Banana Cream Pie with Salted Whiskey Caramel Sauce

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Have you heard this song? It's basically impossible to listen to it and not instantly be in a good mood. At least for me. It reminds me of those songs my girlfriends and I used to listen to when we were in high school and drive around in our cars with the music blasting, singing at the top of our lungs, laughing, smiling and having a ball. It reminds me of home. Tucson, AZ.

I've been having some serious Tucson withdrawals. And high school withdrawals. Back then the most important decision of the day was what I was going to wear to school, because god forbid I should repeat the same outfit ever. I actually remember one year before school starting, picking out something like my first 43 outfits for the first few months of school. Who am I? Clearly I had some issues. And way too many clothes. Could you image if Lululemon was around back then? Picking out clothes would have been so much easier because all I'd had to pick was which shirt looked okay with black yoga pants.

I'm in the middle of planning a little book tour once Absolutely Avocados comes out next month and I'm beyond excited to head home for a bit and visit with everyone. Seriously counting down the days.

Banana Cream Pie from www.whatsgabycooking.com

I'm also counting down the days until Sunday when I can over indulge and eat this Banana Cream Pie again. It's been at least 3 weeks since I was recipe testing this pie and it's 100% time to make it again.

To say this is decadent would be the understatement of the century. Let me tell you what it's all about.

  1. It starts with a homemade graham cracker crust. Because it's the best, and that's how we roll in the Dalkin/Dawson household.
  2. Next comes some sliced bananas
  3. Wait for it, okay, now let's add some homemade vanilla bean laced pudding
  4. Then we'll top it off with some homemade whipped cream.
  5. And lastly, this is going to push you over the edge, we're drizzling it with some salted whiskey caramel sauce.

Banana Cream Pie from www.whatsgabycooking.com

It's the perfect ending to an Easter Brunch. I'd highly recommend it for basically any occasion that calls for dessert. I made it for some friends when they were over for a dinner party and while everyone had their fair share, one of my girlfriends and I ditched all etiquette and sat with our 2 forks eating the pie straight out of the pan once everyone else finished their servings. We're classy ladies. And this is one classy Banana Cream Pie with Salted Whiskey Caramel Sauce.

Banana Cream Pie

Author: Gaby Dalkin
4 from 1 vote
Vanilla Pudding and Salted Whiskey Caramel Sauce adapted from Bon Appetit
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 8 servings

Ingredients
  

For the Crust

  • 12 full-size graham crackers
  • â…› cup white sugar
  • 6 tablespoons butter melted

For the Vanilla Pudding

  • 2 cups whole milk
  • ¾ cup heavy cream
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 3 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 5 large egg yolks
  • ¼ cup unsalted butter cut into ½" cubes
  • 1 vanilla bean seeds removed

For the Whipped Cream and Salted Whiskey Caramel Sauce

  • 1 cup heavy cream divided
  • 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 1 ½ tablespoons whiskey divided
  • ½ teaspoon corn syrup
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter cut into ½" cubes
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 ripe bananas

Instructions
 

For the Crust

  • Place the graham crackers and sugar in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse to break the crackers up and then process for 1-2 minutes until the crackers are the same consistency as the sugar.
  • Add the melted butter and pulse to combine so the crackers look just damp.
  • Remove the mixture from the food processor and transfer the crumbs into a 9 inch pie pan. Press the the crumbs into a crust evenly along the bottom and up the side.
  • Heat the oven to 375° F.
  • Bake the crust for about 10 minutes. Remove the crust from the oven and let cool.

For the Vanilla Pudding

  • Bring milk and cream to a simmer in a medium saucepan.
  • Meanwhile, whisk sugar, cornstarch, flour, and salt in a large mixing bowl.
  • Add the egg yolk to the sugar mixture and whisk until smooth but very thick.
  • While whisking constantly, gradually add the warm milk mixture to yolk mixture. Once the 2 mixtures are fully combined, return everything back to the saucepan and cook over medium-low heat, whisking constantly, until thick, about 2–3 minutes. Add the butter and vanilla and stir until the butter has melted.
  • Transfer everything to a medium bowl; press plastic wrap directly onto surface of pastry cream. Chill until set, at least 2 hours.

For the Whipped Cream and Salted Whiskey Caramel Sauce and Assembly

  • Using an electric mixer or whisk, beat ¾ cup heavy cream and powdered sugar until medium-stiff peaks form. Cover and chill.
  • Stir sugar, 1 tablespoon whiskey, corn syrup, and 1 tablespoon water in a medium deep saucepan over medium-low heat until sugar dissolves.
  • Increase heat, bring to a boil without stirring, and cook, occasionally swirling pan and brushing down sides with a wet pastry brush, until sugar is deep amber in color, 6–8 minutes. Remove caramel from heat; whisk in remaining ¼ cup cream, butter, and salt (mixture will bubble vigorously).
  • Let cool for 5 minutes; whisk in the remaining ½ Tbsp. whiskey and vanilla.
  • Let the whiskey caramel cool slightly.
  • Spread ¼ cup vanilla pudding evenly over bottom of graham cracker crust. Slice bananas into ¼"-thick rounds. Layer half of the bananas over the pudding. Top with 1 cup of pudding. Arrange remaining bananas on the next layer and top them with the remaining pudding. Garnish with whipped cream and drizzle with whiskey caramel. Serve immediately or chill until ready to serve.

Notes

This is best eaten the day it's made, and likely the next. After that, things may start to weep or separate.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 675kcal | Carbohydrates: 62g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 45g | Saturated Fat: 26g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 12g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 237mg | Sodium: 397mg | Potassium: 305mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 44g | Vitamin A: 1616IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 148mg | Iron: 1mg
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34 Comments

  1. 4 stars
    I made this recipe for a Thanksgiving dessert and felt I needed to leave a review. I had to make some adjustments to get it just right.
    I found that my oven required and additional 4-ish minutes of baking for the crust to be just right.
    I also needed to add an additional tablespoon of cornstarch and about 5-6 minutes (total) of cooking the pudding to get it to thicken. I couldn’t find vanilla beans and used vanilla extract as a substitute. The pudding still tasted delicious.
    The whiskey caramel I was able to make exactly to the T.
    The pie was excellent!! I got so many compliments, will definitely make it again.

  2. I love all your recipes! Instead of a graham cracker crust could I substitute the graham crackers for Nilla Wafers? If so, would you still recommend adding the same amount of sugar
    and butter?
    Thank you!

  3. This look so amazing! The drizzled caramel sauce makes the pie look incredible! Thank you for the recipe!

  4. Mmmm!! I love banoffee pie and this reminds me of it!! The whiskey caramel sauce.. DROOOOL!!

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