Banana Pudding is a layered dessert with tiers of pudding, wafer cookies, and sliced bananas. This recipe is just sweet enough with a creamy, mousse-like pudding, your choice of vanilla wafers or butter cookies, and ripe bananas. Keep the bananas submerged in the pudding to keep them fresh.
13 oz. box of vanilla or French vanilla pudding mix (instant or cook & serve)
1 ¾cupsmilkskim, 1%, 2%, or whole
1cupheavy whipping cream
2 to 3tablespoonsgranulated sugar
½cupof sour cream
111 oz. package of Nilla wafers OR 2 (7.25 oz.) packages of Chessman butter cookies OR your favorite pudding cookie
3 to 4medium bananasripe
Instructions
Prepare the Vanilla Pudding
Use either Instant Pudding OR Cook & Serve Pudding (NOT BOTH).
For Instant Pudding:
BEAT pudding mix with 1 ¾ cups milk for 2 minutes. Wait for 5 minutes for the pudding to set.
For Cook & Serve Pudding.
STIR pudding mix into 1 ¾ cups milk in a saucepan. Bring to boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. When pudding begins to boil, remove the pan from heat.
COVER the pudding with a piece of plastic wrap. Place the plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pudding.
CHILL in the refrigerator until cool (about 30 minutes).
Mix the Banana Pudding
POUR the heavy whipping cream into a deep bowl. (A deep bowl will contain the cream and prevent excess splashing when the cream is whipped.)
STIR 3 or 4 tablespoons of granulated sugar into the heavy whipping cream. (Sugar amount depends on how sweet you prefer your pudding.)
Using a hand mixer with the WIRE WHIP attachment, WHIP the heavy whipping cream on the highest speed until stiff peaks form. This could take up to 5 minutes. Set aside.
MIX the sour cream into the cool pudding until combined.
FOLD the whipped cream into the pudding mixture until combined.
PEEL and SLICE the bananas into ¼ inch round disks.
Layer the Pudding
SPREAD a thin layer of pudding at the bottom of a serving dish.
COVER the pudding with a layer of cookies.
TOP cookies with a layer of sliced bananas.
GENEROUSLY SPREAD pudding over the bananas, covering them completely.
CONTINUE LAYERING cookies, bananas, and pudding until the serving dish is full. Always end with a layer of pudding completely covering sliced bananas.
COVER and refrigerate 4 hours or up to 24 hours. During this time, the cookies will soften and all the layers of flavor will blend together.
BEFORE SERVING, garnish the pudding with cookie crumbs and freshly sliced bananas.
COVER and refrigerate leftovers up to 72 hours or until the bananas are no longer fresh.