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Prep Time: 0 Minutes Cook Time: 10 Minutes |
Ready In: 10 Minutes Servings: 6 |
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This is the closest recipe I can get to my grandmother's (whom we called Gaum since my oldest sister couldn't say grandma ). I can still smell her pies cooling on the kitchen counter, her apron on and a dishtowel over her shoulder. Read more . Those are some priceless memories! She prided herself in her baking (and sewing) skills, and her pies were always the best - banana cream pie was my favorite, hands down! Ingredients:
1 9” pie pan |
1 single piecrust |
pie filling |
1/2 cup sugar |
5 tablespoons flour |
1/4 teaspoon salt |
2 cups milk |
2 egg yolks, lightly beaten |
2 tablespoons butter |
1 teaspoon vanilla extract |
3 ripe bananas |
meringue |
1 tablespoon cornstarch |
2 tablespoons cold water |
1/2 cup boiling water |
3 egg whites |
6 tablespoons sugar |
pinch of salt |
1 teaspoon vanilla extract |
Directions:
1. Prepare a single piecrust and press it into a 9 pie pan, fluting the crust around the pie pan rim.
2. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of sugar over the crust and poke a few holes in the crust using fork tines.
3. Bake crust at 375 degrees until it is lightly browned (usually about 10 to 12 minutes).
4. Cool crust while filling is cooking.
5. To prepare filling, combine sugar, flour and salt in top of double boiler.
6. Add milk slowly, mixing thoroughly with a whisk.
7. Cook over rapidly boiling water until it is well thickened, stirring constantly (I have done this without a double boiler, stirring the mixture constantly to prevent lumps and sticking to the bottom of the pan - just watch it closely and never get it too hot…just a soft simmer).
8. Cook 10 minutes longer, stirring occasionally.
9. Place eggs in a small cup and beat them lightly; add some of the hot filling to the eggs to “temper” them, then pour egg mixture back into hot filling mixture while beating quickly.
10. Cook 1 minute longer.
11. Remove pan from heat and add butter and extract; stir to blend it into filling.
12. Cover pan with a piece of waxed paper and allow filling to cool.
13. While filling is cooling, prepare meringue.
14. In a small saucepan (or I use the microwave) dissolve cornstarch in cold water and then add the boiling water; cook until it is clear (this goes very quickly) – set pan aside.
15. In a mixing bowl, beat egg whites until thick, then gradually beat in the sugar, salt and extract; beat until peaks can be formed.
16. Carefully fold in the cornstarch mixture.
17. When ready to assemble pie, slice bananas and place in bottom of baked crust; cover bananas immediately with cooled filling (I like to slice my bananas and coat them with just a bit of Fruit Fresh to prevent them from browning, then place them in the crust).
18. Pile meringue over pie filling, being sure to bring it all the way to the fluted crust edges and sealing the filling beneath the meringue.
19. Bake at 375 degrees until meringue tips/peaks are lightly browned, about 8 to 12 minutes.
20. NOTE: I know this says to cool the filling completely before assembling the pie, but my BEST memory of my grandmother’s pie was when she served it to me with the filling still slightly warm and the meringue freshly baked on top. The filling would usually ooze out from beneath the meringue a bit, but who cared? It was the best thing ever!
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