Easy Homemade Vegan Banana Pudding Recipe

Vegan Banana Pudding is a super easy dessert that is sweet and creamy. Just slice some bananas and layer everything and your good to go! Grab some instant pudding or try our quick and simple Vegan Vanilla Pudding Recipe to make this creamy treat.

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Hey Internet, We just want to get in one last easy recipe for summer in before the season ends. Summer doesn't technically end until September 22nd, but that doesn't stop people treating September as the start of Fall. There's already giant skeletons for sale at the hardware stores. While we love Fall, it's way too early for all this.

So for one last taste of summer, we whipped another easy vegan dessert. We were planning a Vegan Vanilla Pudding Recipe for awhile now and thinking of ways to make it more exciting. 

We also had a bunch of bananas that were getting a bit spotty. Normally, we just turn them into frozen banana chunks to use in smoothies, but we already had two gallon-size bags full in the freezer. Space is already at a premium in our side-by-side, so we needed a new way to use them up.

We landed on veganizing a creamy banana pudding to keep things cool with another no bake dessert. This is a fun vegan twist on a classic southern dessert. It's a lot like a banana cream pie, but with cookies (and way less work)! 

Traditional banana pudding recipes use vanilla wafer cookies, but a lot of brands contain milk and eggs. While there are vegan vanilla wafers out there, they might not be accessible to everyone.

Good news is that you can easily use speculoos cookies as an alternative and they are so good! These cookies are caramelly with a light spice to them, usually ginger. We found a lot of brands that are accidentally vegan and they're pretty cheap and easy to find. They worked just as well as the wafers for getting crisp cookies to balance out this creamy dessert. We found options at our local grocery store and even at Aldi!

We made a lot of vegan desserts that don't heat up your house this summer, like our Easy Vegan Panna Cotta and our Easy Viral Tiramisu Chia Pudding. But this delicious vegan banana pudding is probably the best summer dessert we've made this year. It's a great way to end the season with. Plus, you can still make this one year round!

Why You'll Love This Creamy Vegan Banana Pudding

• Super Easy To Make: Just make a vegan pudding the night before and then layer everything together. With simple ingredients, it's that easy.
• Crunchy Yet Creamy: Ripe bananas and creamy pudding meets crunchy cookies. It's an awesome combo!
• Customizable: Go bananas and add some amazing flavors to this easy vegan banana pudding recipe. More on that below.

Ingredients

Pick up the following ingredients for this tasty vegan banana pudding the next time you're at a grocery store. See the recipe card at the bottom of this post for full ingredients, instructions, and accurate nutrition information (to the best of my ability; please consult your physician, registered dietitian, or healthcare professional if you have specific dietary needs or need to meet certain daily values of any nutrient). I give substitutions for the ingredients for the full recipe in the section below this one, so most people can still make this recipe!

• 2 Cups Vanilla Vegan Pudding: Most pudding mixes can be used to make vegan pudding! Just use your unsweetened non-dairy milk of choice. We like to use almond milk, but oat milk and soy milk will also work. We recommend not using coconut milk as the plant-based milk as there is already a lot of coconut flavor in this dish and also it may make the dish too heavy. We also have recipe for homemade Vegan Vanilla Pudding that uses cornstarch or arrowroot powder as a natural thickener if you don't have a box of instant vanilla pudding mix.
• 8 to 10 oz Vegan Coco Whip (1 Container): So Delicious has a great vegan version of whipped topping that will mix great with your pudding.
• 3 to 4 Medium Fresh Bananas, Sliced: Make sure to save opening an slicing the bananas for last to prevent browning!
• 1 to 2 8 oz Packages of Speculoos Cookies: The amount you need may vary depending on the shape of your dish. You may also want extra depending on how much you want to crumble on top of the last layer of pudding!

Substitutions and Additions

• Coco Whip: Vanilla custard or coconut cream with a little maple syrup (or your favorite liquid sweetener) can be used as a replacement. We recommend this creamy vegan custard recipe to use. 
• Cookies: Vanilla wafers are another great cookie to use in this recipe. There are vegan versions available. If you need this recipe to be gluten-free, simply use gluten-free vanilla wafers, though these may be hard to find gluten-free and vegan. In that case, the gluten-free golden oreos may be a good option.
• Add-In: Chocolate: A little chocolate sauce is the best way to take this recipe up another level. We also have a vegan chocolate sauce recipe if you need it!
• Add-In: Peanut Butter: Another classic combo to try is adding a little melted peanut butter to the top of the pudding.  

How to Make Vegan Banana Pudding

1. Note About the Pudding: Make sure the pudding cools before using. Let it chill (covered, either in an airtight container or covered with plastic wrap) in the fridge or freezer before mixing it into the vegan whipped topping.
2. Soften the Coco Whip: Before making, add the vegan whipped topping to your fridge to soften it for the next step. This should be done a few hours beforehand, or you can set it out on the counter (I'd recommend stirring it every 15-20 minutes so it thaws evenly). 
3. Mix the Pudding and Whip: In a large bowl, use a spatula to mix the vegan pudding and whipped topping together until thoroughly combined.
4. Make the Layers: In a medium to large container, preferable a resealable one, add a single layer of cookies. Next, add about a third of the fresh banana slices in single layer as well. Then add a third of the pudding mixture. Repeat the pattern until all of the pudding mix is used up. Crumble a layer of crushed cookies, if desired, or you can dust with powdered sugar. (Personally, we like to leave it off and crumble on a single fresh cookie onto each person's serving right before they eat it for a nice contrast in texture.)
5. Chill: Add the container to your refrigerator, covered, for at least 1 hour.
6. Serve: Scoop out with a metal spoon and enjoy!
7. Store: Refrigerate leftover vegan banana pudding for up to 3 days, though for best results you may end up eating it more quickly than that. We sure did!

Storage Instructions

If you made your banana pudding in a container that doesn't seal, use cling wrap or aluminum to cover it. It should last 1 to 3 days in the fridge. However, the texture does change a little bit with each day. The cookies will get softer. Bear this in mind when storing or preparing ahead of time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use meringue for this recipe?

You can, but we aren't sure exactly how that would work.

Why do I need special vanilla wafers for this recipe?

Most brands of vanilla wafers use milk and eggs in their recipe. If you want a classic banana pudding recipe that's also vegan, you'll need to find vegan vanilla wafers. Or you can simply use the speculoos cookies that we used! Virtually any other cookie you like can be used. Or you can use bits of sponge cake though they may get a bit soggy.

I sliced my banana coins early, but I'm not ready to make the recipe. Is there anything I can do to prevent the browning?

Covering the sliced bananas in a little lemon juice should slow the browning process until you're ready.

More Vegan Desserts

• Easy Vegan Panna Cotta
• Easy Viral Tiramisu Chia Pudding
• Peach Chia Pudding
• Protein Nice Cream
• Vegan Mug Cookie
• Vegan Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie

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