Recreate the magic of Marie Callender’s beloved banana cream pie with this authentic copycat recipe that captures every creamy, dreamy layer. This old-fashioned dessert combines silky homemade vanilla custard, perfectly ripe bananas, and billowy fresh whipped cream in a flaky pastry crust. Unlike shortcuts that rely on instant pudding, this recipe delivers restaurant-quality results through traditional techniques that create the rich, complex flavors Marie Callender’s is famous for.
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Table of Contents
Why This Recipe Works
The secret to Marie Callender’s exceptional banana cream pie lies in the homemade vanilla custard base. By cooking milk, sugar, and cornstarch together until properly thickened, you create a custard with superior texture and flavor compared to instant alternatives. The addition of cream cheese provides richness and tang that balances the sweetness, while fresh bananas contribute natural fruit flavor that can’t be replicated with artificial extracts. The careful layering technique ensures every bite contains the perfect ratio of creamy custard, fresh fruit, and airy whipped cream.
What makes this recipe unique?
Unlike some pies, this recipe does not start with instant pudding, but you will prepare a homemade vanilla pudding to make this cream pie. Fresh ripe bananas make for a much richer and more in-depth flavor. Instead of using a graham cracker crust or a nilla wafer crust, the base of the pie is a homemade pie crust. I know this recipe will soon become one of your favorite pies. Homemade pudding makes a huge difference in flavor.
Homemade Banana Cream Pie Ingredients
One thing I love about this recipe is that it can be made with everything you may already have in your kitchen!
For the Pie Base:
- Baked pie crust – Provides the essential crispy foundation that contrasts beautifully with creamy filling
- Fresh ripe bananas – Choose bananas with yellow skin and slight brown spots for optimal sweetness and flavor
For the Vanilla Custard:
- Cream cheese – Adds richness and subtle tang that elevates the custard beyond basic pudding
- Granulated sugar – Sweetens the custard while helping create proper texture through caramelization
- Cornstarch – Essential thickening agent that creates smooth, sliceable custard without grittiness
- Salt – Enhances all flavors and balances sweetness in the custard
- Evaporated milk – Contributes concentrated dairy richness and helps achieve a silky texture
- Whole milk – Provides the liquid base while maintaining creamy mouthfeel
- Large egg yolks – Create richness and help thicken the custard through coagulation
- Unsalted butter – Adds a luxurious finish and helps create a glossy, smooth custard
- Pure vanilla extract – Provides the signature flavor that defines classic banana cream pie
For the Whipped Cream Topping:
- Heavy whipping cream – Creates a light, airy topping that balances the rich custard
- Powdered sugar – Sweetens whipped cream without the grittiness of granulated sugar
- Pure vanilla extract – Enhances the cream’s flavor and ties together all components
For Garnish:
- Sliced almonds – Add delicate crunch and visual appeal to the finished pie
Healthier Variation
To replace cream cheese with a slightly healthier option, you can use Neufchatel. It is similar in texture to cream cheese but lower in fat and higher in calcium.
Also, if you want to lower the sugar content, you can swap out the sugar for stevia or organic cane sugar.
If you do not want to use a pastry pie crust, you may want to use a graham cracker crust or a Nilla wafer crust.
How to Make Banana Cream Pie
- Heat the sugar, cornstarch, salt, evaporated milk, and milk until it thickens and boils for a minute.
- Then you will carefully mix the hot milk mixture with the egg yolks.
- After the egg yolk mixture is incorporated, heat everything again until it begins to boil. Then, add the cream cheese and mix it all together.
- Take the pan off the heat, add the vanilla and butter, and mix until combined. Let it stand for 15 minutes.
- Then just pour it into the baked pie shell in a pie pan, putting an even layer of bananas halfway through.
- Mix all of the whipped cream ingredients, top the banana cream layer with the freshly made homemade whipped cream, and garnish with sliced almonds.
How do you blind-bake pastry?
When you bake pie pastry, it can balloon up. To avoid this, you need to use a fork to poke holes into the bottom of the pan.
After that, line the crust with parchment paper and pour some dried beans. The beans will help weigh down the pie crust while it bakes and forms into the pan. Instead of beans, you could use pie weights.
