Food recipe: Banana Cream pie

Oh happy day, all of you passionate for pie.

The judging committee of the American Pie Council/Crisco National Pie Championship has just released the recipes from their 18th annual competition, held six weeks ago in Orlando. From hundreds of competitors, we have the top winners in the amateur and professional divisions.

And boy, do they sound yummy.

Peg’s Banana Cream Supreme is the work of John Sunvold of Winter Springs, Fla., a college professor who is no stranger to pie prizes. This is his second Best of Show and seventh first place in this competition. He created the pie based on a favorite childhood dessert, and spent three years perfecting the recipe.

“Since the ingredients make it a top-heavy pie and the graham cracker crust doesn’t offer much support, I really had to work to perfect the recipe,” Sunvold said in a press release. The pie is named after his wife.

Susan Boyle, of DeBary, Fla., won the professional division with her Coffee Toffee Crunch a Bunch Pie. She, too, has many pie honors, winning 15 first place awards in the National Pie Championships since 2007. This is her first Best of Show award. She created it in honor of her father, a coffee shop owner who passed away two years ago. “Coffee Toffee” was one of the shop’s signature drinks, and her father had always asked her to create a pie with the same flavor.

I have to admit, both recipes seem a little complex. But if you love pie, the effort apparently is well worth it.

PEG’S BANANA CREAM SUPREME PIE

Crust:

1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 finely chopped walnuts
3 tablespoons sugar
5 tablespoons melted butter

Mix all ingredients together and press mixture into a 9 or 9 1/2-inch pie plate. Bake in a 375-degree oven for 10 minutes, or until brown. Allow to cool down to room temperature.

Cream Cheese Layer:

6 ounces cream cheese
1/3 cup powdered sugar
6 ounces Cool Whip

Beat cream cheese and powdered sugar until smooth. Fold in the Cool Whip and chill. If you are using a smaller pie pan, make sure you get around a 1/2 inch layer of this cream cheese layer (use the rest for a fruit dip).

Bananas and Cream:

2-4 ripe bananas (should have yellow stems and have a few brown spots).
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup corn starch
1 cup heavy cream
5 egg yolks
1 1/2 cups milk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butter

Mix sugar, salt, and starch in a pot. In a bowl, whisk egg yolks and cream slightly. To the pot, slowly add the milk, then the egg yolk and cream mixture. Heat over medium heat, whisking frequently, until thick and bubbling (but not rapidly boiling). Once the cream is bubbling, continue to cook and whisk for 30 more seconds. Finally, add the butter and vanilla and mix until the cream is smooth. Set aside.

Cut bananas into even pieces. Place a layer of bananas on the cream cheese layer. Try to cover as much as possible as this acts as an insulator and keeps the heat away from the cream cheese. Add a layer of hot cream, a layer of bananas, and then top off the bananas with as much of the cream as possible. Place a plastic sheet over the cream in order to prevent a skin from forming on the cream filling. Place in refrigerator until completely chilled.

2-4 cups sweetened whipped cream
1/8 cup caramel topping
1/4 cup nut topping

Top with your favorite whipped topping (whipped cream recommended, Cool Whip not recommended). Drizzle with (room temperature) caramel sauce and top with a prepared nut topping (such as Fisher Nut Topping). Keep cold. (Tastes better the next day). Serves 8.

— American Pie Council/Crisco National Pie Championship

COFFEE TOFFEE CRUNCH A BUNCH PIE

Crust:

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

1 toffee crunch milk chocolate bar, melted*

Combine crumbs and sugar. Slowly add butter and mix well. Press into bottom and sides of pie plate. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool. Once cool, brush melted toffee crunch milk chocolate bar on bottom and sides of crust before filling. *(Divine is one type of toffee crunch milk chocolate bar, or if you can finely crush up a Heath bar and melt).

Filling:

1 large box vanilla pudding mix

2 cups heavy whipping cream

1/2 cup half and half

1/2 cup strong coffee

1 teaspoon caramel flavoring

5 crushed English toffee bars

1/2 cup caramel ice cream topping

Whip pudding mix, half and half, heavy whipping cream, coffee, and caramel flavoring until creamy but firm. Fold in by hand the crushed toffee bars. Refrigerate for about 15 minutes. Spoon 1/2 cup caramel topping on bottom of pie crust that has been brushed with melted chocolate. Spoon filling on top of caramel layer. Return to refrigerator for 6 to 8 hours.

Garnish:

2 cups heavy whipping cream

1/4 cup sugar

crushed or whole toffee bars

Whip cream and sugar until stiff. Decorate pie as desired with whipped cream and toffee bars.

Source:http://www.cantonrep.com/life/food/x1067106272/Food-recipe-Banana-Cream-pie?zc_p=1