Have you ever been to Magnolia Bakery in NYC? The first time I went I just had a cupcake and was not super impressed. It was good but not amazing. But the second time I went I got their banana pudding and it is to die for. So yummy. I’ve been wanting to try to make it at home for a while and finally found a recipe that looked really good.
This recipe is adapted from that and I also subbed the vanilla wafers out with animal cookies. The non-circus kind – which I hardly ever buy because the frosted ones are just so good. But I thought these would be fun to try and they made a good substitution! They get softer in almost the same way vanilla wafers do and just make the dessert a little extra fun for kids.
And I can say that Pierce liked it a lot! He even came in mid-shoot and snuck a taste!

Animal Cookie Banana Pudding
Ingredients
- 1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 1/2 cups ice cold water
- 1 box (3.4 oz) vanilla instant pudding mix
- 3 cups heavy cream
- 4 cups sliced bananas around 5 bananas
- 8 oz animal cookies about half a bag (can add more if desired)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, beat together the sweetened condensed milk and water until well combined.
- Add the pudding mix and beat well - for about 2 or 3 minutes.
- Cover and refrigerate for 3-4 hours or overnight. This will allow the pudding mixture to properly set.
- In a large bowl, whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form.
- Fold the whipped cream into the pudding mixture there are no streaks of pudding.
- Assemble the dessert in individual portions or a large bowl or dish with a 4-5 quart capacity.
- To assemble, arrange 1/3 of the animal cookies on the bottom of the dish/dishes. Next, layer 1/3 of the bananas and 1/3 of the pudding mixture. Repeat twice more.
- Garnish with additional animal cookies on top.
- Cover tightly and allow to chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours.