Don’t these mini banana cream pies look delicious?! Mini versions of anything always tend to put a smile on my face. Hamburger sliders, one-bite brownies, puppies and kittens. These are ALL great in my books, and this simple dessert is no exception. Mini pies are so simple to create and make for the perfect little treat! Don’t get me wrong, buying larger pies is great, but who doesn’t love cute little, portion controlled bundles of deliciousness!?
Banana cream pie is one of my favourite desserts! This was my first time making it with vanilla wafers as the pie base and it worked PERFECTLY. It’s so much easier than pressing the crust into the bottom! This recipe is soooo simple to make! And there’s zero baking involved.
I also love how versatile this recipe is. If banana isn’t your thing, you could easily make mini lemon pies, or even mini chocolate pies (yum!?) or any other favourite. As a mom of 3 I’m always on the look out for quick, easy and delicious ideas. This one was great AND the kids loved it.
My kids are a bit on the picky side, so it’s hard to find desserts they like. They’re still at the stage where the only sweets they really love are candy, candy and more candy. You know, things like gummy worms, licorice, lollipops, jelly beans, etc. (Man… their poor teeth!) But they loved this recipe.
Okay, well, 2 out of 3 of my kids loved this recipe. My 4 year old is still apparently not ready for banana cream pie. But I’m going to keep trying and I’m sure he’ll get there eventually.
Do you remember the banana flavoured medicine from when we were kids? This totally reminds me of that! But don’t let that scare you… these mini pies are seriously delicious. If you’re a fan of bananas, or banana cream pie, you’re going to love it!
Check out our video for how to make Mini Banana Cream Pies:
If you’re looking for other easy and delicious dessert ideas, check out our recipes for:
Mini Pineapple Upside Down Cakes
Mini Banana Cream Pies
The full printable recipe is at the end of this post, but here’s what you’ll need:
- Nilla Vanilla Wafers
- Banana Cream Pie Pudding Mix (We used Jello brand, but I’ve also used Dr. Oetker)
- Milk
- Bananas
- Whipped Cream
This recipe ended up making 15 mini banana cream pies. I know, that’s a random number. I used “large” size cupcake liners from the dollar store (not to be confused with “extra large”), and you can see from the photos how much I filled them.
If you need to make more banana cream pies, just add a little less pudding to each one. Or add an extra banana slice. The quantity will depend on how much pudding you pour into each cup.
You know those fancy foil type cupcake liners? This is a perfect recipe for them! Regular cupcake liners will still work (that’s what I used), but the thicker foil liners will hold their shape a little bit better.
Start by lining your muffin tin with the cupcake liners. Then add one vanilla wafer in each slot.
Next, cut 2 bananas into 1/2 inch slices. Place two slices of banana on top of each vanilla wafer.
Now you can start getting your pudding mix ready! Follow the directions on the box, but use slightly less milk. The instructions called for 3 cups, but I used 2-3/4 so it would be slightly thicker.
Looks good already, doesn’t it?! Now you can carefully pour the pudding into each cup.
Once all your cups are full of banana cream goodness, pop them into the fridge to cool off and solidify! I let mine chill for about 2-3 hours. Just long enough for the pudding to set.
Once your mini pies are ready to go, you can top them off with a fluffy dollop of whipped cream.
This is critical! Don’t skip the whipped cream! Since the pies are mini I kind of recommend sticking with whipped cream in a can. I’m a huge fan of freshly whipped cream, but it’s pretty rare that I’d have time to pour it into a piping bag to get that pretty little swirl on each one!
I’d also recommend removing your mini pies from the cupcake tin BEFORE you add the whipped cream. It was a challenge to get them out once the whipped cream was on!
And there you have it! These delicious and creamy mini banana cream pies are just as good (or maybe even better??) than the full size version!
You can make this dessert a day ahead if you like. The wafers absorb the moisture and become deliciously soft, and the bananas hold up perfectly well.
After you’ve served them to guests, they’ll last in the fridge for about 2 to 3 days before the bananas start going brown.
Mini Banana Cream Pies
Ingredients
- Nilla Vanilla Wafers
- 2 bananas
- banana pudding mix
- 2-3/4 cups milk
- whipped cream
Instructions
- Add cupcake liners to each slot in your muffin tin. Place one vanilla wafer at the bottom of each cupcake liner.
- Chop the bananas into 1/2 inch slices. Add two pieces of banana on top of each vanilla wafer.
- Make the pudding according to the package directions, except use slightly less milk to make it thicker. (My box called for 3 cups of milk and I used 2-3/4 cups milk)
- Pour the pudding on top of the bananas until each slot is about 2/3 full.
- Chill in the fridge for 2-3 hours or until set.
- Remove the mini pies from the muffin tin, then top with a generous swirl of whipped cream.
- Enjoy!
Notes
These mini banana cream pies are SO EASY to make and they taste so good! This is such an awesome family friendly dessert recipe! With only a few simple ingredients, they’re rich, creamy and delicious! This is such a great make ahead dessert idea! and if you LOVE banana like we do, chances are you’ll be making these yummy treats over and over again!
Here’s a few more of our favourite dessert recipes:
Mini Pineapple Upside Down Cakes
Blueberry Buttermilk Breakfast Cake
Our book Low-Mess Crafts for Kids is loaded with 72 fun and simple craft ideas for kids! The projects are fun, easy and most importantly low-mess, so the clean up is simple!
Where to buy:
You can purchase Low-Mess Crafts for Kids from Amazon, or wherever books are sold:
Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Books- A- Million | Indiebound | Indigo | Amazon Canada
Thanks for sharing this wonderful and delicious recipe.
Could I make these in advance or would the nilla wafer get soggy? Wondering if i can make them Friday for a lunch on Sunday?
Thanks so much!
Lisa
You can probably make them one night ahead, but I don’t recommend two nights ahead. The banana turns brown the longer you leave them, so they’re the best the day they’re made.
Do you have to use Cook & Serve pudding vs. Instant?
You can definitely use instant pudding – just keep in mind that the texture will be different, as cooked pudding sets into a nicer cream pie consistency.
A couple of the photos shows the cook and serve pudding but in the recipe it sounds like it is the instant pudding, which are you using for this recipe? Thank you for sharing your recipe!
Hi Rhonda. I did use cooked pudding for this recipe.
Have you frozen them before?
Hi Suzane! We have not frozen these, and I’m not sure I would recommend it. Technically you can freeze them, but I believe the texture would be compromised by the thawing process.
Is the muffin tin actually mini or regular cupcake tin? They look big
Hi Bridgette, these are made in a regular muffin tin with ‘large’ cupcake liners.
When you serve them, do you peel off the muffin tin (like how you eat a cupcake?) or eat with a spoon, scooping directly out of the tin?
Hi Kim! We ate them with a spoon straight out of the wrapper. The wrappers did get soggy, though, so I’d definitely recommend using the stiffer foil cupcake liners.