Banana Pudding Pie

This Banana Pudding Pie features caramelized bananas, homemade vanilla pudding, lots of sweet, crunchy vanilla wafers, and a classic torched meringue topping. Today’s pie recipe is a delicious reinvention of a classic!

Southern Banana Pudding is an heirloom family recipe and a classic Southern dessert! Usually, I’m not a huge fan of bananas unless they’re baked into bread or sitting on either side of a few scoops of ice cream. But, when it comes to a good ‘ole fashioned banana pudding, I change my tune. 

I’ve shared a Homemade Banana Pudding recipe here on GBC before but today we’re remixing things a bit. Why? Because y’all know I just can’t help myself! 

Banana Pudding Pie is my take on an iconic Southern treat. A buttery wafer crust is filled with creamy vanilla pudding, caramelized bananas, and fluffy meringue to create the dreamiest bite you’ve ever had! 

I recently featured a Homemade Banana Pudding recipe on my website that I got from Carla Hall’s book, Soulfood. It reminded me of the first version of any type of banana pudding I ever made, which is this banana pudding pie. I can remember my family making banana pudding a few times when I was growing up, but it was never my favorite. Well, it’s definitely a favorite of my husband’s family. While growing up, banana pudding was a mainstay dessert for any holiday or family get together in the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s. I wanted to put a twist on the clichéd banana pudding recipe and that’s how I came up with this pie.

Ingredients

• VANILLA WAFERS- of course, any brand of wafer will work but I used the most common brand. I’ll give ya a hint, it rhymes with Willa Nafers! 

• UNSALTED BUTTER- if you want to add a salty-sweetness to this recipe, go ahead and use salted butter instead. 

• BANANAS- for the best result, you’ll want to use bananas that are fully yellow with a light speckle of brown. Riper than that and you’ll have a mushy mess. Greener and you won’t get enough banana-ey goodness. 

• LIGHT BROWN SUGAR- dark brown sugar is a great choice too! 

• GROUND CINNAMON- a little warm spice goes a long way in adding flavor to this recipe. 

• GRANULATED SUGAR- cane sugar will also work! 

• AP FLOUR- flour thickens the pudding. 

• EGGS- egg also works as a thickener in this recipe; they stabilize the pudding and help to develop a thick, decadent vanilla cream filling. 

• WHOLE MILK- I’ve not attempted this recipe with anything other than full-fat milk. If you choose to do so, let me know how it went in the comments! Otherwise, use whole milk for a smooth, creamy pudding. 

• VANILLA EXTRACT- pure vanilla extract works best.  

How to Make Banana Pudding Pie

If you’ve made homemade pie in the past, then making this pie recipe will be a snap! 

Here’s how you’re gonna do it: 

• Make the crust- first, you gotta make the pie crust which consists of a combination of crushed vanilla wafers and melted butter. This sweet, crunchy, buttery base is where it’s at y’all! 

• Caramelize the bananas- to add a bit of a caramel touch to this pie, I cooked down the bananas with brown sugar, cinnamon, and butter. The result is similar to a banana foster recipe. YUM! Once cooked, place the bananas on top of the crust. 

• Cook up a cream filling- homemade vanilla pudding was the only way to go. It’s creamy, smooth, indulgent, and wonderfully aromatic. Layer your vanilla cream filling on top of the caramelized bananas.
• Vanilla Wafers- Add a layer of more vanilla wafers, then spoon on the rest of the filling. 

• Whip up the meringue- rather than the traditional whipped cream, I chose to go with a whipped meringue. Similar to fluff, this light and airy topping is sweet and sticky in all the best ways! Spread your homemade meringue over the top of the pie. 

• Bake, chill, and serve- bake this pie for 10-12 minutes at 350 degrees, then remove it from the oven to let it chill for an hour. Crush a couple handfuls of vanilla wafers and sprinkle over the top before you cover the pie with plastic wrap and chill it in the fridge for at least 4 hours. 

Storing Leftover Banana Pudding Pie

Any leftover Banana Pudding Pie can either be covered with plastic wrap or transferred to an airtight container, then refrigerated for up to 3 days. Note that the longer you keep pudding in the fridge, the more it loses its flavor and texture. I would not recommend attempting to freeze this pie. 

More Banana Pudding Inspired Recipes

There are more ways than one to enjoy some banana pudding! Try out a few more of my FAVORITE recipes to find your go-to: 

• Banana Pudding Cheesecake Bars
• Banana Pudding Tiramisu
• Bananas Foster Bread Pudding
• Skinny Banana Milkshakes
• Banana Pudding Pound Cake