How to Make Banana Pudding Step-by-Step

Bananas give this dessert its name and flavor.

Pudding is a quick and simple dessert and, with the availability of instant pudding, a treat you can enjoy in minutes. Before instant pudding became popular, pudding desserts were made on the stove top or in the oven. Banana pudding is a type of baked pudding made with layers of different ingredients, including homemade pudding. Homemade banana pudding can be made the day before so it's ready to serve the next day.

Things You'll Need

• Mixing bowls
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• Wooden spoon
• Large saucepan
• 4 egg yolks
• 2 cups milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp. butter
• 9 by 9-inch baking pan
• 1 box vanilla wafer cookies
• 4 ripe bananas
• Knife
• Electric mixer
• 4 egg whites
• 1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
• 5 tbsp. sugar
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• Spatula
• Oven mitts
• Cooling rack

Instructions

1. Combine the sugar, flour and salt together in a mixing bowl and stir the dry ingredients well with a spoon.

2. Beat the four egg yolks in a large saucepan. Add one-quarter of the milk and one-quarter of the dry ingredients to the beaten egg yolks and stir. Heat the saucepan over medium heat, alternately adding more milk and more dry ingredients, one-quarter of the full amount at a time, while stirring constantly.

3. 

   Stir the pudding constantly as it thickens.

   Add the first teaspoon of vanilla extract and stir into the pudding mixture. Bring the pudding mixture to a boil, stirring constantly and add the butter. Continue to boil and stir the pudding mixture until it thickens to pudding consistency, then remove the saucepan from heat.

4. Cover the bottom of the baking pan with a single layer of vanilla wafer cookies. Slice the bananas into 1/2-inch circles and place a single layer of banana slices on top of the wafers. Pour half the homemade pudding on top of the wafers and banana slices, then repeat the wafer, banana slices and pudding layers one more time.

5. Drop the egg whites into another mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer until the egg whites form soft peaks when you lift the beaters. Add all the cream of tartar and the sugar, one tablespoon at a time, while beating the meringue mixture on high speed until it forms stiff, glossy peaks when the beaters are lifted.

6. Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract over the meringue and fold it into the meringue with a spatula. Use the spatula to spread the meringue in a thick layer on top of the pudding layers. Spread the meringue to the sides of the pan and seal the meringue topping over the pudding.

7. Preheat an oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit, then place the pudding in the oven for about 10 to 15 minutes until the meringue browns. Remove the pudding using oven mitts and allow it to cool to room temperature on a cooling rack before placing in the refrigerator. Chill the dessert for at least three hours before serving it.

Tips & Warnings

• Lady fingers can be substituted for the vanilla wafers.

• Stir pudding constantly as it cooks and keep the heat at a medium level to prevent the pudding from burning inside the saucepan.

References

• Mex-Recipes: Mama's Banana Pudding Recipes
• Cooks: Homemade Banana Pudding

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish