Bananas Foster Pie, Choclatized
I’ve talked a lot about #52WeeksofCooking, a challenge on Reddit that has done a lot to help keep me creative in the kitchen. On Mardi Gras week the theme was, of course, Mardi Gras. I had a great idea for bananas foster beignets, but time got away from me and before I knew it Mardi Gras was over. It’s a bit like blacking out on Bourbon Street, I guess, but with less headache and more dignity. But I knew I wanted to make them still, and when I realized Pi Day was on the horizon, I came up with this bananas foster pie.
You know what Bob Ross says: “Only happy accidents.” It wasn’t until I started making the pie that I realized I didn’t have any vanilla pudding mix, or even banana. All I had was one packet of chocolate pudding. I was afraid that the chocolate would overwhelm the flavors but threw caution to the winds and whipped up the luscious topping without looking back. Thus was born the chocolate bananas foster pie. No need to give me a Purple Heart; it’s all in a day’s work for a baker with no forethought or planning abilities.
Luckily it worked, and this is everything you want from bananas foster pie. Spiced with rum and cinnamon, sweet from caramely brown sugar and bananas, decadent chocolate pudding, and the lightest whipped topping as the proverbial cherry on the cake. So many flavor profiles, so little time. As in, it lasts so little time – I had to stop myself from eating the whole pie in one sitting.
This pie is so easy to put together, that the hardest part is waiting for it to set in the fridge. Be patient and you’ll be rewarded with a neat slice of heaven. Or go animal style and scoop it up with a spoon before it’s set, I’m not your mother. But whatever you do, enjoy. Until next time, here’s to good drinking, great eating, and even better living!
Chocolate Bananas Foster Pie
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick)
- 1/2 cup brown sugar (packed)
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 3 Tbsp dark rum
- 2 bananas (peeled and thinly sliced)
- 1 graham cracker pie crust
- 1 box chocolate pudding (prepared per box instructions)
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- cinnamon or cocoa powder (for dusting)
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, melt the butter with the brown sugar over medium heat. Take off the heat and add the heavy cream, being careful not to let it splatter. Add the vanilla, cinnamon, and rum, then cook for 5-10 minutes to evaporate the alcohol. Add the bananas and cook until warmed through, about 3-5 minutes.
- Pour into the graham cracker crust and let chill in the fridge. While that is cooling, prepare the chocolate pudding mixture and add to the top of the cooled bananas foster mixture. Allow the pie to set in the fridge for at leaest 3 hours, or overnight.
- When ready to serve, use the whisk attachment of a stand mixer to whip the cream and sugar together into whipped cream. Dust with cinnamon or cocoa powder, serve, and enjoy!