Homemade Banana Pudding Cups with Chocolate Coffee Ganache
Intensely banana-flavored, butterscotchy pudding is layered atop a coffee rum fudge for a sophisticated take on the cloyingly sweet dessert of your childhood. Individual banana pudding mason jars make for a stunning presentation, but these layers could easily be turned into a black bottom banana cream pie with the addition of your favorite pre-baked crust or delicious banana éclairs using a pâte à choux base. Ganache inspired by Cindy Pawclyn. Butterscotch Banana Pudding adapted from Montana Happy.
Ingredients
Banana Pudding
- 3 C Milk
- 3 Bananas sliced
- 3 C Dark Brown Sugar
- 4.5 tablespoon Cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- ⅛ teaspoon Ground Cloves
- 2 Eggs
- 1 tablespoon Vanilla Extract or sub vanilla paste, powder, or ½ vanilla bean
- 6 tablespoon Butter
Coffee Rum Hot Fudge - You Will Have Roughly 24oz Leftover for Gifting!
- 8 oz Dark Chocolate semisweet or bittersweet (or 50/50)
- 1 stick Butter (4 oz)
- 2 tablespoon Dark Rum or 1 tablespoon rum extract, or 2 tablespoon bourbon
- 1 teaspoon Instant Espresso
- ¾ C Light Corn Syrup
- ¾ C Heavy Cream
Instructions
Make Banana Pudding
- Combine milk, banana slices and vanilla paste in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer, then turn off the heat. Allow to marinate for at least 4 hours and up to 5 days in the refrigerator. Remove the banana slices and press them gently in a mesh strainer to remove any leftover juices. Leftover banana paste may be used in muffins/cakes/pancakes or in smoothies. Feel free to freeze it for future use!
- In a medium saucepan, whisk together coconut sugar, brown sugar, cornstarch, salt and cloves. Add eggs, then whisk to combine. There should be no streaks of egg left! Add banana milk mixture and whisk to combine.Return saucepan to medium low heat, whisking constantly. After mixture begins to steam, turn the heat up to medium. Continue whisking constantly.Once the bubbles disappear, set a timer for 90 seconds and continue cooking and whisking for the duration. Remove from heat, add the vanilla and butter, then continue whisking for another few minutes to prevent bits from sticking to the bottom of the hot pan. Set aside to cool.
Make Ganache
- Add chocolate, butter, rum, espresso powder and corn syrup to the top of a double boiler. Be sure the bottom of the top pan is not touching the water or you might scorch the chocolate.Set over medium heat, whisking occasionally. When all chocolate and butter is melted, remove from heat and whisk to incorporate. Add cream and whisk until uniform.
Assemble
- Add about ¼ C of hot fudge to each of your serving dishes. Place in the refrigerator to firm up. Once the fudge layer is firm, spoon in your banana pudding. Use roughly ¾ C pudding. Top with parchment or saran wrap to keep a film from forming, then refrigerate until firm.
- Top with whipped cream (bourbon, rum, or amaretto-spiked, if you're feeling boozy) and grate a bit of chocolate on top for garnish. Enjoy!
Notes
Dietary Adaptations & Optional Variations:
- Dairy-Free Banana Pudding Cups - Swap out all the dairy for your favorite unsweetened plant-based alternatives. I prefer barista blend oat or soy milk for the pudding base, vegan whipping cream for the fudge, and vegan butter for both.
- Corn-Free - If you’re allergic to corn like my Mom, swap in potato starch for the cornstarch in the pudding and use tapioca syrup or agave nectar for the fudge layer.
- For eclairs, wait until the pudding has chilled completely, then beat a pint of whipped cream to stiff peaks with a 1-2 tablespoons of powdered sugar and a teaspoon of vanilla extract to stabilize and flavor it. Now gently fold in the whipped cream, stopping as soon as the mixture is uniform. Use a piping bag to squirt the banana pudding filling into the baked pate a choux. Use the hot fudge as a ganache dip for the filled eclairs.
- To make this into a pie, use a pre-baked pie crust - graham, ginger, pecan or plain butter pastry would all be delightful. Layer the hot fudge on the bottom, then refrigerate to firm up. Spoon in pudding, covering with parchment or saran wrap to prevent a skin from forming. Top with pillows of whipped cream and garnish with grated chocolate.
- Patience is a virtue. Custard is funny insofar as it feels like absolutely nothing is happening for a long time and then everything happens all at once. Suddenly, your pudding is going to thicken up like crazy. You will start to see trails behind your whisk, which is a good sign. KEEP WHISKING. Once the mixture begins to bubble, set a timer and keep on whisking for another 90 seconds to achieve the proper consistency.
- Don’t stop, whisk it whisk it. Keep whisking the pudding off the heat for at least 2-3 minutes to prevent the pudding from scorching on the bottom of your pan.
- Double Boiler best practices. Make sure the bottom of the double boiler is not touching the water beneath or it may scald your chocolate.
- Make-Ahead. Fudge layer can be prepared up to a month in advance and refrigerated in a mason jar until you're ready. If you’re wondering if ganache can be frozen, the answer is yes. It should last well for up to 3 months.
- Share the love. You will end up with about 24 oz of leftover fudge, which makes an excellent hostess gift in smaller mason jars. Attach a small tag with instructions: “Heat the fudge in 10-30 second intervals in the microwave (remove the metal lid!) until pourable, then serve over the ice cream of your choice for the best hot fudge ever.”
Nutrition
Calories: 447kcalCarbohydrates: 61gProtein: 8gFat: 20gSaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 276mgSodium: 417mgPotassium: 498mgFiber: 3gSugar: 45gVitamin A: 775IUVitamin C: 6mgCalcium: 169mgIron: 2mg
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