The other day, the boys and I were at the store and found some banana pudding in the deli section on special. It's been a while since I bought dessert of any kind, and they'd been good, so I thought, what the heck!
It turned out to be just banana-flavored pudding mix with vanilla wafers and some Cool Whip. No actual bananas. What in the world...?!
While my boys enjoy banana desserts, and they ate this pudding up without question, I was a little disappointed. What a let down! I started thinking back to the banana pudding I'd made for Thanksgiving one year, and I decided it was time it made a reappearance.
Personally, I prefer real whipped cream to the fake stuff you buy in tubs at the store. *Bleck!* You can control the consistency better, too, plus if you're going to eat something less than healthy for you, you may as well eat something natural (i.e. cream) vs. chemically enhanced, partially hydrogenated food stuffs that aren't really, well, FOOD!
This is a no-cook version adapted from a couple of recipes I found on allrecipes.com. I consider this dessert a "make ahead" because you really want it to sit in the refrigerator for a while before you serve it. It'll give the vanilla wafer cookies a chance to absorb some of the flavors and soften up a bit. And don't let the sour cream scare you off either. It adds to the creaminess and makes it a little less sweet, which is how we prefer our desserts anyway. If you want to save a few calories, opt for sugar-free pudding mix instead and go with lowfat milk.
Enjoy!
Nabela's No-Cook Banana Pudding
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 Tbsp sugar
- 4 oz sour cream
- 1-1/2 cups cold milk
- 1 (3.4oz) box instant banana pudding mix
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 box vanilla wafer cookies
- 2 large bananas, sliced
- Using a hand mixer on low speed, whip the whipping cream for about 2 minutes until just starting to thicken. Add sugar and continue to whip until soft peaks form.
- Add sour cream, milk, and sprinkle banana pudding mix on top. Add vanilla, and continue to mix until well combined, about 3 minutes more. Pudding will still be slightly runny. Set aside for 5 minutes to thicken.
- In a round 2-qt dish, place a layer of vanilla wafers covering the bottom of the dish. Add about 1/3 pudding mixture, then a layer of bananas. Repeat layers. Finish with remaining pudding mix.
- Crush remaining vanilla wafers and sprinkle on top. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour prior to serving.
