Guest Blogger: Summer of Pie

Hello, my name is Stacie and I'm addicted to dessert.

This summer, I've unintentionally found myself hooked on pies. I've done fruit, and I've done chocolate. But for my husband's birthday a few weeks ago, I knew I had to make his favorite- banana cream- and I wasn't looking forward to it. No matter how I try, I just don't like bananas. Mash 'em and bake 'em up in bread, and I can't stop eating them. But just a slice of banana? No thanks.

Enter the perfect solution to banana cream pie: chocolate. Also goes by Black Bottom Banana Cream Pie. Have you seen her? The perfect marriage of fruit and chocolate. So good, I didn't even pick the bananas out. That's saying something.

Black Bottom
Banana Cream
Pie

Oreos
3 1/2 tbsp. butter, divided
1 1/2 c. whipping cream, divided
1/2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
4 tsp. vanilla, divided
1 1/2 c. half & half
1/2 c. sugar
2 tbsp. flour
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
2 tbsp. powdered sugar
Chocolate curls
Bananas

Crust: Spray a 9-inch pie plate with Pam. Mix 2 1/2 c. crushed oreos with 2 1/2 tbsp. melted butter. (I just used one bag of the mini oreos and it was perfect- and cheaper than a full package.) Press into bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch pie plate. Chill for 30 minutes.

Ganache: In a saucepan, heat 1/2 c. whipping cream with 1 tbsp. butter. Heat until it's hot but not boiling. Add 1/2 c. semi-sweet chips and 1 tsp. good vanilla. Stir till smooth. Pour into crust and chill for 30 minutes.

Arrange thin slices of banana on the ganache, top with 1/2 the vanilla pastry cream, arrange more thin slices of banana on top, and spread remaining vanilla pastry cream over top.

Vanilla Pastry Cream: In a saucepan, heat 1 1/2 c. half & half until it's simmering. In a separate bowl, whisk together 1/2 c. sugar, 2 tbsp. flour, 2 eggs, and 1 egg yolk. Gradually whisk into hot half & half. Bring mixture to a boil and boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and add 2 tsp. vanilla. Cover with plastic wrap and let cool in fridge at least 2 hours.

Vanilla Whipped Cream: Beat 1 c. whipped cream, 2 tbsp. powdered sugar, and 1 tsp. vanilla until stiff. Once vanilla pastry cream and bananas are on pie, spread vanilla whipped cream on top and save some to spoon mounds around the edge. Top with chocolate curls and enjoy!

Not sure how to make chocolate curls? I followed this tutorial and loved how they turned out. I used about 1/2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips because I didn't have any Baker's on hand.

Tip: since this pie is step-intensive, I suggest making the vanilla pastry cream first, since it has to chill for a few hours. You can also make the oreo crust at that point and let it start chilling as well. From there it shouldn't be too bad.

See you in a few weeks with another dessert!