Organic Banana Cream Pie

I buy bananas every time I go to the grocery store and usually end up with a leftovers for banana bread at the end of the week.  But this week, the bananas were still good enough to make a pie - Banana Cream Pie.  I made this pie with organic ingredients but conventional ingredients are perfectly acceptable.  My pictures show that I made two pies but the recipe is only for one.  This recipe doubles very easily.

Ingredients:

1 organic pie crust, store bought or homemade
2 large organc bananas, sliced
2/3 cup organic sugar
1/4 cup organic cornstarch
1/2 tsp kosher salt
4 large organic egg yolks
3 cups organic 2% or whole milk
2 TBS organic butter, softened
1 TBS plus 1 tsp organic vanilla

Special Tools:

Whisk
Large liquid measuring cup
Ladle

Here's how:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Place the pie crust on a baking sheet.  Using a fork, poke holes on the bottom of the crust.  Put crust in the oven for 14-16 minutes, until lightly browned, but cooked.

This is the crust I use.  You can use homemade as well.

Place on the cookie sheet, poke and bake.

Crust baked and ready for the filling

Place the sliced bananas in the bottom of the hot crust.  Set aside.

Sliced bananas in the bottom of the crust

Combine sugar, cornstarch and salt in a saucepan.  Whisk together.  Set aside.

This is the brand I use.  Find it at Whole Foods

Dry ingredients whisked together

Combine the egg yolks in a liquid measuring cup, large if possible.  You can use a large bowl it you wish, but you will have to pour from it, so choose wisely.  Whisk together.

Eggs whisked

Place the saucepan with the dry ingredients on the stove top on medium heat.  Heat the ingredients for 30 seconds.  Slowly whisk in the milk.  Heat until the mixture gets thick and then boils, about 10 minutes.  Whisk constantly.

Milk, use a something pourable so it can easily be added

Milk just added to the dry ingredients

Getting there, about 5 minutes

Ready for the egg

Once the liquid boils, turn it off and leave it on the stove.  Ladle 3-4 scoops of the hot mixture into the egg mixture, stirring constantly.  This is called tempering the eggs.  You do this so that you do not scramble the eggs, you just want to heat them to the temperature of the liquid before it is added.  Do not skip this step.

Adding some hot mixture to the eggs

Tempered eggs ready to back into the custard

Once the eggs are tempered, turn the liquid mixture back onto medium heat.  Slowly add the tempered egg mixture into it, whisking constantly.  Bring back to a boil and let boil for one minute.

Custard is ready

Turn the stove off.  Add the butter and vanilla to the hot mixture and whisk in until the butter is melted and the vanilla is incorporated.

Vanilla and butter go in

Vanilla and butter incorporated and ready to go into the crust

Pour the hot liquid over the crust with the bananas.  Do this slowly, as to not move the bananas.              

Pour the custard on top. 

Place plastic wrap on the custard, touching it.  This prevents a skin from forming.  Place the pie in the fridge at least 2 hours until cold and set.  Serve.

Cover with plastic wrap and puts in the fridge