Classic Southern Banana Pudding

By Jgebke

Ingredients

• 4 T cornstarch
• 1/3 c sugar
• 1/4 t salt
• 2 eggs
• 2 c milk
• 1 4" section of vanilla pod
• 2 c heavy cream
• 50 Nilla Wafers, crushed
• 6 bananas

Preparation

Step 1

In small bowl, combine the cornstarch, 2 T of sugar, and salt. Whisk the eggs into the mix one at a time.

In a med. saucepan, heat the milk over med heat. Meanwhile, pour the remaining sugar into a small bow.. Split the vanilla pod, and scrape the seeds into the sugar. Rub the seeds into the sugar (this will help to avoid clumping). Whisk the sugar and the scraped vanilla pod into the milk and heat until the milk is steamy and small bubbles form on the sides of the saucepan.

Whisk 1/4 c of the hot milk into the eggs. Continue to slowly add the hot milk mix until the eggs and milk are fully combined. Then pjour the mix back into the sauce pan and cook, stirring almost constantly, over med heat for 5 min. The mix should thicken considerably. Remove the pjan from heat and add in the vanilla extract.

Chill the mix thoroughlyu either over an ice bath, or covered in the fridge for several hours.

Beat the heavy cream to soft peaks, and fold 1 c of the whipped cream into the chilled pudding. Mash up 2 of the bananas with a fork and fold those into the pudding as well. Fold in another c of the whipped cream.

To assemble the banana pudding, slice the remaining bananas. Then, in a nice serving glass, add layers of the crushed Nilla wafers, 3 spoonfuls of pudding, sliced bananas, and a dollop of whipped cream in layers until each glass in full. Cover the glasses and chill for a few hours until you are ready to serve. Note that any bananas that are exposed to air will brown very quicklly, so you may want to add a fresh banana garnish just before serving.