Banana Cream Pudding Parfaits are the perfect sweet treat with nine delicious layers of creamy, crunchy, banana flavor! You can also put the parfaits in mason jars to make them easily portable to take to picnics and parties!
There are some recipes you make that are good. And there are some recipes you make that are excellent. And then there are some recipes you make that are SUPER, CRAZY, UNBELIEVABLY OUT-OF-THIS-WORLD DELICIOUS! And this recipe, my friends, is just that! I’m talking about Banana Cream Pudding Parfaits!
I’ve always been a fan of banana cream pie, but in the world of pies there are so many others that easily top banana cream. For instance, pumpkin pie. I don’t care what time of year it is, I could eat pumpkin pie by the fist-full. Forget the fork, just dive right in with my hands. But the other day I got a massive craving for banana cream pie, and I decided to come up with a recipe that has all the same delicious flavors of that pie but in an incredible layered dessert! NINE layers to be exact!
It starts with a classic crust layer made from vanilla wafer cookies, but I bumped up the flavor and texture by adding chopped pecans, brown sugar, butter, and cinnamon. YUM! Then I layered thin slices of banana on top of the crust. For the next layer, I combined one package of banana cream pudding with one package of vanilla pudding. To give the pudding more of a whipped mousse texture, I folded in a tub of Cool Whip. It makes the pudding nice and light and creates much prettier parfaits. Regular pudding is thick and heavy and will run down the sides of your parfait. But the addition of Cool Whip helps hold the pudding’s shape and allows you to create beautiful layers! Then as my own little twist on banana cream pie, I added a layer of crushed toffee candy bars for more flavor and crunch! If you know me, you know that I’m a total sucker for anything toffee, and I thought bananas and toffee sounded like a perfect combination! And let me tell you… it was!
I topped off all those delicious layers with freshly-made whipped cream and a garnish of more crushed vanilla wafers and toffee bars. Then after a few hours in the refrigerator, these banana cream parfaits are ready to eat! Words cannot describe how incredibly delicious this dessert is, but I can promise that once you dive your spoon into all those creamy, crunchy, banana layers, one serving won’t be enough!
Click HERE to view a printable version of this recipe!
Banana Cream Pudding Parfaits
40 vanilla wafers
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 (3.4 oz) package Jello banana cream instant pudding
1 (3.4 oz) package Jello vanilla instant pudding
2 cups cold whole milk
1 (8 oz) tub Cool Whip, thawed
4 bananas, sliced
2 cups whipping cream
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
6 toffee candy bars, crushed (I used Heath)
Heat oven to 350F. Crush vanilla wafers in a large zip-top bag then add next 4 ingredients to bag. Spread into the bottom of a 13×9 inch pan. Bake 5 minutes then stir. Bake 3-5 minutes more until mixture is golden brown. Remove from oven and cool. In a large bowl, combine the pudding mixes and milk and beat with a whisk for 2 minutes. Fold Cool Whip into the pudding and set aside. Layer 1/3 of the crumb mixture into 8 half pint jars (about 2 tablespoons each). Top the jars with 1/2 of the bananas (about 3-4 slices each). Then add 1/2 of the pudding over the bananas and top with 1/2 of the crushed candy bars (about 2 tablespoons each). Repeat the layers. Beat the whipping cream at medium speed with an electric mixer until foamy. Gradually add powdered sugar until soft peaks form. Spread the whipped cream over each parfait and top with remaining crumb mixture and candy bars. Refrigerate 3 hours and enjoy!
*** I find it easiest to put the pudding in a pastry bag and pipe into the jars. It keeps the layers nice and pretty! If you don’t have pastry bags, just use a zip-top bag and cut a small hole in one corner of the bag.
*** This recipe makes a nice, lightly sweetened whipped cream that is perfect with all the other sweet ingredients in the parfait. If you prefer a sweeter whipped cream, you can add more powdered sugar.
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I took my boys on a little picnic at the park recently, and I thought these parfaits would be the perfect dessert to bring along with us. I just layered the parfaits in half pint size mason jars and screwed the lids on top.
I packed them in a thermal tote along with some drinks and an ice pack to keep them cold. When it was time for dessert, we just pulled out the jars, unscrewed the lids, and dove right in with a spoon. Perfect for a picnic! You could certainly make this recipe in a trifle bowl, but using mason jars is so much easier for traveling and serving. No extra plates needed!
For transporting all our picnic goodies, I used a large utility tote which held our picnic blanket, thermal tote, and some toys for the kids.
I brought a zippered pouch to hold my e-reader and books for the boys, and a wristlet to hold my phone, money, driver’s license, and credit cards.
Using the wristlet saved me from also having to carry a purse! I could wrap the it around my wrist and run over to the playground with the boys.
An organizing utility tote held the rest of our picnic supplies like plastic silverware, napkins, wipes, and food containers. I love all the pockets this bag has to hold my keys, camera, and sunglasses too!
All the items I used for our picnic are from Thirty One. If you don’t already have a Thirty One consultant, Kimberly will be happy to get you all ready for Summer! Visit her website HERE, and click on “Place an Order”.
LOVE GROWS WILD READER SPECIAL:
All Love Grows Wild readers will receive a FREE Large Utility Tote with their order of $50 or more (prior to shipping/handling/tax) by using the link below! That’s a $35 value!
Please note that Kimberly will adjust your totals to show the free large utility tote AFTER you place your online order. Once your order is placed, she will then email you with the correct total reflecting the discount, and your credit card will be charged the discounted price. Only 1 free tote per person.
– Click HERE to view the LGW Online Party and receive your Free Large Utility Tote with purchase of $50 or more! The party and promo will run from 6/3 – 6/24. –
Want to earn free money towards a future Thirty One purchase? Join Kimberly’s Facebook group HERE for access to special Thirty One promotions, contests, raffles, and more! Just click “join group” and Kimberly will contact you with a $10 Thirty One gift certificate!
Disclosure: Free product was provided by Kimberly Acquista, a consultant for Thirty One, for this post. All thoughts and opinions are 100% my own.
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P.S. I’m sharing this post at some awesome link parties… Check them out HERE!
These are the cutest bags ever for a picnic! I love anything in a jar!!
I love banana cream pudding! This looks so yummy! And the bags are awesome 🙂 Would love for you to share this at what i am eating http://www.townsend-house.com/2013/05/what-i-am-eating-30.html
The banana parfait looks delicious! Wish I could be that organized for a picnic!
This looks yummy!
This looks soo good and you take such beautiful pictures! I wonder if I could substitute whole milk for almond milk?
Thank you Christal! Using almond milk may change the consistency of the pudding a bit, but I’m sure it would still work just fine. Let me know if you give it a try!
I love these bags! I just placed an order. This is a great idea for parfaits too. We don’t use cow’s milk, due to dairy issues. I might just have to try it out with almond or coconut milk (not the canned kind).
Gosh that looks GOOD!!!! I LOVE Turquoise!!!!
Thanks for sharing this at The DIY Dreamer… From Dream To Reality last week! Can’t wait to see what you share tomorrow evening!
That dessert looks amazing!!! I will have to give it a try 🙂 Saw you at Made By You 🙂
Blessings!
Nicole
http://coleyscraftingcorner.blogspot.com/2013/06/kitchen-upgrade.html
Looks yummy and I can’t wait to try them! Thanks for sharing! Julia @ http://www.juliakendrick.com
I am in the midst of planning an anniversary picnic for hubby and I — definitely adding these to the menu!