Banana cream pie

“We decided to make banana cream pie. We wanted our dish to be unhealthy so that the "healthifying" of the pie would be a challenge. We looked up substitutions for butter, heavy cream, half and half and eggs. We were weirded out by the look of the “healthy pie” while baking, but it tasted pretty good!” —Emily Clarke and Chelsea McNay
 
Ingredients:
1 1/4 cup silken (soft) tofu, mashed
3 cups low-fat milk
1 3/4 cups white sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 teaspoons vanilla
About 15 ice cubes
1 1/2 cups reduced-fat vanilla wafers
1/4 cup melted butter
3-4 bananas
1 1/2 cup plain, fat-free yogurt
3 tablespoons powdered sugar
 
Directions:
1 Fill a large bowl with the ice and some water. Set aside.

2 Whisk together the tofu, cornstarch, and 1 cup of the milk in a medium bowl.

3 Put the rest of the milk (2 cups) into a large saucepan and add the sugar. Heat on stovetop until it boils. Leave the heat on, and slowly whisk 1/2 cup of the hot milk and sugar mixture into the tofu and milk bowl. Then, whisk that into the rest of the hot milk and sugar. Wait for it to boil, stirring constantly, and then after it boils keep stirring for 1 minute (or until thickened.) Add the vanilla, and whisk until smooth. This creates a custard.

4 Place the custard into a medium bowl, then place the bowl into the bowl of ice water, stirring occasionally until it cools. Refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.

5 Meanwhile, start on the crust. Preheat the oven to 350º. Put the wafers in a Ziploc bag and then use a rolling pin to crush them until there are no large chunks left. Pour the wafer crumbs into a 9-inch pie pan and add the melted butter, mixing until they form a crust. With your hands, firmly press the crust into the pan. Bake for 20 minutes, or until lightly browned. Remove from oven and cool to room temperature.

6 Peel and slice the bananas into rounds 1/4-inch thick. Arrange half of them in an even layer in the bottom of the crust. Spoon half of the cooled custard over the bananas and spread smooth. Put the rest of the bananas over the custard and cover with the rest of the custard.

7 Refrigerate the pie for at least 2 hours.

8 Whip the yogurt with an electric mixer on medium speed for a minute. Add the powdered sugar and mix for 2 minutes. If it tastes too sour, you can add some white sugar. Spoon the yogurt mixture over the custard and refrigerate the pie until you are ready to serve it.

Taste-tester said:
"Very creamy and pudding-like, but good." Deshon Woodson, 17, Ofman Learning Center

"Surprisingly really tasty and sweet considering there was a tofu substitute somewhere in there. It was a bit runny but still good and healthy!" Jennifer Carcamo, 17, High Tech High—L.A.