Warm Banana Pudding Light Food

WARM BANANA PUDDING

Steps:

• Custard base: Heat whole milk, half and half, vanilla, and vanilla bean in a large saucepan until bubbles start forming around the edge of the pan. Remove from heat and set aside. Place egg yolks and 2 cups of sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on high until light and fluffy, occasionally scraping down the sides of the bowl. Add the flour to the egg mixture on low just to incorporate. With the mixer on, slowly pour about a cup of the custard base from the saucepan into the egg mixture-this "tempering" will keep the eggs from cooking. Pour the tempered mixture through a fine mesh strainer into the saucepan (to smooth out any remaining lumps). Stir to combine, then fish out the vanilla bean. Split it open lengthwise, then use the back of a knife to scrape out the seeds. Return seeds and the scraped pod to the saucepan.
• Heat the custard mixture over medium-high heat, stirring constantly with heat-resistant spatula until thickened. (If the custard turns lumpy, turn off the heat and whisk until it's smooth again.) Whisk in salt and butter until smooth, then remove the vanilla bean pod and discard. To make it super-smooth, blend with an immersion blender until shiny. Set aside.
• Assembly: Slice the pound cake into 1/2-inch-thick slices and set aside. Pour 1/3 of the custard into a casserole dish to cover the bottom. Add the cake in a single layer, breaking slices up so they all fit. Brush cake with coffee, then add half of the bananas. Press the ingredients down so they're even, then repeat with more custard, cake slices, coffee, and bananas, finishing with a final layer of custard.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Put egg whites, remaining 1/2 cup sugar, and cream of tartar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Start the mixer on low (to avoid spatters), gradually raise speed to high to make sure the ingredients are combined, and then reduce to medium until soft peaks form. Spread meringue evenly over the banana pudding, then bake 5-6 minutes until the top is golden brown. Let cool several minutes, and serve warm.

LIGHTENED UP BANANA PUDDING

Steps:

• Whisk together the sugar, cornstarch and salt in a large saucepan; whisk in the milk until smooth. Heat over medium-high heat, whisking, until bubbles begin to form. Remove from the heat.
• Whisk the egg in a medium bowl. Slowly pour 1/4 cup of the hot milk mixture into the egg while whisking vigorously; whisk until smooth. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and cook over medium-high heat, whisking vigorously, until thick and starting to bubble, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a bowl, whisk in the sour cream and vanilla and let cool until thick, whisking frequently.
• Cut the bananas into thin slices. Layer a few banana slices, a few wafer pieces and 2 tablespoons of the prepared pudding in each of 4 glasses; repeat the layering once and then top with a final layer of pudding. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate for up to 4 hours.

BAKED BANANA PUDDING

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Toss the banana slices and lemon juice in a small bowl and set aside.
• Combine 1/2 cup of the sugar, the flour and salt in a 3-quart saucier. Add the egg yolks and whisk to combine. Add the half-and-half and carefully whisk to combine. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly until the mixture reaches 172 to 180 degrees F, approximately 5 to 10 minutes. The mixture will begin to thicken and bubble around the edges. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the vanilla extract.
• Spread a small amount of the pudding in the bottom of an oven-safe 1 1/2-quart glass mixing bowl. Cover with a layer of vanilla wafers, followed by a layer of banana slices. Pour 1/3 of the remaining pudding on top of the bananas and repeat, ending with a layer of pudding.
• Whisk the egg whites and cream of tartar in the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar and continue whisking until stiff peaks form. Spoon the meringue over the warm pudding, being sure to cover the edges. Bake until the meringue is evenly browned, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the pudding from the oven and cool for 15 minutes before serving. Cool completely before refrigerating. Refrigerate for up to 3 days.

THE BEST BANANA PUDDING

Steps:

• Bring the milk to a simmer in a large saucepan over medium heat, then remove from the heat. Meanwhile, whisk the sugar, cornstarch, egg yolks, vanilla paste and salt together in a medium bowl.
• While whisking, slowly add about 1 cup of the warm milk to the egg mixture. Pour the egg mixture back into the saucepan, whisking constantly. Continue to cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil. Lower the heat to maintain a simmer and cook until thickened, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter.
• Transfer the pudding to a large bowl and press a piece of plastic wrap directly against the surface. Refrigerate until cold, about 1 hour.
• Arrange 19 wafer cookies in the bottom of a 4-quart trifle dish. Top with 1 cup pudding, then arrange 2 sliced bananas on top. Repeat the layers ending with bananas.
• Add the heavy cream, confectioners' sugar and a pinch of salt to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, about 2 minutes.
• Spread the whipped cream over the pudding and sprinkle the crushed wafer cookies around the border. Refrigerate until the pudding is firm, at least 2 hours or up to overnight.

SUPER EASY LITE BANANA PUDDING

Steps:

• In whatever size dish you use. Put a single layer of vanilla wafers in bottom, and set aside.
• In large bowl, mix pudding mix and milk according to directions on box. Let sit for 5 minutes till set.
• Fold cool whip into pudding.
• Slice bananas into 1/4 inch slices and layer over wafers. Spoon pudding mixture over bananas.
• Top as desired. I usually lay a layer of vanilla wafers around outside of dish, but you can also crush some wafers and sprinkle over the top, or top with additional bananas and cool whip. But if you use bananas for garnish, toss with lemon juice first to avoid browning.