Banana Pudding Cups
Today I will show you how to make Banana Pudding Cups that are easy to make and super delicious.
Made of layers of homemade banana custard, sliced fresh bananas, vanilla wafers, topped with whipped cream, it’s the perfect dessert!
This recipe doesn’t use instant pudding mix, we make the pudding from scratch because it’s much better this way. Banana pudding tastes so much better made from fresh bananas instead of instant vanilla pudding mix from a package.
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I will show you how easy it is to make it from scratch, and you will absolutely love this recipe.
I have never liked instant pudding mix, which is why I am making this recipe from scratch. Pudding mix tastes super artificial to me. I don’t mind taking shortcuts and making things easier for my life.
For instance, I don’t mind using store-bought puff pastry dough instead of making my own. But when it comes to pudding, I draw the line. There’s no comparison between pudding made from scratch and the box pudding.
This recipe makes about 4 servings, but you can easily double or triple to serve larger crowds. I saw a delicious banana pudding recipe on pinterest the other day, but I didn’t want to make a whole tray of pudding just for myself, so I decided to make these mini banana pudding cups.
Have in mind that these pudding cups are best if served the day they are assembled, to prevent the cookies from becoming too soggy.
Of course you can make the banana custard in advance and assemble it on the day you plan on serving it.
How to make Homemade Banana Pudding Cups
These Banana Pudding Cups are so simple to make.
These are the ingredients you will need:
- For the pudding: bananas, milk, vanilla, egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch, salt, butter.
- To assemble: nilla wafers, sliced bananas.
- To decorate: whipped cream, nilla wafers, dehydrated banana slices.
Instructions on how to make banana custard
To make the banana custard, start by infusing the milk with the bananas. I also added vanilla bean seeds, but you can skip that and simply add a teaspoon vanilla extract instead.
The bananas for the pudding must be very ripe. Green bananas won’t taste much.
Bring the milk and bananas to a boil. Set it aside to let the milk infuse with the bananas. You should let the milk infuse for about 1 hour at least. You can also let it infuse in the fridge overnight. The longer you infuse, the stronger the banana flavor will be. You won’t need to add any artificial banana extract.
Once the milk has infused, bring it back to a boil. Strain it, pressing on the bananas gently to squeeze out all the milk.
Whisk the yolks, sugar, and cornstarch in a separate medium bowl. You could also use a hand mixer to do this.
Add the hot milk to the yolk mixture slowly, whisking the whole time, to prevent the eggs from cooking and scrambling.
Return the mixture to the saucepan, and cook, while stirring the whole time. Make sure the heat is medium or medium-low. At first, the custard will seem like it’s lumpy and curdling, but soon it will become smooth and thick as you continue to cook.
Once it’s super thick, and coating the back of a spatula, remove it from the heat.
Add the vanilla, and butter. Stir until melted.
Pour the custard in a bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Let it cool down. Place it in the fridge until chilled through.
Now it’s time to assemble the pudding cups.
This is how thick the pudding will be once chilled through.
How to assemble the Banana Pudding Cups
To assemble the pudding cups, start by selecting the dish you will use. I am using 2×4″ jars, and I was able to make 4 jars.
Place the banana custard in a piping bag, or simply use a spoon. I find the piping bag to make less of a mess when assembling the cups.
Pipe or spoon a layer of pudding on the bottom of the jars or dishes you are using.
Top with a layer of sliced bananas, followed by a layer of vanilla wafer cookies.
Next, pipe or spoon another layer of pudding on top. I like to make this second layer of pudding the thickest one.
Top with more bananas and vanilla wafers.
Follow by another layer of banana pudding.
Whip the heavy whipping cream in a bowl of a stand mixer, or using a hand mixer for one to two minutes until it achieves stiff peaks. I don’t like to add sugar to the whipped cream, since the dessert doesn’t need anymore sugar. The bananas are sweet, the cookies are sweet, and the pudding is already sweet. So the cream will be great to balance things out, lightening up the dessert.
Pipe the cream on top of the last layer of pudding, and decorate with a slice of banana and vanilla cookie. I used a dehydrated banana on top, so it wouldn’t brown.
