How To Make Homemade Banana Pudding
I LOVE and adore banana pudding, real banana pudding. By real I mean the kind where you make the pudding from scratch and pour it warm over a bowl of yummy Nilla wafers and fresh cut bananas. That stuff with boxed pudding mix cannot even come close to how this tastes. If you think you’ve had banana pudding before and it involved a boxed pudding mix…THAT was not banana pudding! THIS is Banana Pudding!
The complete recipe is listed at the bottom of this page. I always insist on Nilla brand wafers. I am not a big brand person (alright, I do have a thing about White Lily flour), but if you’re going to make banana pudding, might as well do it right. For my Banana pudding, we won’t be doing a meringue. I like meringue but know far too many people who don’t. Plus that adds an extra step, which may be a wee bit complicated for someone who has never made it before. If you want to make a meringue and don’t know how, just visit my Lemon Meringue pie tutorial for complete instructions along with pictures!
I just want you to make the pudding, I don’t want you to feel you have to sit through an entire culinary class. That having been said, if you put Cool whip or any type of refrigerated dairy topping on this divine concoction after we are done making it, I will personally hunt you down and haunt you for the rest of your life. ~sweet smile~ We’re going to do this right
Put a layer of Nilla wafers in the bottom of a medium sized mixing bowl. Slice a banana over the top. Repeat these layers until you’ve used up all your Nilla wafers and bananas. It really is important that you put Nilla wafers first, by the way. These are going to soak up all the yummy pudding that settles at the bottom of your bowl.
I use a mixing bowl because that is what my mother always used. She had this Corning green glass mixing bowl, it was enormous. She must have made at least two recipes of banana pudding each time she made it. Seeing that bowl on the counter was always a welcome sight!
Crack your three eggs and separate the whites from the yolks. Since we aren’t making a meringue, we won’t be using the whites. You can save them for another use or throw them away (which I did because….I just care about my banana pudding right now.)
Place 1/3 cup flour, 1/2 cup sugar (or Splenda), and a dash of salt in a saucepan. You can use a double broiler for this and not have to fret over it so much, but I just like living on the edge. Muhahaha! My trick for substituting Splenda for sugar in this is to always use just a wee bit less than the recipe calls for. If it calls for a cup of sugar, I might do a cup minus two tablespoons of Splenda. To me, that keeps it from tasting artificial.
Add milk to saucepan.
When you are done stirring it up it will look something like this.
Now settle in and BE PATIENT. You need to stir the pot constantly, scraping the bottom so none of it gets a chance to stick and scorch. This will take about fifteen minutes so I usually get something to read while I stand there and stir because I don’t think I’ve ever “just” done one thing for fifteen minutes straight.
Today I read a few articles from the new issue of PopSci. I love that magazine. This one shows you how you can turn your iPod or even iPhone into a projector that will project movies onto your wall up to 5′ x 7′! All you need are a small cosmetic mirror, a cardboard box, some tape, and a lense from an old slide projector. I actually want to do this. Anyone have an old slide projector? ~grins~
Seriously, be patient, keep stirring, don’t turn the heat up past four. This is going to take a long time and do nothing, but then ALL OF A SUDDEN it will be thicker.
Yes, I need to clean my stove. I started to photoshop that out but then decided…..”eh”.
Now, your pudding isn’t going to get super thick, but after about fifteen minutes of stirring, it will suddenly get thicker. The consistency will be about what that boxed pudding is right after you mix it before it sets well. TAKE IT OFF THE EYE! Quick! we don’t want it to scorch or keep getting thicker. Now if you end up with scorched pudding or lumpy pudding, just use it anyway and pay attention to me when I tell you to slow down next time!
Add a teaspoon of vanilla and stir.
Immediately pour over your bananas and wafers.
Let this sit for about five minutes so the pudding has time to soak into the wafers. THIS IS SO GOOD! Eat it warm, then refrigerate leftovers. I prefer to eat the leftovers cold. YUMM!
Ingredients Instructions
Enjoy!
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Posted by Christy Jordan
on Jul 9 2008. Filed under Dessert, FEATURED Southern Favorites!, Southern Classics.
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There is nothing mote comforting then a great big dish of banana pudding and I have never made homemade pudding before always made it.with the boxed stuff. Going grocery shopping in the morning think I will be making some (real) homemade banana pudding this weekend. Thanks Christy.
I love anything banana — the book sounds wonderful.
Christy,
I too love banana pudding but, not the instant pudding kind. I love making it and love it warm or cold. Many times I’ve been to places where they have it on the menu and when I get it and take a bite it’s from a box.
Every time I make it, it takes me right back to my childhood.
