Banana Pudding Tiramisu with Caramel
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This Banana Pudding Tiramisu with Caramel is your next sweet treat and a dessert you’ll come back to again and again. The lightness of ladyfingers, the sweet tang of bananas, and the richness of caramel all come together in a sweet blend of flavors.
The recipe is a twist on a classic tiramisu with an added punch of banana and caramel. If you’re someone who loves experimenting with flavors or simply wants an easy yet decadent dessert, this is it! The best part? It requires zero cooking time. Just some mixing, layering, and patience while it sets in the fridge.
An Easy Tiramisu With Banana Pudding
Tiramisu is one of my favorite no-bake desserts. You can easily change up the filling flavors and use the same layering technique every time you make it (see below for more tiramisu recipes). This recipe uses banana pudding, which makes it even easier, and it’s topped off with fresh banana slices and caramel sauce.
The key tip for this sweet and decadent tiramisu is to let it chill for at least 6 hours. It’s an ideal make-ahead dessert for any occasion, whether you’re hosting a party or just want something simple for a weeknight dinner.
Why You’ll Love Banana Pudding Tiramisu
- Blend of Flavors: This recipe combines the classic Italian Tiramisu with the Southern charm of banana pudding and the universal love for caramel. It’s a delightful blend of flavors.
- No-Bake Ease: Forget about preheating the oven or baking times. All you need to do is mix, layer, and chill. It’s that simple.
- Perfect for All Occasions: Whether it’s a summer BBQ, a potluck, a birthday, or just a Tuesday night, this dessert fits the bill. It’s versatile and always a hit.
- Creamy Texture: The combination of cream cheese, milk, and banana pudding gives this dessert a velvety texture that melts in your mouth.
- Showstopping Look: Not only does it taste divine, but its layered look and caramel drizzle also make it a treat for the eyes.
Ingredients
You need just a few simple ingredients to pull off this recipe.
- Ladyfingers – Choose your favorite ladyfingers for this recipe. It works perfectly with gluten-free ladyfingers, too.
- Instant banana pudding – This should be easy to find at most grocery stores. It may be labeled “banana cream,” and you’ll want to look for the larger 5.1-ounce box.
- Cream cheese – Make sure this is at room temperature for best results.
- Milk – You can use dairy-free milk, but opt for a thicker one like oat milk or Ripple.
- Banana – Make sure your banana is ripe, but not brown (save those for banana bread).
- Caramel sauce – Use homemade or jarred caramel sauce (it’s also great for ice cream!). For a fun twist that would pair well with the banana, try this 2-ingredient apple caramel sauce.
How To Make Banana Pudding Tiramisu
- Mix the banana filling: In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese for a couple of minutes until it’s smooth. Stir in the banana pudding mix and the milk until the mixture is velvety smooth.
- Layer the tiramisu: Place ladyfingers at the bottom of a 10×7-inch baking dish, pour half of the banana cream mixture over them, spreading it out evenly. Drizzle that with half the caramel sauce. Repeat the layers: more ladyfingers followed by the rest of the cream.
- Chill: Pop it into the fridge and let it set for about 6 hours.
- Add bananas and serve: Once it’s set up, drizzle the rest of the caramel sauce, top with fresh banana slices, and serve.
Storage
The Banana Pudding Tiramisu with Caramel is best enjoyed within 2-3 days. Beyond that, the ladyfingers might become a bit too soggy, and the bananas could brown.
Commonly Asked Questions
The recipe calls for GF (gluten-free) ladyfingers, but if you aren’t gluten-intolerant, regular ladyfingers should work just as well. The texture and absorption rate might vary slightly, but the outcome will still be delicious.
The instant banana pudding adds a specific flavor and texture. If you can’t find it, you could try using vanilla pudding and adding banana extract, though it may slightly alter the flavor.
While you can freeze it, the texture might change upon thawing, especially with the banana slices. It’s best enjoyed fresh from the fridge after setting.
