Posted by
Barry Wallis on Saturday, June 02, 2007 11:36:23 PM
I made the Butterscotch Banana Cream Pie but it came out too thick and too reminiscent of the cornstarch (I’m not even going to tell you the recipe). When I tried this recipe I thought about putting Crème de Banana in it for extra punch. However, when I tasted it I found the vanilla brought the banana taste to the forefront without any added help. It is based on a recipe by Emeril Lagasse.
I use vanilla bean paste (I bought mine a Sur La Table) rather than vanilla bean seeds as it is more economical, easier to store and adds the same flavor and look as the seeds (it is made from real vanilla beans and has vanilla seeds in the paste). You can substitute the seeds scraped from the inside of a vanilla bean for the paste.
This is the pie I am going to enter in the San Diego County Fair for Pie Day (June 28).
Ingredients
5 large egg yolks
1/4 cup cornstarch
3 cups heavy cream
2 cups sugar
1 tbsp. vanilla bean paste
1 baked pie crust
3 large bananas cut into ¼ inch slices
Recipe
1) Combine the egg yolks, cornstarch, and 1 cup of the heavy cream. Whisk to blend well. Set aside.
2) Combine the remaining 2 cups cream, the sugar, and the vanilla bean paste in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Whisk to dissolve the sugar and bring to a gentle boil, about 10 minutes.
3) Temper the egg mixture with the hot sugar mixture (tempering means to use a small amount of the hot mixture to slowly raise the temperature of the egg mixture so it doesn’t curdle). Slowly add the tempered egg yolk mixture to the sugar mixture, whisking constantly until it thickens, about 5 minutes. This mixture will break and look slightly curdled.
4) Pour the mixture into a glass bowl. Press a piece of plastic wrap down over the surface of the mixture to prevent a skin from forming. Let cool completely at room temperature. 5) Use an electric mixer or food processor with a whisk attachment to combine the mixture. Whip until you have a thick and creamy custard.
6) Spread about 1/2 cup of the custard to cover the bottom of the pie crust.
7) Place banana slices over the custard crowding them close together but not overlapping. Spread custard over the bananas until they are covered. Repeat until pie crust is filled making sure you end with a layer of custard.
8) Chill for at least 24 hours to allow banana taste to permeate the custard.