I am a huge fan of banana pudding and often wondered how much better it could be if it was made from scratch. I have been known to enjoy the kind made from a box. A guilty pleasure. We’ve all got them. But I got a request to bring banana pudding to my sister’s graduation party and wanted it to be worthy of the occasion. So I found this recipe and man, now I’m sold on skipping the box.
This recipe is rich but balanced. You know, in the way that convinces you to go back for seconds and maybe even thirds because it doesn’t overpower you with sweetness or artificial flavors. It lets bananas do their thing, but not in that fake, forceful sort of way.
And the process wasn’t hard at all. You can trust me on this. I’m not saying that it’s not hard for professional food bloggers or restaurant chefs. It’s not hard for the average cook who just wants to bring banana pudding to the office potluck.
So please don’t be intimidated by the idea of making your own pudding. You can do it. One of the most important steps is to make sure you let the pudding truly thicken before removing it from the heat. Be patient, it will happen. And when it does, it’s totally worth it.
Also, depending on the occasion, you might seriously consider doubling the recipe to make sure that people have the option for seconds. I wished I had made more for the graduation party. It disappeared before everyone got a chance to try it.
Hope you enjoy this recipe too. Let us know what special occasions you celebrate with banana pudding from scratch!
- ⅔ cup sugar
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 2 cups milk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons butter, softened
- 4 bananas, peeled and sliced
- ½ (12 ounce) package vanilla wafer cookies
- Combine sugar, flour, and salt in a medium saucepan. Add the eggs and stir well.
- Stir in milk and cook over low heat, stirring constantly.
- Once mixture thickens, remove from heat. Continue to stir to allow pudding to cool slightly.
- Stir in vanilla and butter until smooth and incorporated.
- Starting with a layer of vanilla wafers, layer the pudding, bananas and wafers in a serving dish.
- Chill at least one hour in refrigerator before serving.
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