Banana Pudding Tiramisu with Caramel
Equipment
- Measuring cups/spoons
- 10×7-inch baking dish (at least 2 inches deep)
- KitchenAid mixer or hand mixer
Video
Ingredients
- 16 ounces cream cheese (room temperature)
- 5.1 ounces instant banana pudding
- 16 ounces milk (if using dairy-free milk, opt for a thicker option like Ripple or oat milk)
- 1 batch of homemade ladyfingers (or 1 package store bought ladyfingers)
- 4 tablespoons caramel sauce
- 1 banana (sliced)
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl add the cream cheese, beat for a few minutes.
- Add in the banana pudding mix and milk. Mix until smooth.
- Line the dish with ladyfingers, pour 1/2 of the cream mixture on top and spread evenly.
- Drizzle half of the caramel on top. Repeat a layer of the ladyfingers and pour the rest of the cream on top.
- Place in the fridge to set for approximately 6 hours.
- Remove, top with the rest of the caramel, fresh bananas, and enjoy!
Notes
- The tiramisu will fit a 10×7-inch baking dish, at least 2 inches deep.
- This works best with fresh, soft, sponge-like ladyfingers. You can always substitute angel food or yellow cake.
- If you use traditional ladyfingers, dip the ladyfingers in banana milk quickly and line the pan.
I’m not a huge Banana fan, but THIS WAS AMAZING!!!
Thank you Sammy!!
Is this 5 packages of instant pudding or 5.1 ounces of pudding? Thank you in advance.
Hello, This is 5.1 ounces
1 box instant pudding, not 5
correct- 5.1 ounces 🙂
This looks like my kind of recipe, easy and delicious. I’m the one that loves the flavor of bananas but I don’t want to eat bananas. Solution, use this banana pudding tiramisu recipe. For a family get together I will slice up bananas and “swim” in some white chocolate sauce for those who love sliced bananas. Thanks for sharing this recipe. **
You are so welcome! I hope you love this!
I want to try this recipe. Could I put the sliced bananas on top of the bottom layer instead of on top of the dessert? Or will they turn brown if I do that? I was thinking of serving this dish with a dusting of cocoa powder over the top instead of the bananas and caramel. But I want to still put the caramel between the two layers.
You can, yes. I like to add the bananas right before serving typically. They will change in color the long they are in or on top of the dessert.
Will the lady fingers get soft while in the fridge and the cream on top?
They will soft some but not completely soft
What type of caramel sauce do you use?
Can you buy a ready made caramel sauce?
Yes!! Pick your favorite store bought caramel
what recipe did you use for the lady fingers? i’ve tried a few and none turned out looking like yours
Hello, We used Schaer Lady Fingers
Looks wonderful but recipe calls for 16 oz heavy cream but instructions say to add the 16oz of “milk”.
Please use milk 🙂 We have fixed the error
Love baking new things 😍😋😘💕🙏🏽
Tried this recipe and I have to say thank you very much for sharing. I enjoyed it. My family loved it. It a heart warming dessert ❤️
What is GF lady fingers and what is DF milk? Before everybody starts replying about my questions, my wife recently passed away. Well it’s been over a year but I’m still trying to learn how to cook. It’s not easy being me.
Hi John, We are sorry to hear about your wife. GF is for gluten free and DF is dairy free. With that said, this recipes can be made with full gluten and full dairy products.
Can you substitute vanilla wafers for the lady fingers?
While it will have a different flavor and texture, Yes- you can
I’m not even fond of bananas but this banana pudding tiramisu is delicious!
How many boxes of banana pudding did you use for this recipe
5.1 oz (one box)
What if I don’t have instant pudding but the cook version of banana pudding. Will that work if so what do I need to change?
Totally ok- just wait for it to completely set
Where do you get your lady fingers
I looked everywhere online and can’t find them
They are the soft ones and not the hard ones correct??????????
These work perfectly: https://amzn.to/4kiYXrx