This Banana Pudding is a copycat recipe of Magnolia Bakery. Unlike regular banana pudding, this one has whipped cream mixed into the pudding. It’s fluffy & creamy. And now, you can make that at home from scratch (sorry, no instant pudding mix) with better ingredients, cheaper & more!
Before getting into the pudding, I got news. We’re moving to San Jose. The change that we have been waiting for this whole year is FINALLY happening! Bryan got a new job and we’re moving to Northern California.
It’s crazy to think we would leave Los Angeles. That idea never crossed our minds until right now. But life is unexpected. With the right timing, we will take the opportunity. I know we’ll miss a lot of things about Los Angeles, but we’re looking forward to exploring a new city.
Before leaving LA, there is a place that I wanted to check out, Magnolia Bakery. Their famous banana pudding was on my radar for a long time, so we made our way there. The pudding didn’t disappoint. It was creamy, banana-y and rich. It also tasted like the banana pudding from a local BBQ restaurant, Baby Blues BBQ, which I have been eating for years. Unlike regular banana pudding, this one doesn’t served with whipped cream on top. The whipped cream is actually mixed into the pudding. It has a lighter texture than a regular one, which I really like. Not sure who has the original recipe, but what it really matters is that you can now make it yourself!
Magnolia Bakery actually published their banana pudding recipe on a cookbook. But I was shocked to find out that they actually use instant pudding mix in their pudding. Ok, that’s disappointing! $7.50 for 2 cups of pudding that is not made from scratch? Who needs that when you can make it at home with better ingredients and much cheaper?
This recipe is actually fairly easy. First, starts with the pudding. Whisk eggs with cornstarch and sugar. Then warm the milk and slowly whisk into the eggs. Doing it too fast may turn the eggs into scramble. Cook the mixture over the stove and whisk until thickened. When the mixture is thickened like pudding, it’s ready. Cool the pudding over ice bath or in the fridge. Then, make some whipped cream. Fold the whipped cream into the pudding. Next is to assemble everything. I like to do that in layers. Wafers, pudding, banana, pudding… and repeat one more time. Last, but not least, decorate the top beautifully with more wafers. Covered with plastic wrap. And now, be patient and wait. It takes a little time for the wafers to soften and flavors to come together. Your patient will pay off.
This is a great recipe to make ahead and perfect to serve on a holiday party. It looks pretty and it can easily serve at least 8 people, probably more like 10. When it’s time for dessert, just scoop, top with extra wafers and serve. Everyone will love it!
This recipe is the last recipe for now until we’re settled. In the meantime, I will be posting my moving journey on Instagram story. In case I don’t come back in time for the holidays, I want to wish you all a warm & wonderful holiday! ❤️
Magnolia Bakery Banana Pudding (From Scratch)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 8 tablespoons sugar (divided)
- Pinch of salt
- 2 large eggs
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- 2 cups cold heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon sweetened condensed milk
- 4 cups Nilla wafers (I used mini ones)
- 4 large ripe bananas
Instructions
- In a small bowl, stir together the cornstarch, 2 tablespoons sugar and salt.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs until smooth and pale, about 3 – 4 minutes. Gradually whisk in the cornstarch mixture.
- In a medium saucepan, add milk and 6 tablespoons sugar. Bring just to a simmer over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally to melt the sugar. Do not bring to a boil.
- Slowly pour the hot milk into the eggs while whisking constantly. Return everything back to the saucepan and add vanilla bean paste (If using extract, do not any yet.). Cook over medium-high heat until the mixture is thickened and it starts to bubble, whisking continuously, about 6 – 7 minutes. Remove from heat (Add vanilla extract now if using).
- To cool the pudding, you can either do it in an ice bath (10 minutes) or cool in the fridge (3 hours). To prepare an ice bath, in a large sturdy bowl, fill half full with ice cubes. Then fill half full with cold water. Place the hot saucepan along with the pudding inside the iced bowl. Make sure water don’t get into the pudding. If needed, remove some water or add more ice. Stir the pudding occasionally to cool. If you are cooling the pudding in the fridge, transfer the pudding to a medium heatproof bowl. Cover with plastic wrap by pressing down to the surface of the pudding. Chill in the fridge for 3 hours or until cold.
- Once the pudding is cooled, choose a desired container that is large enough to hold about 11 cups of pudding.
- In a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, add heavy cream and condensed milk. Whisk until soft peaks form.
- Transfer the pudding to a large mixing bowl, add about ½ cup whipped cream and whisk together. Add the rest of the whipped cream and gently fold into the pudding. Once combined, transfer to the fridge to keep cold.
- In the meantime, crumble ¾ cup of Nilla wafers in a Ziploc bag with a rolling pin or skillet. Set aside.
- Cut the banana into a little less than a ¼-inch slice. Set aside.
- To assemble, add a very thin layer of pudding in the desired container. Add a layer of non-crumble wafers. Sprinkle with half of crumbled wafers. Add enough pudding just to cover. Add a layer of banana slices. Add enough pudding just to cover. Do another wafer layer and then a banana layer. Finally add all the pudding and smooth out the top. Decorate with more wafers. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours before serving. The pudding tastes the best after 6 hours of chilling and until 24 hours.
- When ready to serve, scoop the pudding like ice cream into a small bowl. Top with extra wafers and serve immediately.
Notes
- When thickening the pudding, make sure to be patient. You don’t want it to be runny. It should be thick like pudding. Once it cools, it will thicken a little more.
- 1 box of Nilla wafers is definitely enough for this recipe. I used about ¾ of a box.
- The pudding can last up to 3 days in the fridge, but best within 24 hours. Add extra wafers when serving.
I too was shocked that Magnolia bakery uses instant pudding in their banana pudding. I have never liked the taste of any instant pudding and my mother and everyone in my southern family would be appalled at seeing this ingredient. I suppose that instant pudding has its uses, but I don’t think a good use is in banana pudding. I suppose those raised on instant pudding might not know the difference, but instant pudding does not at all taste like actual pudding. Heck even boxed cooked pudding would be better if you weren’t going to make your own homemade pudding Thank you for pointing this out as I have been looking for a recipe for the Magnolia banana pudding today and was in the middle of deciding whether or not to skip this questionable recipe when I know how horrible instant pudding tastes or just substituting my own pudding recipe. Seeing someone agree with me on a this has encouraged me to try this recipe and later even perhaps my own. Honestly I am baffled at a famous bakery using instant pudding in the first place.
I know! Can’t understand why a bakery would use instant pudding! And they sell it for $7.50, which is insanely expensive! Anyhow, homemade version is so much better and cheaper. Hope you will try this. Thanks for your comment. 😊