Better Than Mama's Banana Pudding

This past weekend I turned up needing to make a dessert to take to a 4th of July bbq. At the suggestion of my husband, I set my mind on making banana pudding. I've never made the dish before (and really haven't eaten it much) due to my general 'take it or leave it' feeling about bananas, which typically results in 'leave it.' But, seeing as how I am a super sweet wife, I decide to go for it. David does love banana pudding so, and giving him another reason to fawn all over me and declare my prowess with a mixer is a win-win for everyone involved.

I trotted on over to one of favorite sites, All Recipes, and singled out this recipe for Banana Pudding as the winner. Almost 700 people vowing that this is the A number one recipe for the stuff can't be wrong, can they? No, they can not.

It's just as easy as you please to make, and leaves you with two beaters that absolutely must be licked. And perhaps shoving your head inside the bowl to lick that too. I made the recipe as is, with one tiny change (I used more wafers than called for) and it has been deemed a keeper in my house. David, who is a good Southern boy and knows his banana pudding, certified this particular one as Better Than Mama's (BTM), and we all know what kind of serious business that is. Anything that earns the BTM stamp in my house might as well have descended from Heaven.

I even ate some of it before the banana flavor had permeated all of the pudding mixture, and am considering making a batch sans banana. Is that even legal?

My slightly altered version of the original:

Better Than Mama's Banana Pudding

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, ROOM TEMPERATURE
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (5 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
3 cups cold milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (8 ounce) container Cool Whip, thawed
4 bananas, sliced
1 (12 oz.) box Nilla Wafers

(Set the cream cheese out to warm up to room temperature a good while before you're ready to roll with this, and I mean it. Don't go thinking that you can sneak by with cream cheese that is still slightly chilled. It will tell on you every time.)

In a very large bowl beat the cream cheese until its fluffy. Add condensed milk, pudding mix, cold milk and vanilla. You may want to stir this just a little to get everything incorporated before you let your mixer have at it because stuff might go flying everywhere if you don't. Beat until smooth. Fold in half of the Cool Whip.

Line the bottom and sides of a 9x13 inch dish with vanilla wafers. Arrange sliced bananas to cover the bottom layer of wafers. Spread with half of the pudding mixture, add another layer of bananas, then spread with remaining pudding mixture.

Top with remaining Cool Whip. If you are feeling so inclined, you can crumble some of the wafers to sprinkle on top. Chill this bad boy and prepare to be praised for your excellent culinary skills. Of course.

A few things:
* You may want to sprinkle the banana slices with a little lemon juice to slow the browning process.

* I listed Cool Whip, but making your own batch of whipped cream is super easy: chill a metal mixing bowl and the whisk attachment to your mixer in the freezer for 10 minutes, whip 8 oz. of heavy whipping cream until soft peaks form, add 2 Tbsp. powdered sugar and 1 tsp. of vanilla, whip until stiff peaks form.

* I heartily recommend Nilla Wafers instead of the off brand. But that's just me.

* Don't be tempted to use banana flavored pudding mix. You will have imitation banana flavor to deal with (ick!) when all you need is the real deal. It will be banana-y enough, so sit tight and let it marinate.

* You can certainly make this in a big punch bowl too, but more layers of wafers and bananas will be necessary due to the depth.