I Tried This Texas Grandma’s Banana Pecan Crunch Pudding and I Already Want Another Batch

Banana pudding is typically made with a vanilla pudding base, sliced bananas, and wafer cookies, all layered to create the ideal treat. I’ve always been a die-hard fan of this ultimate comfort dessert, but even the classics can be made better — a controversial opinion, for sure, but it hasn’t let me down yet!

This banana pudding, for all its twists, actually comes from an old cookbook found by a Redditor. It’s a simple recipe made up of seven ingredients, but with a name like Aunt Dot’s Banana Pecan Crunch Pudding, I had a feeling it was definitely going to surpass my expectations. 

Get the recipe: Banana Pecan Crunch Pudding

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Beat the egg and mix in the sugar and chopped pecans. Spread the mixture onto the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes until golden. Once baked, remove from the oven and set aside to cool. Once cool, crush the crunch topping.

Beat together the instant pudding mix, sour cream, and milk. Fold in the bananas.

In a square baking dish, create a base layer with the pecan crunch topping.

Spoon the pudding over the pecan crunch mixture. Repeat as desired to create multiple layers.

Top with remaining pecan crunch crumbs and chill in the fridge for several hours. Top with additional sliced bananas before serving.

If it were up to me, I’d be on my third serving of this banana pudding, but I had to put the spoon down at some point. The texture of the pudding is thick and luscious, and the flavor is wonderfully balanced with slices of banana dotted throughout. But the real star of the show here? That pecan crunch.

I wasn’t quite sure of the results I would get by mixing egg, sugar, and crushed pecans, but I can certainly say I learned a new favorite trick in the kitchen. Baking the mixture produced a meringue-like crunchy topping that paired wonderfully with this pudding. I ended up doubling the ingredients needed for the crunch topping to be sure I had plenty to layer throughout the pudding. It adds a touch of nuttiness to the overall flavor, while introducing a playful candy-like crunch.

My only note on this recipe is that it produces an incredibly thick pudding as-is. When I mixed one package of pudding with the sour cream and milk, it didn’t look like it was nearly enough to fill the baking dish. I had another package on hand, so I ended up using two (5.1-ounce) packages, along with two cups of milk, and one cup of sour cream. If you don’t need as large of a serving, using just one box would be perfectly fine.

1. Line the baking sheet for the topping. The original recipe said to grease the baking sheet before pouring the pecan topping to bake, but I opted for parchment paper instead — and I’m glad I did. The topping gets pretty sticky. Parchment paper makes for much easier cleanup and will keep your baking sheet in tip-top shape.
2. Add whipped cream. This recipe is absolutely delicious as-is, but next time I make it, I’m bringing whipped cream to the table. Most banana pudding recipes are topped or layered with whipped topping or whipped cream, and this would enhance the texture tenfold.
3. Use just-ripe bananas. We’re definitely not making banana bread here, so you don’t want the bananas to be too ripe with brown spots on the peel. Choose bananas that have just ripened so they can add great flavor to the pudding, without turning to mush.
4. Keep browning in mind. Sliced bananas start to oxidize once they’re exposed to air. This is fine for the sliced bananas being mixed in because they’re surrounded by the pudding. However, if you want to decorate the top of the pudding with sliced bananas, be sure to leave that step until the last minute, right before serving.

Get the recipe: Banana Pecan Crunch Pudding