Banana Pudding

NY Times recipe from Sam Sifton who states, “This is an old-school banana pudding down to its bed of Nilla wafers, topped with a quilt of meringue, above a pudding that owes some hold to cornstarch. It is not in any way fancy, though the meringue has its moments. The peaks may weep a little, if you let the dessert sit for a while to draw admiring glances from your guests, but no matter. It’s fantastic inside, where it counts.”

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Banana Pudding

  • Total time: 1 Hour
  • Servings: 6-8 Servings

Ingredients

  • 1 1/4 Cups Granulated Sugar, divided
  • 1/3 Cup Cornstarch
  • 4 Cups Whole Milk
  • 4 Large Eggs, separated and divided
  • 1 tsp Vanilla
  • 1/4 tsp Salt
  • 2 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
  • 1/4 tsp Cream of Tartar
  • 1 11 oz Box Nilla Wafers
  • 3-4 Bananas, depending on size

Directions

  • 1)

    Preheat oven to 350°F. Make custard: whisk 3/4 cup of the sugar, the cornstarch, milk and egg yolks in a pot set over medium heat, and cook, stirring constantly, until it just begins to bubble, 10 to 15 minutes. Turn heat down slightly, and allow mixture to simmer, still stirring constantly, for 1 minute, then remove mixture from heat. Whisk in vanilla, salt and butter.

  • 2)

    Make meringue: put the egg whites, cream of tartar and 1/2 cup of sugar in the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer, and set over a medium saucepan of simmering water. Whisk until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is hot to touch, about 3 minutes. Transfer to the stand mixer fitted with whisk, and beat until stiff, about 5 to 7 minutes.

  • 3)

    Line a 13-by-9-inch oven-safe casserole pan with one layer of Nilla wafers and one layer of banana slices. (Reserve remaining Nilla wafers for a child or incident of depression.)

  • 4)

    Pour the custard over the bananas and cookies, then use a spatula to spread the meringue. Bake in oven for 10 to 15 minutes, until the peaks are the color of a toasted marshmallow. Allow to rest until ready to serve.

Notes

From the Website:

“This is almost my mother’s banana pudding minus a crucial step: Chill the custard first (same day in ice bath, or overnight) or you get soggy cookies and yucky bananas. Proceed with the meringue, which Mommy didn’t precook. 1 tablespoon sugar/egg white is fine. Sprinkle with nutmeg, bake at 425 5-7 minutes. Your goal is only to brown the meringue, not heat through. Whipped cream is delicious in addition to, but never in lieu of the meringue.”

“Here the secret to Banana pudding and having fresh bananas. “Jello vanilla pudding ” there is no cooking, when you need to toast the meringue use a cooking torch instead that’s all. From there put in fridge to cool and nothing falls, or is soggy its fresh. Yummy”

“In my mind, this is the ONLY TRUE banana pudding! Make sure to allow the custard to cool a little before pouring over the bananas or it can make them bitter. Also, make sure to use bananas that have ripened. Also, don’t settle for just a single layer of bananas and wafers. Also, my family suggests a double batch of the custard.”

Source: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1015130-banana-pudding