This banana cream pie is easy as, well, pie. Can I share a secret with you guys? Just because something is labor-intensive or 100% homemade doesn’t mean it’s the best. Making great food doesn’t have to be hard, and sometimes shortcuts are delicious. This easy banana cream pie is a prime example of exactly that. It utilizes Jell-o pudding and a pre-made graham cracker crust and I guarantee you’ll find it disappears very quickly once served!
Ingredients Needed
This is just a preview of ingredients and method, keep scrolling for full printable recipe.
- Instant vanilla pudding mix – NOT cook and serve. If you want to play around with flavors, that’s totally fine–I always use vanilla because I hate artificial banana flavor and the vanilla pudding will take on the banana flavors from the bananas, but you can get wild and crazy and use butterscotch, cheesecake, chocolate–wherever your pretty little brain takes you.
- Sweetened condensed milk
- Graham cracker or cookie pie crusts – Grab a couple- this recipe makes enough for two pies. You can always make your own Graham Cracker Pie Crust if you’d like as well!
- Bananas – Try to use bananas that are nice and yellow so they are sweet, but not yet browning, so they hold up in your pie and don’t get too soft.
- Heavy whipping cream
- Powdered sugar
How to Make an Easy Banana Cream Pie
- First, mix up some pudding mix, water, and sweetened condensed milk. Set in the fridge to chill.
- In another bowl, whip some heavy whipping cream until soft peaks form. Set aside.
- Line your pie crusts with sliced bananas.
- Retrieve your pudding mix from the fridge and fold in the whipped cream. Divide the pudding mixture between the two pies.
- Whip up some sweetened whipped cream and spread it on top of the two pies. Place the clear plastic shells back on the pies and allow to chill for several hours. This is actually really important–I tried eating it right away once and the pie wasn’t banana-y at all and the moisture hadn’t absorbed into the crust, so the crust just fell apart.
And there you have it–the best AND the easiest banana cream pie you’ll ever have or need!
Storing and Other Tips
- Store leftover pie, tightly covered, in the refrigerator and enjoy within 3-4 days for best results.
- Because the bananas can start to break down, this pie is definitely at it’s best the same day it’s made!
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make banana cream pie ahead of time?
If you’d like to make your pie ahead of time, I recommend omitting the bananas during the assembly process, since they will brown and soften while they sit. Prepare the pudding filling as directed and fill the pie crust, then refrigerate. Immediately before serving, prepare your sweetened whipped cream. Top your pie with the whipped cream and freshly sliced bananas and serve.
Can I use a traditional baked pie crust for this recipe?
If you prefer a traditional pie crust you can absolutely use that in this recipe. You will just need to pre-bake the crust.
Banana Cream Pie
This is the best AND the easiest banana cream pie you’ll ever make.
Servings servings (2 pies)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 3.4- ounce package instant vanilla pudding do not use "cook and serve"
- 1 cup cold water
- 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
- 2 8-serving graham cracker or cookie crusts
- bananas 4-5 small bananas, or 2-3 large ones
- 1 pint heavy whipping cream
- ⅓ cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, combine pudding mix, cold water, and sweetened condensed milk. Mix well and place in the refrigerator to chill for a few minutes.
- In another bowl, whip 1 cup of whipping cream with an electric mixer until soft peaks form.
- Slice the bananas (probably 4-5 small bananas or 2-3 large bananas) and layer them on the bottom of the crusts. Set aside. Be sure and save the plastic domes that come with the pie crusts–you'll need them later!
- Remove pudding from the fridge and gently dollop the whipped cream on top of the pudding. Gently fold the whipped cream into the pudding mixture until well-combined.
- Now divide the mixture between the two pies. Rinse the pudding bowl and beaters and set aside for later.
- Place the clear plastic shells back on the pies and allow to chill for several hours. This step is very important, as without it the crust will fall apart, and it will lack flavor.
- If possible, immediately before serving, combine the remaining heavy cream and ⅓ cup powdered sugar in the bowl you mixed the pudding in and beat with an electric mixer on high until soft peaks form. Spread over the pies. (If you can't do this immediately before serving, it's okay to do the whipped cream step after you put the pudding mixture in the shells.)
