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Meringue Topped Banana Pudding

I’m willing to bet that most people haven’t seen a banana pudding with meringue baked on top. This recipe comes from Maya Angelou and uses a from scratch vanilla pudding, sliced bananas on top of a layer of nilla wafers.

The pudding got quite brown only after 15 minutes, much more brown than I would have liked. I think next time I would bake only till tips were golden. Regardless, it tasted great.

Day two taste test: As much as I loved this pudding, it’s definitely not as good on day 2. The nilla wafers turn to a grainy sorta paste. I would think this recipe would be great just minus the wafers if you planned on having leftovers the next day. If you are planning on only serving it once, go for the wafers.

Maya Angelou’s Banana Pudding
Makes several serving

3/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp. sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
Pinch of salt
3 cups milk
8 eggs, separated
3 Tbsp. butter
1 Tbsp. pure vanilla extract
3 cups vanilla wafers
4 ripe bananas, thinly sliced
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar

1. Preheat oven to 350f. In a large saucepan, combine 1/3 cup sugar, cornstarch, and salt; stir until blended. Mix in milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thickened and boiling; boil 1 minute; then remove from heat.

2. In a small bowl, whisk egg yolks, then whisk in about 1/2 cup of hot custard until blended. Pour yolk mixture back into saucepan of custard; cook over medium heat, stirring, 2 minutes. Stir in butter and vanilla until blended.

3. Place vanilla wafers on bottom of a shallow 2-quart casserole dish. Top with layers of banana slices and custard. Repeat layering, ending with custard.

4. In a large mixing bowl, beat egg whites and 1/4 cup sugar at low speed until frothy. Add cream of tartar; increase speed to medium and gradually beat in remaining sugar. Beat until egg whites hold stiff peaks.

5. Spoon meringue over hot custard immediately, making sure that meringue touches baking dish on all sides (this prevents it from shrinking). Transfer to oven and bake until golden, about 20 minutes. Remove pudding from oven and cool 1 hour. Refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving.

Source: Maya Angelou and Oprah magazine

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12 Comments

  1. This looks wonderful! My hubby loves bananas so I know this would be a hit. Thank you for visiting my blog today! I enjoyed my tour of yous.

  2. Oh, MY! This looks incredible. Banana has really been a favorite around here lately. Out of the blue.

    Thanks for linking up to Made by Me Monday last week. My tummy thanks you! 🙂

  3. @ Kate, Lee and Pink Dandy – Thank you for the compliments. Thanks so much for visiting 🙂

  4. The original recipe in on the side of a box of Nilla Vanilla Wafers by Nabisco. No bananas?….still a great custard dessert. Yum

  5. The original recipe in on the side of a box of Nilla Vanilla Wafers by Nabisco. No bananas?….still a great custard dessert. Yum

  6. I was gonna say the same as Janet above. But I can go to the third generation of my family. A lot of them used meringue on banana pudding and some pies.. I adored Maya Angelou as an actress and poet.

  7. Thank you for this Recipe. Years ago a Friend in Los Angeles shared a similar recipe. She was the cousin of Steve Wonder and we made it for him. It is his Favorite. I lost the Recipe. This is pretty much the ingredients used. Can’t wait to try. Thank you. Continue creating love through Baking and Cooking Delish!💞