This coconut ube banana pudding layers together homemade pastry cream made with coconut milk and ube halaya, vanilla wafer cookies, and fresh bananas. It’s my Filipino-American twist on classic banana pudding.
The inspiration for this dessert started with a scroll through Instagram. I spotted Olivia’s ube pudding and immediately knew I had to make my own version of it.
My twist? I used my favorite pastry cream recipe and swapped in canned coconut milk instead of regular milk. To me, ube shines brightest when it is paired with coconut. Coconut’s creamy, tropical richness just amplifies everything I love about ube’s earthy sweetness.
- The flavor combination is pure nostalgia. Banana and coconut are classic Filipino pairings, and adding ube elevates it into something special—familiar but exciting at the same time.
- It’s make-ahead friendly. This pudding actually needs time to chill and set, which means you can (and should) make it ahead. The flavors meld beautifully overnight, making it perfect for gatherings or when you want dessert handled in advance.
Ingredients
There are four main components that come together to create this beautiful, flavor-packed layers:
- Coconut Pastry Cream (made with coconut milk and ube halaya)
- Whipped Cream
- Bananas
- Vanilla Wafer Cookies
Pastry Cream: The star of the show. I make mine with canned coconut milk. This isn’t just a subtle hint of coconut; it’s full-on tropical richness that intensifies every bite. Store-bought ube halaya is gently cooked into the liquid mixture for flavoring.
Whipped Cream: Fold this into the chilled pastry cream to lighten it up a bit. he thick pastry cream is luscious, but adding whipped cream gives it a airier, more spoonable texture that’s perfect for layering.
Bananas: these should be just barely ripe- I mean still slightly firm with minimal spotting. Too ripe and they’ll be overpoweringly sweet and mushy, which throws off the whole balance of the dessert.
Vanilla Wafer Cookies: I use Nilla Wafers, you can use any generic vanilla wafer cookies. They soften as the pudding sits, creating that classic pudding texture where the cookies almost melt into the cream.
New to pastry cream?
This in-depth post will teach you everything you need to know about making pastry cream (or crème pâtissière) from scratch!
How to Assemble Ube Banana Pudding
Serving Suggestions
While banana pudding is typically served in a large trifle bowl, I prefer portioning it into individual glasses or jars for parties. It makes serving so much easier. But, really I just like how elegant it looks in smaller servings.
There are several ways to finish off the dessert- you may serve it with a dollop of fresh whipped cream or perhaps a sprinkle of toasted coconut. I like to cover the top layer of pastry cream with vanilla wafer crumbs (you know, all the stuff left at the bottom of the bag!).
This coconut ube banana pudding is a rich, satisfying dessert. I suggest serving it alongside strong coffee, bitter-ish dark hot chocolate, or refreshing tanglad tea to balance the sweetness. However, if you have a major sweet tooth go ahead and enjoy this with an iced ube latte or strawberry matcha latte.
Coconut Ube Banana Pudding
Ingredients
Components:
- coconut ube pastry cream, recipe follows
- whipped cream, recipe follows
- 5 medium banana, just barely ripe
- 11 oz package vanilla cookies, such as Nilla Wafers, or as needed
Coconut Ube Pastry Cream:
- ¼ cup cornstarch , (30 g)
- ¾ cup granulated sugar, (150 g) divided
- 4 large egg yolks
- 13.5 oz can full-fat coconut milk, unsweetened, well shaken
- 5 Tablespoon milk or water, * (2.5 oz)
- ¼ cup ube halaya, *
- 2 Tablespoon salted butter, (28 g)
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt, or fine sea salt
- 2 teaspoon ube extract
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Whipped Cream:
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream, (227 g) very cold
Instructions
Pastry Cream:
- Prep: Line a half-sheet baking pan with plastic wrap, ensuring the sides of the pan are also covered. Set aside.
- Mix Dry: In a large bowl, whisk together cornstarch and ½ cup sugar. Add egg yolks and ½ cup coconut milk, whisking until smooth. Set aside.
- Cook Milk: Pour remaining coconut milk, sugar, milk, and ube halaya into a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Heat over medium-high, stirring occasionally to prevent burning. *You may need to use a spatula or whisk to break up the halaya. Mixture should be smooth.
- Temper: Once the milk boils, slowly stream about ¼ cup into the egg mixture, whisking constantly to temper. Continue adding milk until only a few tablespoons remain in the pan, then pour everything back into the saucepan.
- Thicken: Reduce heat to medium and switch to a spatula. Stir constantly until thickened, then let the custard boil for 10-15 seconds to cook out the cornstarch. Remove from heat.
- Add Butter: Stir in butter and salt until smooth. Then add in ube extract and vanilla. Mix well.
- Chill: Pour pastry cream into the prepared sheet pan and spread evenly. Cover the surface directly with plastic wrap and freeze for 15 minutes until cooled to room temperature. Transfer to a container, cover the surface with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to use.
Whipped Cream:
- Use a hand mixer (or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment) to mix heavy cream. Mix on medium speed until cream reaches medium peaks*. Use immediately, or cover and keep chilled in the fridge for up to one day.
Assembly:
- Fold whipped cream into pastry cream.
- Use a spoon to spread pastry cream layer at the bottom of serving vessel. Alternatively, use a pastry bag to pipe pastry cream.
- Add layer of vanilla cookies over pastry cream.
- Arrange a layer of sliced bananas over cookies.
- Repeat with another layer of pastry cream, vanilla cookies and banana. Finish with layer of pastry cream. Cover and keep chilled for at least two hours, ideally overnight before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!More Ube Recipes
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- Ube Fudge Brownies
- No Churn Ube Ice Cream
