Tasty Tuesday - Knock Your Socks Off Banana Pudding

My grandmother was famous for her baking skills. She was an amazing cook. However, she was notorious for taking a recipe and making it completely different that what the directions called for. So now that she is gone, my mom and I play mad scientists with some of her recipes in order to go from her "notes" (I use that term loosely) to decipher how to make some of the things that I grew up with.

This banana pudding is unlike any you've ever had. It's thick and creamy, and frankly it's just plain awesome!  It's a little bit more prep than the Jell-O kind, but it's worth every moment that it takes to make it. I think my husband would have proposed on the spot, had I made this on our first date. It's that good. However, in re-creating this the first time we discovered that her recipe makes enough to share. With several people. So when you get to the recipe I've included directions for both ways. Even if you are feeding a crowd (6-10 people) the 1 recipe is sufficient. Make 2 at your own risk.

Let's get started!

Meet the contenders:

And in this corner we have Milk, Eggs, Butter and Sugar. In the opposing corner we have banana's flour and cookies.

Ding! Ding! Ding! Let's get ready to beeeeeeeaaaaaaaattttttt!!!

I know what I'm about to tell you sounds weird. But trust me...it works. Put 1/2 the milk and all of the sugar in a saucepan. Preferably one that you don't mind using your mixer in. Then your gonna beat it. And beat it, and beat it some more. Then add your flour. And beat.Try and get your flour incorporated so that there are no lumps.

Sugar rush!

Then add the eggs. And beat. Are you tired of beating yet? Recruit some help! Add the remaining milk and beat. Don't worry. Your beating is almost over. Now you get to stir. You're welcome

Get your egg, sugar, milk mixture hot. Not boiling yet. But hot. Then drop your butter in. You can cut it up, or you can just dump it in and stir it around until it melts.

Stir, beat. Stir beat. This is an anger eliminating dish.

Your going to want to keep stirring and scraping the sides and the bottom until the mixture is thick. It will thicken some when you remove it from the heat, but not by much. So don't think that it will be okay once it thickens. You will want it thicker than gravy. See how it sticks to the scraper that I'm using? You'll want it thick. You'll also want to make sure it's lump free. If it's lumpy. Add some butter and beat it on high with your beater. Sometimes you don't even have to add the butter, if it's not too lumpy. 

Now to assemble. You can make one giant bowl or you can make individual bowls in ramekins or other dessert dishes. Just add your cookies to the bottom of the dish. Then cover with the pudding.

Add a cookie layer. A pudding layer. A banana layer. A cookie layer. A pudding layer.

Grab your banana's. First drop a banana on the floor. Then see if the dog will eat it. She won't. So toss it and attempt to peel a banana again and hope you don't drop this one too. Add a layer of banana's to your bowl. 

Drop banana. Attempt to feed banana to dog. Fail. Get new banana. Continue forth.

Then you just keep layering pudding, cookies and banana's until you run out. Then you tell your husband to make them pretty for pictures and he does this. 

Happy Pudding

You can eat this warm or cold. We usually have a little bit warm and enjoy the rest cold. It's good either way. This pudding is amazing and your going to see it appear in a few other Tasty Tuesday's, so you might as well make it now and enjoy. Then go walk 12 miles to burn off the calories. It's got banana's therefore it's healthy, right?!

Yummy. Yummy.

Knock Your Socks Off Banana Pudding

For 1
3 cups sugar
1 cup flour
4 cups milk
4 eggs
1 1/4 sticks butter

for 2
5 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups flour
8 cups whole milk
7 eggs
2 sticks of butter

4-5 banana's add or subtract based on your preference
for 1 pudding 1 box of Nilla wafers 2 boxes for 2.
Optional whipped cream

In a large saucepan place 1/2 of the milk. Add the sugar and flour. Beat until mixed. Add eggs, beat well. Add the rest of the milk and butter continuing to stir until thickened. If lumpy, remove from heat and beat. If severely lumpy add a stick of butter and beat while hot.

In the bottom of your serving dish place a layer of cookies. Add enough pudding to cover. Add a layer of sliced banana's and another layer of cookies. Cover with pudding and repeat until all remaining ingredients are used. Top with whipped cream if desired.