These Banana Pudding Cups are best if served the day they are made. I like to make them, and then place in the fridge for a couple of hours before serving. It helps the flavors blend together and soften up the vanilla cookies.
I made these about 4 times the past month, because it’s such an easy dessert to make. Prep time is super quick, the only thing it takes time is waiting for the bananas to infuse with the milk, and then waiting for the pudding to chill before assembling the cups. But this also means that you can make the dessert ahead, which is wonderful news always.
Assembling time takes literally 5 minutes. So as long as you make the pudding a day or two before, you can simply assemble them on the day of your event, or if you have company coming over.
Bananas are rich in potassium and fiber, and low in sodium. They are also a good source of vitamin b6 and vitamin C, and contain no saturated fat or cholesterol. I enjoy eating them on their own, but I also adore banana desserts.
Here are some more banana desserts you may like:
- Banoffee Cake
- Banoffee Bars
- Banana Creme Brûlée Cupcakes
- Banana Macarons
- Peanut Butter Banana Muffins
- Banana Raspberry Pie
- Banana Pancakes
If you make this recipe tag me on instagram or facebook, or leave a comment below, I love hearing from you!
Banana Pudding Cups
Ingredients
Banana Pudding
- 2 cups whole milk 480 ml
- 2 cups very ripe chopped bananas 340 g, 3 to 4 medium bananas
- 1 vanilla bean split in half optional, see Note
- 4 large egg yolks
- ½ cup granulated sugar 100 grams
- 3 tbsp cornstarch 24 grams
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter 14 grams at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract optional
To assemble
- 1 cup vanilla wafers
- 2 bananas sliced
Whipped Cream
- 1/2 cup whipping cream
To decorate
- Vanilla wafers
- Dehydrated banana slices
Instructions
Banana Pudding
- To make the Banana Pudding, place the milk, banana slices, and seeds from the vanilla bean, and the vanilla pod (if using) in a medium saucepan over medium heat and bring it to almost a boil. If not using the vanilla bean, simply add more vanilla at the end (read step 8)
- When you see the first few bubbles, remove the pan from the heat. Cover the pan and let the bananas and milk infuse for at least 4 hours, or place the pan in the fridge overnight. When the milk is done infusing, place the pot back over medium heat and reheat until hot.
- While the milk reheats, in a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, granulated sugar, cornstarch and salt.
- Strain the milk, being careful so you don’t let any banana pieces get through the strainer. Gently squeeze the bananas to release as much milk as possible from the solids without letting them through.
- Slowly pour 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of the hot milk over the yolk mixture while whisking nonstop. Keep adding the remaining milk very slowly, whisking the custard continuously.
- Once all the milk has been added to the yolks, return the whole mixture to the saucepan that you used to heat the milk by pouring it through a fine-mesh sieve to remove any bits of yolk that may have cooked or banana pieces that may have gone through.
- Place the pan over medium heat and cook, stirring nonstop with a wooden spoon or spatula, making sure to scrape the sides and bottom very well while you cook it.
- The custard will start to get thick and it will look lumpy for a while, but just keep stirring over medium heat. After a minute or so, the mixture should be thick and smooth. Remove the pan from the heat and add the butter and vanilla extract, stirring to combine.
- Pour it into a small bowl and cover with plastic wrap, placed right on the surface of the custard so it doesn’t form a skin as it cools. Place it in the fridge to chill completely.
Whipped Cream
- Whip the cream with a mixer for 2 minutes, or until peaks form.
- Place the whipped cream in a piping bag.
To assemble
- Spoon or pipe a bit of the custard on the bottom of a small cup or small dessert bowl. I used small jars that measured 2×4″.
- Top with a layer of sliced bananas, and a layer of vanilla wafers.
- Follow with another layer of banana custard, then sliced bananas and more vanilla cookies.
- Top with a third layer of banana pudding. The amount of layers you make will depend on the size and height of your cup or dish. I was able to make 4 pudding cups with 3 layers of custard each.
- Pipe the whipped cream on top, and place a vanilla wafer, and a slice of dehydrated banana on top.
Storage and serving
- Serve the pudding cups on the same day, or the day after. Store in the fridge.
Que delÃcia!! 😋