Storage & Reheating Instructions
- Refrigerator Storage: Store covered in refrigerator for up to 4 days. Cover tightly with plastic wrap to prevent absorption of other flavors and maintain freshness.
- Reheating Method: This pie is served chilled and does not require reheating. Remove from the refrigerator 10 minutes before serving for easier slicing.
- Freezing: It freezes well for up to 4-5 months. When frozen, the texture becomes more ice cream-like. Thaw in the refrigerator for 10 minutes before serving for easier cutting.
Favorite Banana Recipes
Popular Pie Recipes
- Cherry Cream Cheese Pie
- Chocolate Pudding Pie
- Impossible Coconut Custard Pie
- Kool-Aid Pie
- Lemon Meringue Pie
- Millionaire Pie
- Sour Cream Blueberry Pie
- Sugar Free Apple Pie
Check out my easy pie recipes and the best copycat restaurant recipes here on CopyKat!
Marie Callender’s Banana Cream Pie Easy Copycat
Ingredients
Banana Cream Pie Crust and Filling
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups evaporated milk
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk
- 4 egg yolks, beaten
- 1/4 cup whipped cream cheese softened and beaten
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons butter softened
- 1 9-inch pastry pie crust, baked and cooled
- 2 sliced bananas
- 1/8 cup sliced almonds
Fresh Whipped Cream Topping
- 3/4 cup chilled whipping cream
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a 2-quart saucepan, mix the sugar, cornstarch, salt, evaporated milk, and whole milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture thickens and boils for 1 minute. Remove from the heat.
- To temper the eggs, slowly pour half of the hot pudding into the egg yolks in a mixing bowl, whisking constantly until completely incorporated. Then return the egg mixture to the saucepan with the other half of the pudding and continue to cook on medium heat until it reaches the boiling stage again.
- Add cream cheese and mix thoroughly with an electric hand mixer. It will dissolve the cream cheese better and make the pudding lighter and creamier.
- Remove from the heat and add the vanilla and butter. Keep using the mixer until all is blended.
- Let the pudding stand for about 15 minutes, but while it’s still warm, pour half of the pudding into the pie shell. Add a layer of bananas. Then pour the remainder of the pudding on top.
- To make the whipped cream: Pour the whipping cream into a chilled glass or metal bowl and beat until soft peaks form. Gradually add powdered sugar until all has been blended. Then slowly add the vanilla until it has also been blended. The mixture should have stiff peaks.
- When the pie has completely cooled, top with fresh whipped cream and garnish with sliced almonds. The whipped cream can be piped through a pastry bag for added effect.
can you make it with whole eggs. i don’t care for recipes that use only part of the egg, leaving me with head scratching as to what to do with the rest. lol
I have not made the recipe this way, typically a pastry cream is made with yolks only.
I just made this and I have a few things to say about it. This is a good pie and it is the kind of pie my grandmother would have made, totally a classic banana cream pie.
As I made the custard, I added the vanilla. I tasted it and I wondered what it would be like if I added banana flavoring. I added about 1/2 teasoon of banana flavoring. In general, it was not a good idea. The banana flavoring seemed to throw it off balance and I had to add a few tablespoons of sugar to bring it back. So, if you want to try adding banana flavoring, only add a hint…and if you go to far a few spoon fulls of sugar might help. But don’t go to far on the sugar, this pie is not meant to be super sweet.
Next, I used the smaller sized store bought graham pie crust. The graham part of the crust was fine, but next time I would use the larger size of store bought crust. The banans and whiped cream make this pie and I added extra layers of bananas and a thick topping of whipped cream (I used cool whip to save time).
Lastly, what I would say is that this is not a pie I would make for a pot luck. I would just make it to have at home. This pie is a bit messy to slice and pull out (especially if you cheat like me and add extra layers of bananas). If you want to do something with banans for a pot luck, a banana pudding you can spoon out is a better choice.
Over all a good not too sweet pie to serve on a lazy Sunday afternoon.
It is amazing how a tiny change in a recipe than through off other parts of it. I bet this would be good with a tiny bit of banana flavoring. I appreciate the changes you made the to the pie. This pie was to mimic Marie Callendars, and they did not add the extra layers of bananas, but I bet it would be very good lie that!
This was delicious! The whole family loved it!