Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding

Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding

I was just a kid the first time I had the Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding. For a while, every year, my folks would rent a cabin on Big Spirit Lake in Iowa, sometimes with my cousins. Maybe I was five, maybe six, and this was an old green, peeling paint kind cabin, the front porch converted to bunk beds, right on the lake. The last time I was in Spirit Lake it was still there, decades later.

Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding

Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding


 

It really was magical, all the cousins, the teasing uncles, swimming (I don’t think there was any bathing, the lake did it all for us), amusement parks, go-carts, and of course mini golf. Falling asleep, hot and scratchy, our whole bodies sunburned and bug-bitten, to the sound of the waves, the crickets, and the train that rumbled down the nearby tracks. And there were cookouts. It seemed someone was always manning the grill!

About Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding:

So leave it to me to remember the food! Even at that age. Of course, that was partly because I’d never tasted anything as good as this Banana Pudding! Cold and smooth, sticky and dense, rich, and sweet! (And it’s very sweet!) It was like a dream. And I think it still is! That might be partly because at first taste, I turn right back into that skinny kid, auburn hair streaked from the sun, covered in freckles and always with a sunburned nose.

If you’ve never had Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding, what you’re in for is layers of Nilla wafers and bananas, each spread with a rich vanilla custard. Then the whole works is covered with meringue and the pudding is baked to brown it off.  Those cookies just melt right into the pudding giving it even more sweetness and a kind of heft. There’s really nothing else like it.

Now I might mention that the appeal of this dessert is down-home, for sure. It’s a kind of nostalgic, old fashioned dish that’s casual and comforting. It’s perfect for summer holidays and backyard get together. We had it this year for the Fourth of July. Over the years, I’ve tried more sophisticated versions of this pudding. They were one-offs. (Though I’m always tempted by them.) This is really the one you want, and it’s the one you’re gonna have to just take at face value and relish for what it is! And it’s a dessert to eat up right away; it doesn’t keep all that well as you can imagine with bananas and meringue!

Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding

Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding, a mini version to send home with Tweety for her Mother.

Making Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding:

I’m giving you the exact original recipe with one small exception, optional. I like to add cream of tartar to the egg whites as I whip them. I just mix it into the portion of the sugar that goes into the egg whites. It helps to stabilize the egg whites which is really helpful in hot weather and since I usually make this recipe in hot weather I usually add it. That being said, if it wasn’t something I normally have on hand, I wouldn’t go buy a jar just for this recipe. I didn’t put it in the recipe, but I do add more vanilla. A half teaspoon just doesn’t do it for me!

When you make this pudding and follow the directions, you’ll set up a double boiler (more on that below) although personally I simply cook this pudding on the stove in a heavy pan and use a whisk. Cook it slowly over medium to medium-low heat,  stirring constantly until it comes to a good simmer. Turn the heat down slightly and continue to cook, stirring, until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon and to leave a distinct trail that doesn’t fill in when a fingertip is run across the spoon. It takes less time to cook directly on the stove than it does in a double boiler.

The best bananas to use in this pudding are ripe, firm bananas with no or very few brown spots. They just hold up better than any bananas that are overripe. I gotta say I’ve never tried their hint to use an egg slicer to cut the bananas, but I’m a pretty fast slicer. I just lay the peeled banana down nestled together, two in one group and three in another, and cut across them at once. Whip the egg whites very well, until they hold stiff, shiny peaks and go around the edge of the pan and nudge the meringue until it touches and seals to the edge. That’s going to help prevent and weeping meringue!

Make sure your pan is the right size. If unsure, fill it with water and measure the water, and a casserole or oval type pan that isn’t too shallow usually works best. You want the three layers to fit nicely. Do watch the meringue as it cooks in the oven; ovens vary in circulation and temperature and your mileage may vary! When finished the pudding can be served warm or at room temperature but I definitely prefer it chilled. Allow time for that. The recipe counts on 12 servings but typically I find that’s not realistic. Six is closer to the mark, 8 is small by today’s standards.

Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding

The actual notes from the Nilla Wafer box:

How to Prepare Without a Double Boiler: A double boiler helps to keep custards, such as the pudding filling for this recipe, smooth. If you don’t have a double boiler, you can make your own by placing a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water on top of the stove. Be sure to use a bowl that fits snugly over the pan. Most importantly, do not allow the simmering water to touch the bottom of the bowl. Use pot holders when removing the bowl of cooked custard from the saucepan as it will be very hot.

Make Ahead: Prepare as directed; cool completely. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Top with reserved wafers just before serving.

Make it Easy: Use an egg slicer to quickly and uniformly slice the bananas.

Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding

Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding – The mini version again. Just use the multiplier in the recipe to make a little extra.

Saving Money on Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding:

The ingredients for this pudding are simple and straight-forward. There’s nothing fancy at all. No cream, no half and half. No vanilla beans! So kudos for that. These days I’ve been making a real effort to add substitutions and variations for every recipe I post; with this one, I wouldn’t sub a thing! While milk is best but honestly, any percentage will work and I do think it’s best to use extra large eggs. If you use medium or small, I’d actually add in an extra egg.

Nilla Wafers are a Nabisco product or at least labeled as such. They do go on sale regularly, especially through the summer and winter holidays. (Nilla Wafers are the key ingredient, too, for Rum Balls, a popular Christmas cookie.) In the summer you’ll often see them on sale, grouped with other popular products, graham crackers and so on in group sales, often buy so many pay so much. If you’d like to see what’s on sale during any particular holiday, check out my post, Win at the Grocery.

If you have kids, it’s likely you already know the places that regularly have the best prices on bananas and milk. These are items that you might buy so regularly that you might not think much about the price, picking up as you run out from wherever it’s convenient. Do keep in mind that it’s often the everyday purchases that can add up to a startling amount over the course of a year! It’s easy to get in the habit (I’ve done it myself) of stopping in at a convenience store for that extra gallon of milk midweek and paying through the nose for it. Paying $1.50 more for one gallon over a year’s time is about 80 bucks; most of us think little of it…but we might comb through ads for weeks to save that amount of money on a larger purchase.

Of course, I’m curious if this oldie but goodie holds some nostalgic value for you, and if so do you still make it? It’s not something I make often, but when I do, I always think it’s iconic Americana! Social distancing rules have relaxed almost everywhere but I’m high risk and still very much aware that (at my house anyway) a line can form at the dessert table. If you are making this for a cookout or having company that is social distancing, try doling this out yourself in individual dishes to make dessert quick and easy to grab rather than setting it out and having everyone help themselves. You’ll lose a little drama in the presentation but the taste…every bit as good! Take care, all!

Mollie

Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding

Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding

Print

Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding

  • Author: Nabisco
  • Total Time: 35 minutes + chill
  • Yield: 12 very small servings 1x
  • Category: Desserts
  • Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Scale
  • 3/4 cup sugar, divided
  • 1/3 cup flour
  •  dash salt
  • 3 eggs, separated
  • 2 cups milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/4 teaspoon cream of tarter (optional)
  • 45 NILLA Wafers, divided
  • 5 bananas, sliced

Instructions

Heat oven to 350°F.

Mix  1/2 cup sugar, flour, and salt in top of a double boiler. Blend in 3 egg yolks and milk. Cook, uncovered, over boiling water 10 to 12 minutes or until thickened, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla.

Reserve 12 wafers for garnish. Spread small amount of custard onto bottom of 1-1/2-quart baking dish. Cover with layers of 1/3 each of the remaining wafers, bananas and remaining custard. Repeat layers 2 times for a total of three layers (plus the thin layer of custard on the bottom.)

Beat the egg whites on high speed of mixer until soft peaks form. Mix cream of tarter with the remaining sugar and gradually beat in remaining sugar until stiff peaks form. Spread over custard, sealing well to edge of dish.

Bake  15 to 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool slightly. Top with reserved wafers just before serving.

Keywords: Bananas, Dessert, Fruit Dessert, milk, Nilla Wafers, Pudding

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and at Weekend Potluck.

Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding (back of the box recipe) is rich, cool & a summer standard! Old Fashioned and perfect for a potluck or backyard barbecue! #BananaPudding #Barbecue #Dessert #NillaWaferBananaPudding #OldFashionedBananaPudding #OriginalBananaPudding

29 thoughts on “Original Nilla Wafer Banana Pudding

  1. Cheri Galbraith

    Made this today and it was very much cookie and not enough pudding. Should I double the pudding? Use less cookies? Break them in two? I’m suppose to make this for friends tomorrow. Help😳

    • FrugalHausfrau

      Hi Cheri, 1st of all there might be a couple possibilities why the putting seems to be not enough. 1st if your pan
      is a lot larger in diameter Which would make the pudding spread across a larger surfacd area It may not seem like enough. The other that I can think of is that maybe the pudding was cooked longer and was a lot denser and thicker… If that’s the case of course it would be very tight and thick and Basically more condensed.

      If it wasn’t one of those 2 things I can’t think of any other reason why there reason why there would not be enough pudding, Except for maybe personal taste!

