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White Chocolate-Banana Cream Pie

Source of Recipe

From "Blue Ribbon Baking from a Redneck Kitchen"


List of Ingredients

Crust:
◦  2 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 28 crackers)
◦  ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
◦  ½ cup sugar

White Chocolate Layer:
◦  6 ounces white chocolate baking squares (I use Baker's)
◦  2 tablespoons unsalted butter
◦  ⅓ cup half-and-half

Filling:
◦  1½ cups half-and-half
◦  ¾ cup sugar
◦  3 tablespoons cornstarch
◦  3 large egg yolks
◦  1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
◦  1 tablespoon unsalted butter

◦  3 to 4 bananas, as needed, sliced
◦  8 ounces frozen nondairy whipped topping, thawed
◦  White chocolate curls


Recipe

Make the crust:
In a bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs, butter, and sugar until the mixture becomes dark brown and the crumbs are fully coated. Press onto the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch deep-dish pie pan. Refrigerate until cool, at least 15 minutes.

Make the white chocolate layer:
In a saucepan, melt the white chocolate and butter with the half-and-half over low heat. Stir until smooth. Pour the mixture into the cooled crust and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

While the crust is cooling, prepare the filling:
In a bowl, whisk together the half-and-half, sugar, cornstarch, and egg yolks well and then pour into a medium saucepan. Heat over medium-low heat and cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture starts to thicken into a pudding; do not let the eggs curdle. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract and butter. Pour into a bowl, press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface, and refrigerate until chilled, at least 20 minutes.

Layer the sliced bananas over the white chocolate in the pie crust and then pour the cooled custard over it. Top with the whipped topping and white chocolate curls.


Makes one 9-inch deep-dish pie



• Blue Ribbon Tip:
If you want to make classic banana cream pie, just leave out the white chocolate, and you've got a solid, simple staple.