Staring blankly into the pantry at 9 PM while holding a half-empty box of vanilla wafers and contemplating life choices is exactly what led to these banana pudding brownies last Tuesday. Wanting a southern dessert mashup without making an actual pie crust felt like avoiding a personal attack on my own patience.
Baking the pudding layer right on top of a dense, chewy blondie base seemed significantly safer after turning a traditional banana pudding attempt into banana soup. Mashing up two completely different desserts turned out to be the exact kind of culinary chaos my kitchen was built for. Here is exactly how I do it.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- No stress layer. The pudding bakes right on top, meaning nobody has to worry about a custard weeping in the fridge.
- Crowd control. Sixteen squares yields just enough to stop a family from fighting over the last piece.
- Texture heaven. A chewy base, a creamy top, and a crunch from the wafers makes anyone look like they know what they are doing.
- Shortcut magic. This easy blondie brownie recipe with banana pudding relies on instant mix, because everyone has lives to live.
Tools You’ll Need
Nothing fancy, I promise.
- 9×9 baking pan – The unsung hero of the dessert world. If you use a glass one, keep a close eye on the edges.
- Hand mixer. This beats the cream cheese until smooth without an intense arm workout.
- Parchment paper. This spares anyone from prying a sticky brownie out of an unlined pan.
Ingredients
For The Brownie Layer
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter – Melted. If you use salted, just omit the extra salt later so it does not taste like the ocean.
- 1 cup light brown sugar – Packs the moisture that makes these blondie brownies with pudding actually chewy.
- 2 large eggs – Room temperature. Seriously, cold eggs will seize your melted butter and make it look weird.
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract – Measure with your heart, but this is a good baseline.
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour – Spoon and level it so you do not end up with dry bricks.
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder – Just a little lift.
- 1/2 teaspoon salt – To balance out the sugar rush.
For The Banana Pudding Layer
- 8 ounces cream cheese – Softened to room temperature. If you try to mix cold cream cheese, you will have lumpy pudding, and nobody wants that.
- 3.4 ounces instant banana cream pudding mix – Make sure it is instant, not the cook-and-serve kind.
- 2 large eggs – Room temperature again.
- 1/4 cup whole milk – You can use 2%, but please do not use skim water-milk here.
For The Garnish
- 16 vanilla wafer cookies – The crown jewels of banana pudding brownies with vanilla wafers.
How To Make Banana Pudding Brownies
Put on an apron, or just accept that you will inevitably get flour on your dark shirt.
- Prep the pan: Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a 9×9 inch baking pan with parchment paper. Leave a little overhang so you can lift the whole thing out later like a champion.
- Mix the wet ingredients: Whisk the melted unsalted butter and light brown sugar in a large bowl until fully combined. It will look like wet sand, which is exactly right.
- Add eggs and vanilla: Add the eggs and vanilla extract, whisking until fully incorporated. If you forgot to take the eggs out early and they are cold, run them under warm water for five minutes—I won’t tell.
- Finish the batter: Add the flour, baking powder, and salt, whisking until the batter is thick and smooth. You might need to switch to a spatula here because this batter gets thicker than my patience in traffic. Spread it evenly in the pan.
- Bake the base: Bake the brownie layer for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let it cool on the counter while you make the pudding layer.
- Whip the cream cheese: In a separate bowl, use a handheld mixer on medium speed to beat the cream cheese until smooth and fluffy. Add the instant banana cream pudding mix, eggs, and whole milk, beating for 30 seconds to a minute.
- Layer it up: Gently add dollops of the thick banana mixture over the brownie layer and spread it carefully to the edges. Be gentle—if you aggressively smear it, you will tear up the brownie base and create a swirl you did not ask for.
- Add the cookies: Place the vanilla wafer cookies into the center of each future serving. You need four rows of four cookies. Math is hard, but you can do this.
- Bake again: Bake for an additional 15-18 minutes until the edges are golden and the center is set. A toothpick should come out clean.
- Cool completely: Cool completely at room temperature before slicing. If you try to cut them hot, you will end up with a delicious, unrecognizable puddle on your plate.
♥ The Misfit Tips!
- Chill before slicing. Rushing the chilling step once caused the pudding layer to collapse into a dessert crime scene.
- Cream cheese matters. Low-fat cream cheese makes the topping watery, so full-fat brick stays essential.
- Pudding swap If you cannot find banana cream pudding mix, you can use vanilla instant pudding and add a teaspoon of banana extract to get that signature flavor.
Make it yours
- Chocolate chip version. You fold mini chocolate chips into the blondie batter for a sweeter twist on this easy blondie brownie recipe with banana pudding.
- Caramel drizzle version. You drizzle warm caramel over the cooled bars for a richer finish.
Perfect Pairings
These go perfectly with a complete disregard for your daily sugar intake.
- Black coffee aggressively contrasts the sweetness of the pudding layer.
- A giant scoop of vanilla ice cream satisfies a particularly reckless Tuesday night craving.
How to Store
❤
- Fridge. Up to three days in an airtight container, though the vanilla wafers soften into a cake-like texture.
- Freezer. Not recommended, since the cream cheese and pudding layer turns grainy and separates when thawing.
- Reheat. Do not reheat these, since the pudding layer stays meant for cold or room temperature eating.
- Storage note. The wafers do not stay crunchy in the fridge, so adding them right before eating preserves the crunch.
Banana Pudding Brownies
These banana pudding brownies prove that a genuinely impressive southern dessert mashup can come together with nothing more than instant pudding, a hand mixer, and a 9×9 pan. This easy blondie brownie recipe with banana pudding relies on a chewy base and a baked pudding topping to avoid the weeping custard that ruins so many other banana pudding attempts. Whether served at a backyard barbecue or sliced for a Tuesday night treat, these blondie brownies with pudding earn a permanent spot in the regular rotation.
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9×9 inch baking pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- To make the brownie layer, add the melted unsalted butter and light brown sugar to a mixing bowl and whisk until fully combined.
- Add the eggs and vanilla extract and whisk again until the eggs are fully incorporated.
- Add the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt and whisk one final time until your batter is thick and smooth. You may need to switch to a rubber spatula to be able to fully mix the batter once it thickens. Be sure to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure that your batter is evenly combined. Spread the batter into an even layer in the prepared pan.
- Bake the brownie layer for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on the counter while making the banana pudding layer.
- In a separate mixing bowl, using a handheld mixer on medium speed beat the cream cheese until smooth and fluffy. Add the instant banana cream pudding mix, large eggs, and whole milk. Beat again for 30 seconds to 1 minute or until the batter is smooth.
- Gently add dollops of the thick banana mixture over the surface of the brownie layer. Carefully spread the banana mixture all the way to the edges of the brownie layer, using a small offset spatula, into an even layer. Be gentle while spreading the banana pudding layer so as not to disturb the brownie layer.
- Place the vanilla wafer cookies into the center of each serving. You will need 4 rows of cookies that are equally spaced to sit in the middle of each serving once the brownies have cooled and can be sliced.
- Bake the banana pudding layer for an additional 15-18 minutes or until the banana pudding brownies are lightly golden on the edges and the center of the pudding layer is set, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Remove the banana pudding brownies from the oven and allow them to cool completely at room temperature before slicing and serving.