      If that’s the case then go for it double the pudding if you wish, Just know it will take a little bit longer to cook. Who knows though you may find that to be too much pudding but then if that’s the case just put the excess in bowls. I hope that helps
      Mollie

    • marishayoung316

      Yes make a double batch of the custard. It always works for me, cuz like you I found that there was never enough pudding or custard. And I’ll tell you how my mama used to make it, she would put a couple of shots of bourbon into the custard before it was all the way done so it could cook into it and cook out all the alcohol. But the flavor was left to enhance the flavor of the bananas in the banana pudding. She would also sprinkle a little coconut or chopped walnuts between the layers, my dad seemed to like that version also. I myself like the original, although I’ve replaced the meringue with whipped cream, we still have some family that like the meringue, so I have to end up making two puddings for the holidays.

      • FrugalHausfrau

        Marisha I love your variations! I have always just Made the original But you could not go wrong. With doubling. And a shot of bourbon my gosh your mom is a genius!
        I always do 2 desserts But for a different reason because I always have to do a chocolate Dessert Also! Thanks for stopping. Bye And commenting

        Mollie

    • FrugalHausfrau

      Hi Angela thanks for stopping by. I agree, and I have even tried other recipes like a cooked country one. This is by far the best! Mollie

  2. Teresa Stamback

    MOM Always made this banana pudding for Thanksgiving and Christmas. of course it was always everyone’s favorite, never any leftovers. I am attempting my first try for the Braves game Saturday night in prep for the holidays. When you say add extra vanilla, how much extra?
    Thanks for some great memories
    Teresa

    • FrugalHausfrau

      Hi Teresa, I double the vanilla – I hope you all enjoy it at your party and years to come at your holiday feasts!!

      Mollie

  3. Chrystal Jackson

    I had the original recipe from the side of the Nabisco wafer box – my mom had saved that part of the cardboard box and stuck it in a recipe book so we could have it when we grew up and she was no longer here to tell us the recipe from memory. I somehow removed it from the recipe book and lost it. I was devastated because only the original recipe would do the pudding justice. I just loved it when I was little. I took a chance and used google to see if maybe it was posted somewhere and your site came up. Thank You, Thank You, Thank You – you are fantastic. I am making this pudding today and putting the recipe that you have posted back in my mom’s recipe book. You are a fantastic person.

    • FrugalHausfrau

      Oh my gosh, Chrystal, i am so happy I posted this! I think we would have besties when we were young…and I could just see me hanging around at your house hoping to be invited to dinner when banana pudding was being served for dessert, lol!

      I am sure her recipe book is a treasure and reminds you of her and all the good times you had gathered around the table. Take care,

      Mollie

    • FrugalHausfrau

      Hi Hilary I have not doubled it but I would assume you would keep it the same. I might cook it in something big and a little bit shallow like a Dutch oven so there would be lots of surface area.. Hope that helps! Mollie

  4. Ohhh this looks amazing , you could literally dive into that meringue! I’m wondering if there is a biscuit/wafer this side of the pond that I could use AND that is gluten free so my daughter can eat it too…going to have a search to see if I can find a suitable alternative.

    • FrugalHausfrau

      Hi Karen, thank you! Nilla wafers are strange little cookies. They’re light and airy and really almost melt into the pudding. I wonder if you could just make some simple meringue cookies? I’ve done a layered frozen dessert that had rounds of meringue with layers of ice cream and it kind of acted the same way. Just a thought! Of course the pudding and bananas are just good on their own, too!

      Mollie

    • Suzette

      Rebecca, I do not know where you are located, but I grew up in Europe and I think you could use maria cookies in the place of the Nilla wafers. The texture is similar although Mara´s are thinner and larger. You can get gluten free Mariaś by Goya, and Schar. I hope this helps, and your daughter can enjoy banana pudding. Cheers!

  5. Looks amazing and delicious! I’ve never eaten one of these puddings but am now really inspired to try it. Will pin it. Thanks for sharing! 😊

  6. Amazing! This dessert looks and sounds like heaven and that cabin on the lake… I can picture it and wish I had a childhood like that! Not complaining tho but it sounds just magical indeed.

    • FrugalHausfrau

      Hi Kate, well I happened to notice a few gluten free versions of Nilla Wafers when I was making this! I’ve actually always wanted to try a homemade version of the cookie, and I bet they would blow the commercial ones out of the water. Gluten Free or not!! Happy FF!!

      Mollie

    • FrugalHausfrau

      Hi Gail, thanks!! You know it’s funny but as a kid I was indifferent to meringue but I’ve really come to appreciate it more and more! Have a great day!

      Mollie

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