Have a Blessed Day,
Diane
My husband’s favorite! : )
This reminds me of my Great Aunt Ruth’s banana pudding. Yum.
Made this last night and it didn’t even last 24 hours in my household of 3, lol! My 16 yr old finished it for breakfast this morning, ha! Good stuff!!
Looks good!
Mmmmmmm! I havent had REAL nanna puddin in a long time, think I’ll make some.
wow girl i want some of my grandma banna pudding !
My Mom used to make Banana Pudding, she wasn’t a very good cook (my Dad and Step dad were great cooks) but she could make wonderful puddings. She can’t cook anymore, just starting dementia. I am going to try this recipe and see if she remembers how wonderful hers were also. Thanks Christy, she’s been asking for this for awhile.
Banana pudding is such a good Southern thing! Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Oh the memories this brings to my heart. My momma made Banana Puddin every once in a while and it was such a treat ! I loved it , thank you for the memory!
I make this all the time for my hubby. This recipe is wonderful and so easy. I also read a book on my iPad while stirring. My hubby loves pineapple, so I change out the bananas for pineapple tibits and it is perfect. Thanks so much for all the wonderful recipes
This looks fantastic. Can’t wait to try it. Thanks.
I love banana pudding especially home made and this is how I found your
site as I was looking for a good homemade banana pie also found out that is
how you started out (a blog I believe) and got very good response and it just
kept growing and I am so glad I found your site. When I was a teenager, I loved
reading. I would sit on the porch in the summer drinking homemade ice tea and reading books. One of my favorite authers was Grace Livingstion Hill. Her
writing made everything so visual and she was a Christian. She wrote many
books like a series. She wrote about Cape Cod in one of the stories and I said
to myself then, I am going to Cape Cod someday and I actually did get to do
that many times as I moved very close to that place.
I am so glad you found me Violet!!! I have always loved getting lost in a good book. I have read a few of hers and loved them as well!!
I spelled author wrong and also the author’s name.
The author’s name was Grace Livingston Hill. I was typing too fast and hit
the wrong key.
I do that a lot Violet!!
Sounds like my kind of book! Thanks!
My daughter and I would like to thank you for having a actual homemade recipe. We have seen many that are called homemade but homemade does not come out of a box…… Thank You Very Much!!!!!!
This banana pudding is delicious! It is very good cold as well; didn’t last long in my house. My son’s roommate had never had banana pudding before and was blown away! He went on and on about how good it was.
Thanks so much for the recipe!
I love banana pudding & I’m used To buying it from pollmans bake shop, but I used this recipe last night & never will I go to pollmans again! This is a great recipe & not only that it only took me 25 minutes to do EVERYTHING! Thanks it was great!
OMG! Just made this. It is so good and easy to make!!!
This is the very same recipe thats on the Nilla waffer box!
Thank you! So easy and yummy, perfect because I didn’t have cornstarch, evaporated milk and various other ingredients I’ve seen for banana pudding on hand. I also appreciate that I didn’t have to worry about tempering the pudding. This will be a “go to”!
I am so glad you liked it Amalia!!!
can i make the custard part the night before and then put the pudding together in the morning?
thanks, this sounds like a great pudding,
That’s what home made bananna pudding should look like
Just wanted to say … Thanks for the entertaining comments mixed into the recipe!! Can’t wait to try it!
Love this recipe, try adding coconut & nuts(pecans) on the top
Oh so good……………….
Once you get making the custard technique down you can make ANY pudding flavor. I’ve use this same custard base and melted chocolate in it for chocolate pies and just plain chocolate pudding. I have also added a can of drained crushed pineapple to the custard when making the banana pudding. It’s wondermous. When taking as a covered dish I triple the recipe and take it in a throw away lasagna pan. You can’t get more southern! I cover mine in Italian meringue most of the time to use up the egg whites but it’s also delicious topped with Cool Whip (extra creamy of course) Who’s worrying about calories? You’re eating nanner puddin! LOL
I love banana pudding and this sounds good. I make mine a little differently. I use a double boiler and my recipe only take about 8 minutes to cook.
I never thought about putting ALL the bananas and wafers in layers at the same time and just pouring the pudding over all of it. I usually make layers of the pudding, bananas, and cookies. I need to try it this way to see if it tastes the same. (And I have never used Meringue on top!–So was glad to see you didn’t)
My husband passed away last year. He made the most delicious homemade banana puddin. Couldn’t find the recipe. Now i have thanks to you. Thankyou. My son and I will enjoy this puddin in remembrance of him.
Oh my goodness, I am so glad that you found it too Shari! So sorry to hear about your loss, you are in my thoughts and prayers.
