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Dessert

Strawberry Banana Cream Pie

A chilled custard pie with strawberries and bananas, topped with optional whipped cream.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 10 ingredients
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Why it works: Vanilla and banana are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,430 recipes. Both carry ethyl isobutyrate, which smells fruity, ethereal. The science ↓

Strawberry Banana Cream Pie

Oven450°F
Time10 to 15 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Make the custard

  1. In medium saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch and salt.

  2. Blend together egg yolks and milk.

  3. Stir a small amount of the milk mixture into the dry ingredients, making a smooth paste.

  4. Gradually blend in the remaining milk mixture.

  5. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and boils.

  6. Boil, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.

  7. Remove from heat.

  8. Stir in vanilla.

  9. Cool quickly by setting the pan in a bowl of ice or cold water and stirring for a few minutes.

Assemble and chill

  1. Set aside about 1/4 cup strawberry slices for garnish.

  2. Arrange the remaining strawberry slices in the pie shell.

  3. Pour half of the custard mixture over the strawberries.

  4. Top with banana slices.

  5. Cover with the remaining custard mixture.

  6. Cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.

  7. Before serving, top the pie with the reserved strawberry slices.

  8. Garnish with a dollop of whipped cream, if desired.

Bake the pie shell

  1. Line the unbaked pie shell with a 12‑inch square of aluminum foil.

  2. Fill the shell with rice or dried beans or peas.

  3. Cover the rim of the shell with the edges of the foil.

  4. Bake in a preheated 450°F oven until lightly browned at the edges, 10 to 15 minutes.

  5. Lift out the foil and rice.

  6. Cool on a wire rack.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

948Calories
30 gProtein
21 gFat
160 gCarbs

Counts 9 of 10 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 9 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Milk1 cup (244ml) whole149
Banana1 medium (118g)105
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Cream1 tbsp (15ml) heavy51
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Strawberry1 cup (152g)49
Vanilla1 tsp extract (4ml)12
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Pienot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Vanilla + bananatop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,430 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl isobutyrate (fruity, ethereal).

  2. Milk + vanillatop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together19,187 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).

  3. Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together35,032 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

  4. Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together43,450 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).

  5. Milk + bananatop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,470 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).

Sugar and vanilla barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 35,032 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Egg yolks
Thicken the custard as they set and add richness and a smooth texture.
Cornstarch
Thickens the milk mixture into a custard as it cooks and boils.
Milk
Forms the liquid base of the custard that sets when cooked and chilled.
Sugar
Sweetens the custard and balances the tartness of the strawberries.
Bananas
Add sweetness and soft texture between the custard layers.

The step that matters

Boil the custard for 1 minute while stirring constantly. Cornstarch only reaches full thickening after boiling, and stirring prevents lumps and scorching on the pan bottom. Undercooked starch leaves the custard thin and runny once chilled.

Swap the banana

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, egg, milk, vanilla, cream):

  1. Strawberryfits better
  2. Figfits about as well
  3. Coconutfits about as well
  4. Bananathe original

Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, egg, milk, vanilla, cream. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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