Easy Banana Pudding

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This Easy Banana Pudding is perfect for when you need a simple but yummy no-bake dessert! It is creamy, not too sweet, and so comforting.

I love a good no-bake dessert! They are typically very simple and can be made by anyone regardless of their skill level in the kitchen. For instance, no-bake cheesecakes are incredibly easy to make but so impressive! The best part about no-bake desserts? They are perfect for summertime when you don't want to heat up your house by turning on the oven.

If you want to make this recipe but cannot find store-bought vanilla wafer cookies. Have no fear - you can easily make homemade vanilla wafers with this recipe by Sam at Sugar Spun Run! I had to do this because you can no longer buy Nilla wafers in Canada.

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⭐️ Why You Need to Make This Recipe
🧈 Ingredients
📃 Instructions
❓ Recipe FAQs
🍌 More Banana Recipes
📖 Recipe
To do:

Banana pudding in a glass dish topped with whipped cream, slices of banana, and vanilla wafers.

My homemade vanilla rice pudding and copycat Starbucks oat bars are other delicious and simple no-bake recipes to try next!

⭐️ Why You Need to Make This Recipe

Easy to make - Some whisking and whipping, then some layering and chilling and you're done! This banana pudding does not require using the stove or oven. (Unless you are baking homemade vanilla wafers.)
Simple ingredients - Just water, milk, instant vanilla pudding mix, sweetened condensed milk, and whipping cream for the pudding which is layered with vanilla wafer cookies and sliced bananas. Lastly, some lightly sweetened homemade whipped cream for the topping.
It. Tastes. So. GOOD! The subtle flavors of vanilla and real bananas in this creamy dessert are so dreamy and comforting!

🧈 Ingredients

Here are the ingredients needed to make this easy banana pudding.

Ingredient Notes

Sweetened Condensed Milk - Not to be confused with canned evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk is a thick and syrupy canned milk product made of milk and sugar that has been cooked together.
Vanilla Wafers - You can make homemade vanilla wafers for this recipe if you cannot find storebought (like in Canada where they don't sell them anymore).
Bananas - The star of the show! You will want to use bananas that are a nice yellow color with a few brown spots - not too ripe but not too green. You are aiming for a similar ripeness to the bananas for Banana Cream Pie!

See the recipe card for the full list of ingredients with measurements.

📃 Instructions

Milk, water, sweetened condensed milk, and instant vanilla pudding whisked together.

Step 1: Whisk together the milk, water, and sweetened condensed milk. Add the instant vanilla pudding and whisk until smooth.

Step 2: In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form.

Whipped cream added to pudding mixture in a mixing bowl.

Step 3: Gently fold the whipped cream into the pudding mixture.

Assembling the banana pudding in glass dishes.

Step 4: Assemble the banana pudding beginning with a layer of the pudding mixture, followed by alternating layers of vanilla wafers and sliced bananas with more layers of pudding.

Step 5: Whip the additional heavy cream and powdered sugar to top the banana pudding along with more slices of banana and vanilla wafers. Cover and refrigerate the banana pudding for at least 6 hours.

❓ Recipe FAQs

Can I make this recipe without instant pudding?

This recipe has only been tested with instant vanilla pudding but you might enjoy my Banana Cream Pie Recipe made with homemade custard instead.

Can I make this recipe gluten-free?

If you can find storebought or make homemade vanilla wafers, this recipe could easily be made gluten-free!

What keeps bananas from turning brown in banana pudding?

The bananas are layered with custard and then a layer of whipped cream on the top which keeps the bananas from being exposed to the air and slows down browning process.

How ripe should bananas be for pudding?

The bananas should be a ripe yellow color with a tiny bit of brown speckling for banana pudding - not green at all or with too many brown splotches.

How do you store leftover banana pudding?

Store leftover banana pudding covered tightly in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

🍌 More Banana Recipes

Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:

If you tried these (Blank) or any other recipe on my website, please leave a ⭐️ star rating and write a little note telling me how it went in the comments below. Thank you!!

📖 Recipe

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