Lisa Fain tops a Texas staple with irresistible, rich goodies.
Banana pudding is a classic Texan dessert found at most barbecues, outdoor gatherings, and potlucks. Texans have been serving it since the 1800s, but the dish has evolved from its beginnings as a sponge cake filled with custard and sliced bananas to a trifle layered with custard, bananas, and vanilla cookies, with everything, save for the bananas, usually coming from a box.
That kind of banana pudding is popular, but think about how much better it could be if you made the vanilla custard from scratch. And while I do enjoy the vanilla cookies in this dish, as I adore the combination of nuts and bananas, I usually make my pudding with peanut butter-oatmeal cookies instead.
— Lisa Fain
(Serves 6 – 8)
Peanut Butter-Oatmeal Cookies
½ cup packed brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup chunky peanut butter
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup rolled oats (not instant)
½ cup all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Place a metal mixing bowl in the freezer.
To make the cookies, cream together the brown sugar, granulated sugar, and butter. Add the peanut butter, egg, and vanilla, and mix until well combined. In a separate bowl, whisk together the oats, flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt until well combined. Add this to the sugar mixture and stir until a soft cookie dough forms.
Working in batches, using a heaping teaspoon, form the dough into balls and place on the prepared baking sheets 2 inches apart. Bake, one sheet at a time, for 13 – 15 minutes, or until the edges are set. Cool on the sheet for 5 minutes, and then transfer to a wire rack to continue cooling (the cookies will harden as they cool). Repeat for the remaining cookie dough. You should have about 36 cookies.
Pudding
2 cups whole milk
½ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup all-purpose flour
3 egg yolks
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 bananas
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Whipped Cream Topping
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons honey or powdered sugar
To make the pudding, whisk together the milk, granulated sugar, flour, egg yolks, and salt in a pot. Cook over medium-low heat, continuously stirring, until the mixture starts to bubble and then thicken, 4 to 6 minutes. Turn down the heat to low and stir in the butter and vanilla. Turn off the heat.
To make the whipped cream, take the bowl out of the freezer, add the cream and honey, and then beat until soft peaks form.
Peel and slice the bananas into ¼-inch rounds. Sprinkle the slices with the lemon juice to prevent them from turning brown.
To assemble, place a layer of cookies and bananas in the bottom of an 8-inch square baking dish. Layer on half of the pudding. Add another layer of cookies and bananas, and then top with the remaining pudding. Spread the whipped cream on top, and then decorate with the remaining cookies and bananas. Chill for at least 4 hours before serving, though if you prefer, you can eat it warm.
Alternatively, you can serve the pudding in six ½-pint Mason jars or bowls. Evenly divide the cookies, sliced bananas, and pudding, and then proceed as above.
Excerpted with permission from The Homesick Texan’s Family Table: Lone Star Cooking From My Kitchen to Yours by Lisa Fain (Ten Speed Press, 2014).
Keep up with Lisa Fain online at www.homesicktexan.com. The Homesick Texan’s Family Table: Lone Star Cooking From My Kitchen to Yours (Ten Speed Press, 2014) and The Homesick Texan Cookbook (Hyperion, 2011) are available at Amazon.com.
From the August/September 2014 issue.
