Banana Pudding-Stuffed Cookies
Southern staple banana pudding is a summertime treat that is hard to top—but we tried anyway! These soft-baked, brown sugar cookies are stuffed with a decadent, velvety Banana Pastry Cream, inspired by the pudding that you know and love. As the cookies bake, the pastry cream transforms into a luscious pocket of pillowy goodness, while crushed vanilla wafers lend delicate crunch and unmistakable banana pudding nostalgia. To finish, we whipped heavy cream into the remaining pastry cream for a cloudlike topping—because banana pudding has never been accused of being understated.
Banana Pudding-Stuffed Cookies
Makes 8 cookies
Servings 8 cookies
Ingredients
Banana Pastry Cream (recipe follows)½ cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, softened1 cup (220 grams) firmly packed light brown sugar1 large egg (50 grams), room temperature1 teaspoon vanilla extract1½ cups (188 grams) all-purpose flour1½ teaspoons (5 grams) cornstarch½ teaspoon kosher salt¼ teaspoon baking powder1 cup (116 grams) finely ground vanilla wafers¾ cup (180 grams) cold heavy whipping cream
Instructions
Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
Using a 1½-tablespoon spring-loaded scoop, scoop 8 mounds of Banana Pastry Cream (about 27 grams each), and place on a prepared pan; freeze until slightly firm, about 20 minutes. Cover remaining pastry cream, and refrigerate until ready to use.
Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and brown sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes, stopping to scrape bottom and sides of bowl. Beat in egg and vanilla extract until well combined.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, salt, and baking powder. With mixer on low speed, gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture, beating until just combined and stopping to scrape bottom and sides of bowl.
Using a 1½-tablespoon spring-loaded scoop, scoop 8 portions of dough (about 33 grams each), and place on a prepared pan. Working very gently, lightly flatten each portion of dough. Place 1 frozen mound of Banana Pastry Cream onto 1 flattened dough piece; top with another flattened dough piece, and gently press edges of dough pieces together to seal. Gently pack dough into a 2- to 2¼-inch ball, and gently press dough to slightly flatten. Roll stuffed dough in ground wafers. Repeat with remaining dough pieces and frozen pastry cream, and place 2 inches apart on prepared pan.
Bake until edges are golden brown, 16 to 18 minutes. (See Note.) Let cool on pan for 5 minutes. Remove from pan, and let cool completely on wire racks.
Repeat procedure with remaining dough, remaining frozen Banana Pastry Cream, and remaining ground wafers.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat remaining pastry cream (about 116 grams) at medium speed until creamy. With mixer on low speed, add cold cream in a slow, steady stream, beating until well combined and stopping to scrape sides of bowl; increase mixer speed to high, and beat until medium-stiff peaks form, 4 to 5 minutes.
Place pastry cream mixture in a pastry bag fitted with a ½-inch closed star piping tip (Ateco #856). Pipe onto cooled cookies as desired. Serve immediately.
Notes
Note: While still hot, gently swirl a 5- to 6-inch round cutter in a circular motion around each cookie to create an even round.
Banana Pastry Cream
Makes about 1 1/3 cups
Ingredients
1¼ cups (300 grams) whole milk1 cup (154 grams) chopped ripe banana (about 1 large banana)¼ cup (50 grams) granulated sugar2 tablespoons (16 grams) cornstarch¼ teaspoon kosher salt2 large egg yolks (37 grams), room temperature1 tablespoon (14 grams) unsalted butter, cubed1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
Instructions
In a medium bowl, combine milk and banana; cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or up to overnight.
Strain milk through a fine-mesh sieve into a medium saucepan, discarding solids. Heat milk over medium heat until steaming. (Do not boil.)
In another medium bowl, whisk together sugar, cornstarch, and salt; whisk in egg yolks until smooth. Gradually whisk in half of hot milk. Whisk sugar mixture into remaining hot milk in pan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking frequently; cook, whisking constantly, until thickened and an instant-read thermometer registers 185°F (85°C), about 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Whisk in butter until melted and smooth. Whisk in vanilla bean paste.
Strain mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl, discarding solids. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing wrap directly onto surface of pastry cream to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until thick and cold, at least 4 hours, or for up to 3 days.
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