My Cookbook: Souk to Table 
Addictive Banana Pudding (Magnolia Bakery)
If you’ve ever had Magnolia Bakery’s banana pudding, you know exactly why it has a cult following. It’s light and creamy with layers of fluffy vanilla pudding, ripe bananas, and soft Nilla wafers. The good news? You don’t have to visit New York City to enjoy it—you can make it at home with just a few simple ingredients. It’s the kind of no-bake dessert that’s ridiculously easy, yet always impressive. Whether you’re making it for a potluck, holiday gathering, or just because, this copycat Magnolia Bakery banana pudding recipe is one you’ll keep coming back to. Let’s get into it!
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My Thoughts on Magnolia’s Banana Pudding
So here’s the thing: I’m not usually one to fall for trends or fads. In fact, when I visited New York City last summer, I wasn’t even on the hunt for Magnolia Bakery to try it. The only reason I ended up buying it not once, not twice, but three times is because I stumbled on it around the corner from the hotel we were staying at. And I thought – okay fine, let’s see what all the hype is about!
I fell in love folks. It was very delicious and highly addictive. My only small critique is this: I didn’t have enough wafers in all three puddings that I bought. I just needed more wafers!
So when I came back home and found their exact recipe (from their cookbook), I decided to make sure I made it so that there’s a wafer in every bite.
If I were to rank this amongst my other favourite no-bake desserts like this Nescafe cake made with tea biscuits, this chocolate lazy cake, or my pistachio tiramisu, the banana pudding would definitely be number 1. So please make it!
Ingredients You’ll for Magnolia’s Banana Pudding
When I saw the recipe for this pudding, I was quite surprised at how simple it really is to make. You just need 5 ingredients, but here are my important notes on a few of them:
- Bananas: use just ripe bananas – preferably ones that are still a little bit green. This ensures they can last longer in the fridge and don’t brown quickly.
- Vanilla wafers: if you’re in the USA, the brand to use is the Nilla wafers. But here in Canada, I can’t find them, so I ended up using these ones and they worked out great!
Step-by-Step Instructions and Photos
Before you start, here’s what you need to know in terms of timing so you can figure out when to make it based on when you want to serve it.
First, the vanilla pudding part must be refrigerated for 3-4 hours. Then you can assemble the banana pudding, and you’ll need to refrigerate it for at least 7 hours and up to 12 hours. I usually make the pudding mix the night before (it’s okay to let it sit in the fridge overnight), then assemble the morning of when I plan to serve it that evening.
To make the pudding, simply whisk together the ice water, condensed milk and the vanilla pudding. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 3-4 hours until set.
Once the pudding is set, you can whip the cream until stiff peaks form. Fold the pudding into the cream until well combined and you no longer see streaks of pudding.
Now you can assemble. Assembling the whole thing in a casserole dish (in this case I used an 8 by 12 inch dish) is my favourite way, because then you can scoop out portions and place into individual cups and the serving ends up looking exactly the way its served at Magnolia Bakery.
Start with a layer of the cream, then the wafers, then the banana slices.
Repeat all the layers again, then add a final layer of the cream on top.
Cover it tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 7 hours and up to 12 hours. To serve, I like to crumble more wafers for the top and also add more banana slices that I slice fresh just before serving.
Note on Bananas Browning: When I made this several times, I found that the banana slices within the cream layers are usually okay up to 24 hours. So if you need to make and serve this 24 hours later, don’t worry – you’ll be fine, especially if you use just ripe bananas. Once you cut into the pudding, a little bit of browning will happen, but it’s nothing that will impact the flavour or show much. I don’t recommend serving it before the 7 hour mark, because when I did that, I found that the wafers were still not soft enough to my liking. Soft wafers definitely trumps fresh bananas!
Storage Suggestions
I’m not worried about this for you, because I guarantee this dessert will be gone when you serve it, but you’re fine to keep it in the fridge for 24 hours. I’ve also had a bit leftover after 48 hours and it was perfectly delicious, albeit with a little bit of browning on some of the bananas.
