Recipe - Emerils Banana Cream Pie

5 lg Egg yolks
Three fourths cup Cornstarch
3 cup Heavy cream; 33 1/2
1 One half cup Sugar
1 Vanilla beans; split &
scraped
3 cup Graham cracker crumbs
One half Ripe banana; mashed
One fourth pound Unsalted butter; melted
3 pound Bananas; cut crosswise into
1/2" slices
Three fourths cup Caramel sauce
1 cup Chocolate sauce
2 cup Heavy cream; whipped to
stiff peaks with
One half teaspoon Vanilla extract; and
2 teaspoon Granulated sugar
Shaved chocolate
Powdered sugar

In a mixing bowl, combine the egg yolks, cornstarch and 1 cup of the heavy
cream. Whisk to blend well. Set aside. Combine the remaining 2 cups cream,
1 One half cups of the sugar, and the vanilla bean in a large heavybottom
saucepan over medium heat. Whisk to dissolve the sugar and bring to a
gentle boil, about 10 minutes.

Slowly add the egg yolk mixture, whisking constantly until it thickens,
about 5 minutes. Be forewarned: the mixture will break. Don't be alarmed.
Pour it into a glass bowl. Press a piece of plastic wrap down over the
surface of the mixture to prevent a skin from forming. Let cool completely
at room temperature.

When cooled, remove the vanilla bean and pour the mixture into the bowl of
an electric mixer fitted with a wire whip. Beat at mediumspeed to combine
the mixture. If it will not combine, warm another One half cup heavy cream and
slowly add it to the mixture. Whip until you have a thick and creamy
custard.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a mixing bowl, combine the graham cracker
crumbs, the remaining sugar and the mashed banana. Mix thoroughly. Add the
butter and mix well. Press the mixture into a 9" pie pan. Bake until
browned, about 25 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and cool, for about
10 minutes.

To assemble, spread about One half cup of the custard on the bottom of the
crust. Arrange about a third of the banana slices, crowding them close
together, over the custard. Next, spread 1 cup of the custard over the
bananas. Arrange another third of the banana slices close together over the
custard. Top with 1 cup of the custard and the banana slices. Top with the
remaining custard, covering the bananas completely to prevent them from
turning brown. After this pie is assembled it will come about 23" above
the pie tin; it is a very high pie. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for
at least 4 hours.

Cut the pie into wedges and serve with a drizzle of caramel and chocolate
sauce. Top with the whipped cream and saved chocolate. Sprinkle with
powdered sugar.

Yields: One 9" pie, 810 servings.

Recipe by: Emeril Lagasse’s Creole Christmas Cookbook

Posted to MCRecipe Digest by snardo@OnRamp.NET on Mar 15, 1998