Homemade Banana Pudding

Last night I had a craving for banana pudding; like the one you normally find at the grocery store in a box. You know which one I'm talking about..

As you know, I wouldn't bother going to the grocery store to buy a box. Geez, it was cold, rainy, windy, and dark outside; besides, I was sure I could make my own version at home. After a few Google searches though I didn't really come up with anything other than several recipes for banana pudding (vanilla pudding with layers of vanilla wafers and banana slices) or recipes for vanilla pudding that suggest using banana extract instead of vanilla extract. Uhm...no....

In the end, I thought that perhaps I could just add pureed banana to the mix and see what happens. Such a simple solution, eh? Imagine...add banana to create a banana flavour. Don't need a fancy recipe to do that!

Homemade Banana Pudding

• 3 1/2 cups milk
• 1/3 cup plus 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup corn starch
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 large eggs
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 ripe bananas
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp unsalted butter

In a food processor mix together1/2 cup of the milk, 1/3 cup sugar, cornstarch, salt, eggs, egg yolk and the bananas. Process until smooth and pour the mixture into a large bowl. Set aside.

Pour the remaining 3 cups of milk, along with 1/4 cup of sugar into a saucepan and bring just to a boil.

Gradually add the hot milk into the banana mixture, whisking constantly, until smooth. Transfer the mixture back into the pot and place over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens. Remove from heat and whisk in the butter and vanilla extract. Pour through a strainer to remove any remaining lumps. Cover and place in the refrigerator to chill.

So what's actually in the boxed version?

SUGAR, DEXTROSE (FROM CORN), MODIFIED CORNSTARCH, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, SALT, DISODIUM PHOSPHATE & TETRASODIUM PYROPHOSPHATE (FOR THICKENING) MONO- AND DIGLYCERIDES (PREVENT FOAMING), YELLOW 5, YELLOW 6, ARTIFICIAL COLOR, BHA (PRESERVATIVE).

Uhm...yeah...I'm happy I made my own!

Eat Fresh, Eat Loca, Eat REAL Food!