The Ultimate Banana Split Dessert

By beckylippert

This is the dessert to make when you want to impress and please friends and family of all ages, thanks to my mother-in-law, Mary.

Ingredients

• Crust
• 1.5 cups graham cracker crumbs (use gluten free graham crackers like Kinnickinnick) if necessary)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/3 - 1/2 cup butter, melted
• Layer 1
• 2 8oz packages of cream cheese
• 3/4 cup sugar
• Layer 2
• 20oz can crushed pineapple
• sliced bananas
• sliced strawberries
• Layer 3
• 2 cups cold milk
• 2 4-serving packages vanilla pudding (the powdered kind)
• 1 cup cool whip
• Layer 4
• 1 cup cool whip
• Chocolate syrup

Preparation

Step 1

Crust
Combine graham crackers, sugar and melted butter and press firmly onto the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Put it in the freezer for 10 minutes while you prepare the other layers.

Layer 1
Combine cream cheese and sugar with an electric mixer until well blended. Spread over top of graham crackers.

Layer 2
Drain can of crushed pineapples, spread over cream cheese layer. Top with sliced bananas and sliced strawberries - as many as you want.

Layer 3
Prepare vanilla pudding mix according to instructions, then stir in 1 cup of cool whip. Spread over fruit layer.

Layer 4
Top with cool whip, approximately 1 cup, or the remainder of a 12oz container. Drizzle with chocolate syrup

Refrigerate a few hours before serving.