Made from scratch, easy Banana Pudding Pie features everything you love about banana pudding, including light as a cloud meringue, sliced ripe bananas, a decadent homemade vanilla custard, and a vanilla wafer crust.
Separate the eggs while they are cold. You will need four egg whites for the meringue and four egg yolks for the custard. Set the whites and yolks aside to come to room temperature.
Pie Crust
Put all of the vanilla wafers in a food processor fitted with a metal blade and process until the wafers are crumbs. Add the melted butter and pulse to thoroughly combine the crumbs and butter.
Pour this crumb mixture into a nine-inch pie plate and firmly press the mixture down onto the bottom and up the sides of the pan. You can use the bottom of a glass with a smooth surface to help press everything down evenly.
Bake the crust for 10-12 minutes or until it has lightly browned. Remove and place on a wire rack. Let cool for 30 minutes.
Arrange the banana slices on the cooled pie crust and set aside.
Meringue
Beat the egg whites and cream of tartar with an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment on medium until they are white and frothy. Increase the speed to high and begin slowly adding the sugar, about a tablespoon at a time. Continue beating the egg whites until stiff, glossy peaks form and the sugar has dissolved.
Vanilla Custard
To make the custard, combine the sugar, flour, egg yolks, eggs, and milk in a medium-size saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk constantly until the custard thickens, this should take from 8-10 minutes. The mixture should be thick and hold soft peaks when the whisk is lifted. Blend in the vanilla extract.
Assembly
Pour the custard over the crust and bananas, and then smooth the surface.
Spread the meringue evenly over the pie. Make sure you spread the meringue all the way to the edges so that it touches the crust. This helps prevent the meringue from weeping.
Bake at 350 F. for 10-12 minutes or until the meringue is golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool for one hour on a wire rack. Chill for four hours before serving.
Notes
It's easier to separate cold eggs, so do that first and then let your egg whites and yolks come to room temperature while you prepare the rest of the pie.When separating the egg whites and yolks, it's okay to get some of the whites mixed in with the yolks, but if you get even a tiny drop of yolk in the egg whites, they will not whip correctly. That's why I use three bowls. I can't tell you how many times I have had to start all over because, separating my last egg, the yolk broke and ran into my whites.When making the custard, do not try and multitask, turn your back for a minute or quit stirring. The custard will burn on the bottom.If there is even a smidge of grease in your bowl, the whites will not whip up correctly.