Banana pudding has always meant celebration in my family. It’s my daddy’s favorite dessert—requested for birthdays, holidays, and especially New Year’s. He was a New Year’s baby, and banana pudding was always there, quietly calling from the table while everyone else focused on the fireworks and champagne.
This version keeps all the comfort and nostalgia I grew up with, but it’s made entirely dairy-free using homemade vanilla wafers, a silky vanilla sweet potato pudding, and a light cashew cream topping. It’s familiar enough to feel like home and just thoughtful enough to feel new.
Why You’ll Love This Banana Pudding
- Classic Southern flavor, completely dairy-free
- Homemade vanilla wafers that soak beautifully without turning mushy
- Creamy, vanilla-forward pudding with subtle depth
- Light cashew cream topping that finishes clean—not heavy
- Perfect for holidays, gatherings, or making ahead
This is the kind of dessert people recognize immediately and never guess it’s dairy-free much less includes sweet potato.
Pro Tip
Banana pudding gets better with time. Assemble it at least 4 hours ahead, but overnight is ideal. The wafers soften into cake-like layers, the flavors mellow, and everything slices cleanly instead of collapsing into a scoopable mess.
Cost & Nutritional Comparison
- The homemade version costs roughly $10 to make at about $0.80 a serving, compared to a store bought version that can cost upwards of $18 to make at roughly $2 a serving.
- Although the homemade version is lower in saturated fat, has zero cholesterol and has more fiber, this version isn’t about “making it healthy.” It’s about using real ingredients that still taste like dessert.
Final Thoughts 🌻
This banana pudding holds onto everything that makes the original special—cool layers, soft cookies, ripe bananas, and vanilla cream—while quietly modernizing it. It’s the kind of recipe that feels right on a holiday table, one that invites stories, seconds, and memories.
If your family has a banana pudding tradition, this one slips right in. And if you don’t? This might be how it starts.
My Daddy’s Banana Pudding
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment.
- Using a hand mixer, whip aquafaba 2–3 minutes until foamy and opaque (no stiff peaks).
- In a bowl, whisk flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt.
- Whisk maple syrup, non-dairy milk, and vanilla into the aquafaba.
- Gently fold wet ingredients into dry until smooth and pipeable.
- Pipe or spoon 2–2½-inch discs, about ¼-inch thick.
- Bake 10–12 minutes, until set but still pale.
- Turn oven off, crack the door, and leave wafers inside 15–20 minutes to gently dry.
- Cool completely. Wafers should be chewy with a slight crunch, not crispy.
- Blend all ingredients except vanilla until completely smooth. This can take some time. Keep processing until silky.
- Transfer to a saucepan and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly.
- When thick and glossy, remove from heat and stir in vanilla.
- Cover with parchment directly on the surface and let cool slightly before assembling.
- Blend until silky smooth.
- Chill 30–60 minutes to lightly thicken.
- Texture should be soft and spoonable, like whipped topping, not like nut butter.
- Wafer discs (slightly overlapping)
- Banana slices
- Vanilla pudding
- Repeat layers once or twice
- Spread cashew vanilla cream on top
- Garnish with finely grated wafer crumbs
- Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.