I just made this and OMG it is fantastic. First time I have ever made home made pudding. I love it. Next time I will double the batch.
I am so glad to hear that you liked it Jo!!!
I am so going to try this. This recipe looks perfect. I have been seeing this man that I am all in for. He knows I cook and I’m pretty good at it. The other day he stops and asked with all seriousness if I were able to make banana pudding. I haven’t made banana pudding in years and it was only the quick and dirty kind (box pudding and something like vanilla wafers). He deserves the real deal so I’m going to try this (several times until i get it right) and see what he thinks.
Thanks
The future Mrs….:)
I just made this banana pudding….I can’t wait to try it. My pudding thickened up faster than I expected (7 minutes)….so I hope it’s still yummy and not too thick to get to the Nillas and Nanas on the bottom of my dish!
Making it for Thanksgiving, doing a test run today, can’t wait. Thanks Christy
thanks so much this is the recipe my mom used .i just couldnt remember how much of each ingredients i needed..this will be the first pudding ive made for my husband .but i just got married last year so im very thankful for you and this recipe..have a very blessed day….
I was wondering if I had to use the egg yolks in it? this would be my first time making a homemade one for thanksgving and I am looking forward to it!
I used this recipe to make my banana pudding and it turned out perfect! I’m very proud and I am excited about making it again for the whole family for Thanksgiving. I am so glad that I used yours to try for my first time. Thanks
Thanks so much for the recipe and tips! We are new to the South and was looking to make this for Thanksgiving. Trial run this am and you are right about goings slow! it came up and thickened too fast. Still tastes of flour a bit and the Custard didn’t reach the bottom but oh still soooo delicious! Made real whipped cream to compensate
. As soon as it hits your mouth you know it’s from scratch. Will correct my errors and look forward to Thursday!
use vanilla extract to rid the flour taste
AWESOME I TRIED IT AND I LOVED
Made this recipe a couple of months ago. It was wonderful. I chose this one because I used to see my mother standing at the stove stirring the custard so I knew I wanted it to be homemade. She passed away this year and I miss her so much. Never got the chance to get the recipe from her. But when I made it, it taste just like hers and I was so pleased. Thanks alot
has anyone ever added mashed overripe bananas to the custard while it’s cooking? I have some and was wondering if it would wreck the custard if I added them?
I love this recipe. My pudding became thick in about 8 minutes. I still used it though but I wanted to know if that is ok?
My Big-momma (Grandmother) use to make this,but she used PET( can milk) milk it almost made me cry when I tasted it because she use to make a whole one just for me when we went from Cali- to Louisiana to visit. Soon as I came in said hi kisses, she was like “you know big momma made her baby some puddin’”! Love that woman!!!
Nilla waffers= not homemade!!
True. I also didn’t make the bananas. I guess God is the only one who can accomplish home cooking but I’ll happily settle for what I can get.
You keep on spreading that sunshine!
Good retort, Christy! I am looking forward to trying your recipe, and I thank you for your in-depth directions.
I was on my 4th recipe for banana pudding and this one nailed it! Your wonderful feelings and love of the dessert matched my husbands. This is the best tasting recipe and easiest to remember. Thanks so much! Mmmmmmmm good!
Oh my goodness, I am so glad to hear that you liked it Melanie!!! Thank you so much for trying it and letting me know.
Did you use all purpose or self rising? It didn’t say and I didn’t want to mess this up. Thanks!
To Lorrisa, use ALL PURPOSE cause self rising will make it to thick ok ! N yea she did leave that out so hope this helps you
MY HUSBAND AND 2 BOYS GOBBLE IT UP AND LOVE IT ! NOTHING LIKE THE REAL THING ! THANKS!
All of the banana pudding recipes I run across say they are southern but always use vanilla or banana flavored pudding, my mother s is made with butterscotch pudding and always the cook kind not the instant and it is always layered in a pan and put in the oven for 5 or 10 minutes then refrigerated. To me this is REAL banana pudding.
I did every thing you said do and it still didn’t turn out right
I just want to thank you for posting this and making it so easy to follow with pictures. My Momma use to make it like this with the merigne, which i plan on making it that way too so I will go to your lemon meringe recipe for that part. But I can tell this is the same way my Mom made it. She now 82 an suffers from memory loss so I cant get the recipe from her. She was never one for sharing recipes, lol. You just had to sit in the kitchen and watch. I make a mean Peach Cobbler and many other yummy dishes because I sat and watched. But for some reason I never got the hang of making Banana Pudding, REAL Banana pudding.
This was my first attempt at making a banana pudding and it came out perfectly!! I’m ready to tackle other recipes now.