and fill it with dried beans or pie weights. Bake for 15 minutes, then remove the parchment and weights and bake for an additional 12 to 15 minutes, or until golden. Let the crust cool completely before adding anything else.
Layering Bananas and Mixing the Filling
Slice the bananas and arrange them over the cooled crust. In a medium bowl, whisk the instant vanilla pudding mix and cold milk together until smooth, then let the mixture rest for 3 minutes so it can thicken. This mixing happens in the bowl, separate from the crust and banana layer, before anything is spread over the pie. Fold in 1 cup of whipped topping, as the recipe directs.
Assembling and Chilling
Spread the pudding mixture over the banana layer, smoothing it to the edges of the crust. Refrigerate the pie for at least 4 hours, or overnight, as the recipe specifies. Just before serving, top the pie with the remaining whipped topping and decorate with the reserved banana slices, along with caramel or chocolate shavings if desired. The reserved banana slices and optional shavings are added only after the pie has finished chilling, right before it is served.
Tips for Assembling the Pie
These tips restate the parts of the recipe that are easiest to rush past.
- Poke the bottom of the unbaked crust with a fork, as the recipe specifies, before baking.
- Line the crust with parchment paper and dried beans or pie weights for the first 15 minutes of baking, then remove them for the remaining 12 to 15 minutes, as the recipe directs.
- Let the baked crust cool completely, as the recipe specifies, before adding banana slices or filling.
- Whisk the pudding mix and cold milk until smooth, then let the mixture rest for the full 3 minutes the recipe calls for before folding in whipped topping.
- Fold in the whipped topping, as the recipe directs, rather than skipping straight to spreading the mixture over the bananas.
- Reserve a few banana slices specifically for the top of the pie, since the ingredient list calls for extra bananas beyond the two used in the filling layer.
- Refrigerate the finished pie for at least 4 hours, or overnight, as the recipe specifies, before topping and serving.
Troubleshooting Common Issues
These notes restate the exact order the recipe calls for at the two stages where steps are easiest to skip.
The recipe calls for whisking the pudding mix and cold milk until smooth, then letting the mixture rest for 3 minutes before folding in whipped topping. Following that order, as written, is the process the recipe specifies for the filling.
The recipe calls for lining the crust with parchment paper and dried beans or pie weights for the first 15 minutes of baking, then removing them so the crust can bake uncovered for another 12 to 15 minutes. Following this order, as written, is the process the recipe specifies for baking the crust.
If the crust still looks pale at the low end of the 12 to 15 minute uncovered bake, continue baking within that same window until the color turns golden, as the recipe directs.
If the whipped topping or banana garnish looks unstable on top of the pie, the recipe specifies adding the remaining whipped topping and reserved banana slices only after the filling has chilled for at least 4 hours, not before.
Recipe References
Frequently Asked Questions
How far in advance can I make Banana Cream Pie?
The recipe calls for refrigerating the pie for at least 4 hours before serving, and it can be refrigerated overnight, which allows it to be made the day before it is served.
Do I need pie weights to blind bake the crust?
The recipe calls for lining the crust with parchment paper and filling it with dried beans or pie weights for the first 15 minutes of baking, then removing them so the crust can finish baking uncovered for another 12 to 15 minutes.
Does this recipe require a homemade pastry crust?
The recipe lists one single pie crust that is baked and cooled as the starting ingredient. The 425°F oven temperature and the baking times given in the recipe are specified as the steps to follow if making a pastry crust from scratch.
What size crust and pie plate does this recipe use?
The recipe calls for rolling the crust into a 12-inch circle and using it to line a 9-inch pie plate, folding the edges under and crimping them as desired before blind baking.
How many servings does one Banana Cream Pie make?
This recipe yields 8 servings from a single 9-inch pie.
Banana Cream Pie with a Baked Crust and No-Cook Pudding Filling
Ingredients
Method
- If making a pastry crust, preheat the oven to 425°F.
- Roll the pie crust into a 12-inch circle. Line a 9-inch pie plate with the pastry and fold the edges under. Crimp as desired. Poke the bottom of the crust with a fork.
- Cut an 11-inch circle of parchment paper and gently place in the pie crust and fill it with dried beans or pie weights. Bake for crust 15 minutes, remove the parchment and beans/weights and then bake for an additional 12 to 15 minutes or until golden. Cool completely.
- Slice the bananas and arrange over cooled pie crust.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the vanilla pudding mix and cold milk until smooth. Let rest for 3 minutes to thicken. Fold in 1 cup of whipped topping.
- Spread the pudding mixture over the bananas. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.
- Top with remaining whipped topping and decorate with banana slices and caramel or chocolate shavings if desired.