Fabulous Banana Cream Pie

Once upon a time, on my birthday…a sweet friend of mine showed up at my doorstep with the most fabulous Banana Cream Pie I’ve ever tasted in my whole life.  And that is no joke.  It was creamy, dreamy and made a wonderful birthday gift.  My friend was kind enough to share the recipe with me (and you). There is a secret ingredient involved that may surprise you, as it did me. The recipe begins with an ordinary box of vanilla pudding, as you may have guessed. You mix it with milk and…

are you ready….

I am going to reveal the magical, secret ingredient to you this very minute.

Vanilla Ice Cream! Isn’t that clever. I never would have dreamed that up in all my days.  You won’t believe how divine it makes this pie. I am eager to experiment with the concept in the future. Who knows how amazing pudding + vanilla ice cream could be in many a dessert to come. Truly.

Now, let’s make some Banana Cream Pie!

 

Fabulous Banana Cream Pie
PRINT RECIPE

Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 1 (9 inch) pie
Recipe from Pat Slader

1 (9 inch) pastry crust, baked and cooled
2 C vanilla ice cream
1 (3.4 ounce) box instant vanilla pudding
1 C milk
2-3 ripe bananas, sliced
1 C whipping cream
2 T sugar

1. Make yourself a pie crust (tutorial here, if you are feeling like making your own). You can also purchase a pre-made crust, which is what I did. Bake it and let it cool.

 

2. Scoop 2 cups vanilla ice cream…

into a glass measuring cup. Let it sit on the counter for 5-10 minutes so it can thaw a bit.

2. Take a box of vanilla pudding and pour it into a medium-sized mixing bowl.

Add 1 cup of cold milk. I used 1%.

3. Beat it until it’s thick. Should only take a couple of minutes.

4. Add the ice cream, one scoop at a time…

and then beat it in.

The mixture should be creamy and smooth.

5. Slice 2-3 ripe bananas and place them in the bottom of your cooled pastry crust.

Pour the filling over the top of the bananas and spread it out with a spoon or knife.

6. Into a medium-sized mixing bowl, pour 1 cup whipping cream.

Add 2 tablespoons sugar…

and beat it until it thickens nicely. Spread it evenly over the pie.
7. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Serve and enjoy!