Ground vanilla wafers in a food processor until fine crumbs form.

Melt the butter in the microwave for about 30 - 45 seconds, stir with a fork to dissolve any remaining solid butter. Drizzle melted butter over the cookie crumbs while the food processor is running, then process for an additional 10 - 20 seconds until the mixture is the texture of wet sand.

Turn the mixture out into a pie dish and press into the bottom and sides of the pan to form a crust.

Freeze (or refrigerate) until ready to use.

In a large mixing bowl or in your stand mixer bowl, beat 1 ½ cup of heavy whipping cream with 3 tablespoons of granulated sugar and ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract until stiff peaks form. Place whipped cream in the refrigerator until ready to use.

In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the instant banana cream pudding with 2 cups of milk for 2 minutes until the mixture thickens.

Fold a third to half of the whipped cream into the pudding until thoroughly incorporated and smooth. Set it in the fridge while you prepare the bananas.

Peel and cut the bananas into slices, add a layer of sliced bananas to the bottom of the prepared pie crust. Add some pudding mixture on top to fill in all the crevices between the banana slices. Add another layer of banana slices if you wish, then add the remaining pudding mixture on top and even it out with a spatula.

Pile the remaining whipped cream on top or pipe it around the border and the middle of the pie if you want a neater look.

Decorate with some whole vanilla wafers and crumbs. Refrigerate a couple of hours or overnight to allow the filling to set further and serve cold.