This completely from scratch old-fashioned banana cream pie recipe uses simple ingredients and is a classic crowd-pleaser! This pie uses a homemade vanilla custard with a hint of cinnamon, fresh whipped cream, and sliced bananas. No artificial flavors or box mixes here!

Banana cream pie with a kitchen towel and bunch of bananas in the background.

The family never complains when I start recipe testing and when I was working on this banana cream pie, it was gone within the hour every time I made it! It is truly SO. GOOD.

Even better, I used my from-scratch sourdough discard pie crust for it. The crust is buttery, flaky perfection. I highly recommend making it if you don’t already have a go-to pie crust recipe.

The homemade custard is to die for and seriously THE BEST! It’s based on a vintage recipe I inherited from my grandmother but with updated tweaks and additions. The result is a phenomenal banana cream pie that will stand the test of time.

Why You’ll Love This Banana Cream Pie

The custard is sweet, creamy perfection. I added cinnamon to it to add a bit of extra flavor.
The bottom is lined with sliced bananas. It adds texture and delicious banana flavor (no artificial extracts here!).
Homemade whipped cream is simple to make and really adds to the delicious flavor of this pie.
You can make it the day ahead of time. I like to bake the pie crust and custard the day before I’m planning to serve the pie. Then I make the whipped cream the day of serving for a stress-free day.

A slice of banana cream pie sits on a plate with a fork. The pie has a couple bites taken out of it already.

Try these other sourdough discard recipes!

Prepare the Sourdough Pie Crust

Steps showing how to make sourdough pie crust. The first picture shows the rolled out pie dough. The second shows me fluting or "crimping" the pie crust. The third shows the unbaked pie crust lined with parchment paper and pie weights. The fourth one shows the completely baked sourdough pie crust.

The complete steps and measurements can be found on my sourdough pie crust post, but here is a quick breakdown for you. You can make this pie crust up to 3 days in advance.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Start by preparing the dry ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, and salt until evenly combined.

For an extra flaky crust, grate the cold butter using a box grater or cut it in with a pastry cutter. Add it to the flour mixture, working it in until the texture resembles coarse crumbs, with small, pea-sized pieces of butter remaining.

Mix in the sourdough discard using a fork, stirring gently until the dough starts to come together.

Drizzle in 1/4 cup of ice water, mixing gently—this is where I like to switch to using my hands to help bring the dough together. If it still feels dry or crumbly, add more ice water, one tablespoon at a time, until the dough holds together when pinched. Be careful not to overwork it, as that can make the crust tough.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface, forming it into a cohesive ball. Flatten it into a disc, then divide it in half if making a double crust or saving one for later. Wrap each disc tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (or up to 3 days). If only using one, the second disc can be frozen for up to 3 months.

Once chilled, roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface into a 12-inch circle, about 1/8-inch thick. Carefully transfer it to a 9-inch pie dish, pressing it gently into the edges without stretching. Trim any excess and crimp or flute the edges as desired.

For best results, freeze the crust for 15-20 minutes before baking while preheating the oven to 375°F (190°C).

Line the unbaked crust with parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake at 375°F for 15 minutes.

Remove the parchment paper and weights, then return the crust to the oven and bake for another 12-15 minutes, or until golden brown.

Allow the crust to cool completely before adding the vanilla custard.

Ingredients for Banana Cream Pie

Ingredients for the custard of the banana cream pie: eggs, milk, egg yolks, vanilla extract, cornstarch, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and salt.

For the vanilla custard filling:

Eggs – You will need two eggs and two egg yolks with the egg whites removed (save them for tomorrow morning’s omelet!).
Cornstarch – This helps thicken the custard. You’ll mix this in with the eggs before adding to the rest of the ingredients.
Milk – I use whole milk for a creamy custard filling. In a pinch, you can use skim or 2%.
Salt – Just a pinch does the trick. It helps balance out the sweetness of this custard filling.
Granulated Sugar – This is what adds a sweet flavor to this custard. Alternatively, you could use brown sugar or half brown sugar half granulated.
Cinnamon – Just a bit of this is added to give it a unique flavor. I like to sprinkle a bit of it on top of the finished banana cream pie as well!
Vanilla Extract – This gives the custard an amazing flavor. Add it at the end right after taking the custard off the stove.

Four bananas, heavy cream, powdered sugar, salt, and vanilla extract.

For the sliced bananas and the whipped cream:

Bananas – You don’t want your bananas overripe–fresh bananas are best (unlike the bananas above that are a bit on the overripe side). You don’t want them brown because you’ll be decorating the top of the pie with sliced bananas as well.
Heavy Cream – Very cold heavy cream is perfect for whipped cream. Keep it in the fridge until right before you add it to your mixing bowl to prepare the whipped cream.
Powdered Sugar – Sifting the powdered sugar ahead of time is a good idea to ensure there will be no clumps in the whipped cream.
Salt – Just a hint of salt is added to the whipped cream to add complex flavor to the sweetness of the powdered sugar.
Vanilla Extract – Vanilla extract (because of course) adds so much flavor!

Half of a banana cream pie sits in a pie dish.

Equipment

Mixing bowls (one for eggs, one for whipped cream, and one for cooling custard)
Medium saucepan
Whisk
Measuring cups and spoons
Heatproof spatula or wooden spoon
Plastic wrap
Rolling pin (if making homemade pie crust)
9-inch pie dish
Sharp knife (for slicing bananas)
Electric mixer (for whipped cream)
Piping bag and piping tip (optional, for decorating)
Offset spatula (optional, for spreading whipped cream)

Step-By-Step Instructions

Before making the custard, start by baking your pie crust ahead of time. If you haven’t already, prepare and blind-bake a sourdough discard pie crust or your favorite pie crust recipe until golden brown. Let it cool completely before assembling the pie.

Steps one through four of the banana cream pie recipe. The first picture is a bowl of eggs and cornstarch mixed together. A whisk sits in the bowl. The next picture is the steamed milk mixture in a medium saucepan. The third picture shows me removing a cup of steamed milk. The fourth picture shows me drizzling the steamed milk into the egg mixture.

Step One: In a mixing bowl, whisk together 2 eggs, 2 egg yolks (using 4 total eggs but without the egg whites of 2 of the eggs), and cornstarch. Set aside.

Step Two: Over medium heat on the stove, pour the milk, sugar, salt, and cinnamon into a medium-sized saucepan. Whisk the ingredients together and heat until it’s steaming–it doesn’t need to get to boiling.

Step Three: Scoop about 1 cup of the hot milk mixture out of the saucepan. You will use this to slowly pour into the bowl of eggs.

Step Four: Very slowly, drizzle the cup of steaming milk into the bowl of eggs while whisking continuously. This helps to gradually heat the eggs up to prepare them for the hot saucepan without accidentally scrambling them.

This picture shows steps five through eight. The first picture is one cup of steamed milk with the egg mixture. The next picture shows me drizzling the egg mixture into the saucepan of steamed milk. The third picture is the vanilla custard in the saucepan. The fourth picture is the vanilla custard in a glass mixing bowl with plastic wrap laid over it.

Step Five: After fully incorporating the milk, you will gradually add the egg and milk mixture to the rest of the steaming milk on the stove.

Step Six: Slowly drizzle all the egg and milk mixture into the saucepan, whisking vigorously while doing so.

Step Seven: Continue whisking until the mixture thickens (about 3-5 minutes). Remove from heat. Add the vanilla extract.

Step Eight: Transfer the custard to a clean mixing bowl and top with plastic wrap for about 10 minutes. The plastic wrap prevents the top from forming a film–make sure to lay the plastic wrap right on the custard filling.

This picture shows steps nine through twelve of the process. The first picture is a cooled and fully baked pie crust. The second picture is the pie crust with sliced bananas layering the bottom. The third picture is the pie with the custard in it. The fourth is the pie covered with plastic wrap.

Step Nine: Take out your cooled, pre-baked pie crust.

Step Ten: Line the pie crust with sliced bananas. This takes about 1-1.5 medium-sized bananas depending on how many you add (sometimes I add one simple layer, and sometimes I like to stack them a bit to add more bananas).

Step Eleven: Pour the custard into the pie crust. Spread the custard evenly over the pie crust.

Step Twelve: Line with more plastic wrap (again to prevent a film on the custard). Allow it to chill in the fridge for at least 4-6 hours, but preferably overnight.

The next day (about an hour before you’re ready to serve), prepare the whipped cream.

Step One: Add the heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar, salt, and vanilla extract to a chilled mixing bowl. Use an electric mixer to mix the ingredients on high speed until the ingredients thicken and the cream resembles stiff peaks.

Step Two: Transfer the ingredients to a piping bag, remove the chilled pie from the fridge, and pipe the top of the pie with whipped cream. Alternatively, you can spread the whipped cream with an offset spatula instead.

Decorate with more sliced bananas, sprinkle with more cinnamon, and serve!

A closeup of a slice of banana cream pie.

Storage

Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 2 days.

Homemade Banana Cream Pie with Sourdough Pie Crust