Banana Pudding is a fancy dessert that you get at fancy restaurants, but never make yourself, right? Or it's not even an option because it isn't gluten free. Well, you just wait until you try this recipe. This pudding is phenomenal and couldn't be easier to make. The best part is, I actually like this pudding made with gluten free vanilla wafers much better than with traditional Nilla wafers. The cookies keep their integrity better and have an awesome consistency (not soggy) for several days! The secret to this best banana pudding is making the vanilla pudding yourself. You'll want to just shovel it down before you ever get to assembling the pudding.....but if you can keep some self control, you will be rewarded greatly!
Best Banana Pudding
Serves 8
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 egg
2 egg yolks
¾ cup sugar
4 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
4 tablespoons butter, chopped
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
½ teaspoon salt
1 box gluten free vanilla wafers (we love Kinnikinnick)
4 large bananas, sliced (not overly ripe)
Heat milk and cream in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, stirring often. In a glass measuring cup, whisk together the eggs, sugar, and cornstarch until well blended. Spoon a little of the hot milk over the egg mixture and whisk well. Repeat with another few spoonfuls of the hot milk to temper the eggs. Pour the egg mixture into the saucepan and continue to cook over medium low heat (don’t let it boil) for 5-8 minutes or until thickened and coats the back of a spoon. Once thickened, remove from the heat and stir in the butter, vanilla, and salt. Pour the pudding through a sieve or fine mesh strainer into a container to remove any lumps. Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on top (to prevent a skin from forming on it). Refrigerate for an hour or more, until chilled. Stir well once chilled. To assemble the banana pudding you can use a 9-inch square pan, a large bowl, trifle dish, or individual dishes. Line the bottom of the dish with vanilla wafers. Top with 2 sliced bananas, then 1/2 of the pudding mixture. Repeat with another layer of cookies, bananas, and pudding, then end with a few crushed cookies sprinkled over the top. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4-8 hours before serving.
Step-by-step tutorial:
Gather your ingredients. You will need milk, heavy cream, sugar, eggs, cornstarch, butter, vanilla, bananas, and gluten free vanilla wafers.
Place 1 1/2 cups milk and 1 1/2 cups cream in a saucepan and heat over medium heat (do not boil). In a glass measuring cup, whisk together 1 egg, 2 egg yolks, 3/4 cup sugar, and 4 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch. Slowly whisk in spoonfuls of the hot cream, tempering the egg mixture.
Pour the egg mixture into the milk/cream and cook over medium low heat, stirring constantly. Cook for about 5 minutes or until thickened and the pudding coats the back of the spoon. Add 4 tablespoons butter, 3 teaspoons vanilla........
......and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Stir to combine. Pour the pudding through a fine mess strainer into another dish. This gives you the very smoothest pudding possible. Cover with plastic wrap placed right on top of the pudding so it touches the entire top (to avoid forming a skin) and refrigerate for an hour or until chilled.
To assemble the pudding, cover the bottom of the dish with cookies. Next, slice 2 of the bananas on top. Pour 1/2 of the chilled pudding over the bananas and smooth to cover the whole thing.
Repeat the layers by doing another layer of cookies, 2 more bananas sliced, and the remainder of the pudding. Top it all with about 4-5 cookies crushed.
Cover and refrigerate for 4-8 hours or until well chilled. You will love how the flavors all meld together, and how the cookies keep some of their good texture and don't get soggy.
It really is heaven in a bowl. And was I right about that homemade vanilla pudding?! It's so amazing....I'm thinking I will use it in a trifle next!
You'll never feel deprived of this again!
Recipe Source: Recipe adapted from a recipe on Tastes Better From Scratch