🍌💛 My Banana Pudding Bars Recipe has all the flavor of banana cream pudding pie, but is way faster and easier to make! A crunchy crust, tender banana slices, luscious banana pudding, and creamy whipped topping make these layered pie bars total WINNERS!
Easiest Creamy Banana Pudding Bars
It’s been years since I’ve made a creamy banana pudding dessert, until these easy banana cream pie bars came to life.
Note the operative word is bars. I am not a pie maker and avoid making pies like the plague, and always opt for pie bars rather than making an actual pie. I don’t relish making pie crust.
However, with just three ingredients, this crust is SO easy to make and comes together in the food processor, eliminating any fuss. Other than baking the crust for 12 minutes, the pie bars are a (nearly) no-bake dessert, which I love.
And all those layers. Oh my. A crunchy crust, tender banana slices, luscious banana pudding, and creamy whipped topping. Move over, banana cream pie, because there’s a new sheriff in town!
Love pie bars?
Try my blueberry pie bars, key lime pie bars, or glazed cherry pie bars next. There’s a flavor for every season and occasion!
Ingredients You’ll Need
To make this easy banana pudding dessert, you’ll need the following:
- Vanilla Wafers: Graham crackers also work well for a slightly different taste
- Fisher Pecan Halves
- Unsalted Butter
- Fresh Bananas: I recommend using ripe bananas for this recipe and not overripe. Overripe (i.e. black or heavily speckled) bananas will turn to mush when layered underneath the pudding and whipped topping. Save them for six-banana banana bread
- Instant Banana Pudding Mix: You need to make the banana cream pie bars with instant pudding and NOT cook and serve. Likewise, sugar-free pudding may not work (I haven’t tested this recipe with sugar-free instant pudding, so I can’t speak to the results)
- Milk: Use regular 2% milk or even whole milk for this recipe. Make sure it’s cold, as that will help the pudding set up faster
- Whipped Topping
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make Banana Pudding Bars
- Prepare the crust: Pulse the Nilla wafers and pecans in a food processor or high-speed blender to form fine crumbs. Mix in the melted butter. Transfer the mixture to a prepared baking dish, and spread it out evenly in the bottom of the pan. Bake just until the crust is golden brown and set.
- Layer: Arrange the banana slices in an even layer over the vanilla wafer crust, covering it completely.
- Prepare the pudding mixture: Stir the pudding mix and milk in a medium bowl until smooth and thickened. Then, whisk in part of the whipped topping, and spread the mixture evenly over the bananas.
- Chill: Spoon the remaining whipped topping over the pudding, and chill the bars in the dish in the refrigerator.
- Serve: Garnish with banana slices and extra nuts, if desired, and enjoy cold!
Banana Cream Pie Bars
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- 25 Nilla Wafers, I used reduced fat
- ¼ cup Fisher Pecan Halves
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
- about 3 medium/large bananas, sliced into thin rounds; divided (see Notes below)
- one 3.5-ounce box instant banana pudding
- 1 ½ cups cold 2% milk, use real dairy milk or pudding will not set up
- one 8-ounce container whipped topping, I used fat free, divided
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and line an 8×8-inch pan with foil for easier cleanup and spray with cooking spray; set aside.
- To the canister of a food processor fitted with the S-blade, add the Nilla Wafers, pecans, and mix on high speed until you have fine crumbs.
- Add the melted butter and mix to incorporate.
- Turn the mixture out into the prepared pan and hard pack it with a spatula to form an even, flat crust layer.
- Bake for about 12 minutes, or until the crust is set.
- Add the banana slices evenly over the crust so it's covered completely; set aside.
- To a large bowl, add the pudding mix, milk, and whisk for 2 minutes until pudding has thickened.
- Add 3/4 cup whipped topping and whisk to incorporate; reserve the remaining whipped topping.
- Turn pudding mixture out over the banana-topped crust, smoothing it gently with a spatula as necessary.
- Evenly turn the remaining whipped topping out over the pudding layer, smoothing it very gently with a spatula as necessary.
- Place pan in the fridge for about 90 minutes, or until well chilled and it has had time to set up.
- Before serving, garnish each pieces with a couple banana slices.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Banana Dessert Recipes:
Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting – The BEST banana cake recipe because it’s soft, tender, moist, and bursting with banana flavor thanks to the 4 bananas used! Tangy-yet-sweet cream cheese frosting takes this cake over the top and makes it a guaranteed family FAVORITE!
Fudgy Banana Bars with Vanilla Bean Browned Butter Glaze — Fudgy is the only word that describes these bars! They’re the banana equivalent of moist, fudgy brownies with zero trace of cakiness.
Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies — These cookies are soft, moist, and oh-so chewy. They taste like banana bread and chocolate chip cookies rolled into one dessert!
Caramelized Banana Upside Down Cake — This upside down cake is super moist thanks to the combination of sour cream, buttermilk, and vegetable oil. It’s so easy to make, and the caramelized banana flavor is impossible to resist!
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Fisher. The opinions and text are all mine.
Post is brought to you by Fisher. The recipe, images, text, video, and opinions expressed are my own. #ThinkFisher
great
If refrigerating this overnight, how brown would the bananas get, in your opinion?
Also, are these something that can be cut and served on a platter, or do they need to be served from the original pan?
The banana slices in the middle? Not that brown. The ones on top as a garnish? Much more so. The interior ones are more ‘protected’.
I want to make this , it looks delicious
Hope you enjoy!
hey girl- this looks so yummy!
Thanks so much!!
Banana cream pie is seriously one of my favorite foods in the world!! These bars are perfect.
Thanks and these are even easier than banana cream pie so you are in business :)
This sounds like a great mix of flavors, although I confess I might want to eat the pie crust all on its own. :)
Lol, it was so good! Have a great weekend!