quick, light, southern style banana pudding

a couple of weeks ago, I received light of my next blog post. though this dessert is not particularly seasonal, it does provide a great dessert that can be made year round, not to mention possible seasonal variations. you know me and recipe variations…

recently, kyle and I were conversing about one of my favorite pastime desserts. his response, “what’s banana pudding?” WHAT’S BANANA PUDDING? I absolutely could not believe that this kid had never heard of banana pudding, let alone, tried it.  i immediately investigated and asked his sister how this could be possible. her response: “who WOULD know about banana pudding? no one eats banana pudding.”  i could not believe my ears.

growing up in the south, i remember indulging in creamy pudding with chunky bananas and soggy nilla wafers. yum. although, banana pudding is commonly known in cafeterias and hospitals as a “stay away, that stuff looks disgusting” dessert, banana pudding represents a creamy favorite for us southern belles. you all know i don't bake and although there are better ways to make banana pudding, especially the homemade way, i'm leaving you with something 100% easy. below you will find a simple and no-think recipe for a great dessert.

ingredients:
- instant sugar free, fat free, banana pudding
- reduced fat nilla wafers
- 2-3 ripe bananas
- fat free cool whip
- 3 ½ cups of fat free milk (i used soy milk, but i wouldn’t recommend using soy milk for this. the end result was too diluted)
- splash of vanilla
- garnish with chocolate chips

directions:
combine pudding mix with 3 ½ cups of milk (or as box indicates) and a splash of vanilla. whisk for 2 minutes and let stand for 5 minutes. while waiting for pudding to set, line bowl with nilla wafers and layer with sliced bananas. pour pudding on top. layer another set of nilla wafers and sliced bananas. top with cool whip and sprinkle chocolate chips if you please.

first layer of nillas and bananas

second layer after pudding

  

banana pudding gets better as it ages. when the nilla wafers go soft and begin to merge into the pudding, it becomes a cake-y treat. that’s usually what deters you from purchasing a bowl at the cafeteria. but guess what? it’s the part i look forward to. happy cooking! ☺