Notes
- Store leftover pie, tightly covered, in the refrigerator and enjoy within 3-4 days for best results.
- Because the bananas can start to break down, this pie is definitely at it’s best the same day it’s made!
- If you’d like to make your pie ahead of time, I recommend omitting the bananas during the assembly process, since they will brown and soften while they sit. Prepare the pudding filling as directed and fill the pie crust, then refrigerate. Immediately before serving, prepare your sweetened whipped cream. Top your pie with the whipped cream and freshly sliced bananas and serve.
- Chunky Monkey Variation: Blend 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter into the pudding/water/sweetened condensed milk mixture (before you fold in the whipped cream). Continue as directed but place in a chocolate cookie crust. Sprinkle with honey roasted peanuts just before serving.
Nutrition
Calories: 140kcal, Carbohydrates: 11g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 11g, Saturated Fat: 7g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.5g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3g, Cholesterol: 33mg, Sodium: 58mg, Potassium: 30mg, Fiber: 0.05g, Sugar: 10g, Vitamin A: 435IU, Vitamin C: 0.2mg, Calcium: 21mg, Iron: 0.04mg
Calories: 140kcal
Cost: $5
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Questions & Reviews
We absolutely adore this pie. It’s super easy and sooo yummy! I do have one question, though… Can you freeze it? We have a small family and by the time we get through the first one, the second one is usually on the verge of yuck.
I’ve never frozen it, but we’ve had readers say it was great frozen, so you could try!
Just wondering wondering, how far in advance can you make this pie?
i made one banana creme & one peanut butter (no bananas) with this recipe. I used a lg box of pudding & upped the milk & whipped cream a bit. For the peanut butter pie I used one cup pb, a chocolate crust, & topped with mini Ghiradelli chocolate chips. They were both so good & easy! The banana was especially good the next day. There was a small scuffle between my husband & oldest son over the last pc of PB pie:)
How would I half this recipe to make just one pie? Please help ASAP!
Delicious! We had this tonight! Thanks for sharing all your yummy recipes! We are fans of you!
I’ve made this pie twice and followed the recipe to the T both times and BOTH times it just wouldnt set despite refrigerating overnight. THe whole pie was just so runny and I really don’t know what I did wrong. 🙁 It’s really upsetting because the cream tastes so good but it’s just like eating soup out of a graham cracker crust.
WHAT AM I DOING WRONG??!?!
Are you using instant pudding and not the kind you have to cook? That’s the only thing I can think of. How frustrating!
oh poo you’re right. =[ I just used the pudding boxes I had sitting in my pantry without checking if it was the one you have to cook. All I checked was the flavor and serving size.
oh well :\
better luck next time I guess.
*sighh*
…third times a charm.
#1 I made this recipe for my boyfriend the first time I cooked a dinner for him when we were dating. He fell in love with it. The only change I made was that since I didn’t have a “pie pan” I made it in a 9×13… So I needed to figure out a crust. I dug in my Grandma’s old cookbooks and paired your banana cream pie filling with a macadamia nut shortbread crust… and HELLO can you say HEAVEN!!
#2 All the initial comments on this post talking about UNCLE BOB!! Awww… my dad was an Uncle Bob 🙂
I am just wondering if I can use 1 cup milk instead of 1 cup water in the pudding mixture? wouldn’t the milk make it richer and more creamy?
Sure! Although it’s already pretty rich and creamy. But it wouldn’t make it worse. 🙂
It does not take an hour of stirring over a hot stove to make a scratch Banana Cream Pie.
My double thick all scratch pie, from the Martha Belle lard crust to the Grandma Lena sweetened whip cream top, takes three repeat plays of Barry White’s All-Time Greatest Hits CD, plus a little more. You can only request this pie once a year at our house, for your birthday. It is a true labor of love. But, as Barry says, “Baby, you can feel the love, and you can taste the love.”
Big Hint: Use Pillsbury Softasilk cake flour to make things smooth as silk.
My sister fed this to me tonight and in no time at all, there was absolutely no evidence of any pie on my plate. at. all. Yum-o-riffic!
…now I want to try one Chunky Monkey style, and instead of adding the peanuts, add some Reese’s PB cups, roughly chopped. Oh yeah!