Other Creamy Desserts You Will Love
If you tried these recipes, please consider leaving a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comments section further down the page – I’d love to hear from you! You can also hop on over to Instagram and say hello!
Magnolia Bakery Banana Pudding (Addictive!)
Ingredients
- 396 g Condensed milk, (14 oz)
- 1 1/2 cups ice cold water
- 96 grams Vanilla pudding, (1 box, 3.4oz)
- 3 cups Whipping cream, 35%
- 4 cups sliced bananas, 4 to 6 bananas
- 680 grams vanilla wafers, 2 boxes (12 oz boxes)
Instructions
- Start by combining the condensed milk and ice cold water in a medium bowl. Whisk to combine. Then add the vanilla pudding and whisk until well combined. You can do this using a whisk or a stand mixer. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours, until scoop-able with a spoon.
- When the vanilla pudding is ready, use a stand mixer or hand mixer to whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the whipped cream into the pudding mixture until they are well incorporated.
- Peel and slice the bananas into circles. In an 8×12 inch casserole dish (see notes) that is at least 2 inches deep, add a thin layer of the cream. Then add a layer of the vanilla wafers, placing them side by side. Top with a layer of bananas. Repeat the cream layer, then wafers, then bananas. The top layer should be cream.
- Crumble any leftover wafer pieces over the top, then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 7 hours, or ideally 12 hours. I found that anything less than 7 hours and the wafers are not very soft. Anything more than 10-12 hours and the bananas may brown a little bit, but to be honest, it doesn't show much and it still tastes delicious. Do not place any bananas on top until you are ready to serve. The bananas nestled in the cream will stay fresh longer since they are not exposed to air.
- To serve, chop up more bananas and place on top. Scoop the pudding into individual bowls and serve.
Notes
- You can use a larger or smaller casserole dish, but you will have either more or less layers than I achieved. The quantities listed achieved 2 layers of bananas and wafers and 3 layers of cream in an 8×12 inch dish.
- In Canada, we don’t have the original vanilla wafers used by Magnolia bakery. See the ingredients section for a link to the Canadian ones I use.
- You can keep this dessert in the fridge for 24 – 48 hours. I’ve done that, and it’s still perfectly delicious, but with just a bit of browning on the bananas that you won’t notice much. Trust me!
I made a double batch of this pudding last week and it worked amazingly well. For any Canadians: you can find the same wafers in this recipe at Superstore as well.
I sliced the bananas super thin so I honestly didn’t have many issues with browning even a few days after (I did not top with bananas), but the texture of the wafers became kind of grainy. Despite this, it tasted amazing.
My only “complaint” for this recipe is that I personally found it way too sweet. I will experiment with maybe decreasing the amount of sweetened condensed milk next time, but I’d definitely make the recipe again.
I have made this so many times now and it has become everyone’s favorite! I think it’s better than Magnolia bakery too! Super easy to also make!
Addictive huh?
Thats putting it mildly.
Made this last weekend for an Iftar we were invited to.
Comparing it to Magnolias bakery is not doing it justice.
It was easy to make, truly delicious and we were looking forward to eat it again for Suhoor 😆
Thank you for this delicious recipe! I know I will be making this one a lot for the future!
I am so glad to hear you loved the pudding Teresa! Thanks for leaving us a review!
Made this today and it was devoured! Added a cookie crumble ontop for some extra crunch and wow!
Love the cookie crumble idea on top! Thank you Dalia!
De-li-cious! Made a batch of this scrumptious pudding, scooped it into small glass jars (filled to the top to keep bananas covered and fresh) and took it to my daughter’s house for a Friday night movie treat. Everyone loved it and requested it for our next movie night. It’s that good!
Oh I’m so glad you loved it Liz! It’s totally the perfect movie night dessert. Thanks for your review!
If you toss the bananas with the tiniest amount of lemon juice they won’t brown 🙂
Hi Jackie, Humaira from the HP Team here. Yes, lemon juice is great at preventing browning for sure! I don’t find it totally necessary here since the bananas were just fine for at least 24 hours, since they are covered in cream, they have that protective layer over them. Thanks for stopping by!