Easy Protein Banana Pudding
Dessert with benefits! This easy high protein banana pudding made with cottage cheese is good for your body and absolutely delicious.
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As a dietitian, I love a good dessert. And I don’t love a “healthier” alternative unless it actually tastes just as delicious as the real deal.
This protein banana pudding is it, my friends. It tastes AMAZING (my picky husband agreed). It’s made with only five ingredients. It comes together in a blender in minutes. And it’s high protein and low sugar so you’ll feel amazing after eating it.
If you want a more nutritious dessert and are sick of other recipes that taste gross, look no further. Allow me to show you how easy it is to make this easy and satisfying protein banana pudding!
Why you’ll love it
High protein: This smooth pudding contains 15 grams of protein per serving, without using a drop of protein powder.
Lower sugar: This dessert is sweetened with maple syrup, and you can use as much or as little as you like to support your goals.
Filling: I love a dessert that actually leaves me full and satisfied, and this is one of those!
Quick: All you need is 5 minutes and a blender to make this simple and tasty pudding.
Delicious: This recipe isn’t just “good for a healthy dessert”… it’s just GOOD! It has the consistency of a tasty pudding or custard, and it’s made even more satisfying by the texture of some add-ins.
Ingredients
You’ll need five simple ingredients to make this nourishing dessert:
- Cottage cheese — I use 2% but use whatever fat percentage you like (and try to pick one with less sodium if possible)
- Ripe banana — this is blended into the pudding and layered in slices
- Maple syrup — use as much or as little as you like, I prefer about 1 tbsp
- Vanilla extract
- Crushed graham crackers — sub for Nilla Vanilla Wafers if desired
Dietary restrictions
No added sugar: omit the maple syrup and graham crackers, and use a super ripe banana.
Lactose-free: use lactose-free cottage cheese.
Higher protein: omit the maple syrup and vanilla extract, and add half a scoop of vanilla protein powder.
More topping ideas
- Nilla wafer cookies
- Caramelized banana slices
- Whipped cream or whipped topping
- Crushed walnuts or pecans
- Sliced strawberries
- Cinnamon
Step-by-step instructions
Place all ingredients in a blender.
Blend until completely smooth, scraping down the sides as needed. If your cottage cheese is extra thick, add a splash of milk. Taste your pudding and add more maple syrup if desired.
Spoon half of the pudding into two jars or food containers with lids, distributing evenly between them. Add banana slices and crushed graham cracker on top. Spoon the rest of the pudding on top of each container. Top with more banana slices and graham cracker crumbs.
Cover and refrigerate for an hour or more before eating. Enjoy!
How to make graham cracker crumbs
I highly recommend making your own crushed graham cracker crumbs. You can crush them to your desired texture instead of using the crumbs that come in the package.
To do so, add 1-2 graham crackers to a sealed bag. Use the back of a spoon to crush your graham crackers until they reach your desired consistency.
Leave some chunks and texture in your crushed graham crackers. It’s super satisfying this way!
Top tips
Make it sweeter: Use a super ripe banana for extra sweetness.
For thicker pudding: The pudding thickens as it sits in the fridge, so make sure to cool it for at least an hour.
The best texture: Leave some texture in your graham cracker crumbs for a nice bite in your pudding.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes! I prefer this recipe with cottage cheese because it’s less tart, but you can use Greek yogurt if you’d like. I’d recommend using vanilla greek yogurt, and omitting the vanilla extract and maple syrup from the recipe. You can mash the banana and greek yogurt together in a bowl instead of blending.
The amount of salt in this high protein banana pudding depends on the brand of your cottage cheese. I use Nordica 2%, and I find the final pudding very well balanced. If possible, opt for a cottage cheese with less sodium for this recipe.
Yes, you can make this without a blender! Simply mash your banana and mix it with the other ingredients in a bowl. The pudding will have more texture and won’t be smooth, but it still delicious.
If you’re using a large blender, it may work better to double the recipe so there’s enough contents to blend properly. Or, if you’re not using a particularly large blender, you may just need to shake your cup between pulses to get the blender going. If needed, you could add a splash of milk.
Did you try this recipe?
Leave your rating and review below! And don’t forget to post a picture to Instagram, and tag me @real.life.nutritionist.
Easy Protein Banana Pudding
Ingredients
- 1 cup cottage cheese
- 1 ripe banana
- 1-2 tbsp maple syrup, adjust to taste
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
To Assemble
- banana slices
- crushed graham crackers
Equipment
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in a blender.
- Blend until completely smooth, scraping down the sides as needed. If your cottage cheese is extra thick, add a splash of milk. Taste your pudding and add more maple syrup if desired.
- Spoon half of the pudding into two jars or food containers with lids, distributing evenly between them. Add banana slices and crushed graham cracker on top. Spoon the rest of the pudding on top of each container. Top with more banana slices and graham cracker crumbs.
- Cover and refrigerate for an hour or more before eating. Enjoy!
Delicious, healthy dessert. I will 100% be making this again!
I’m so glad you liked it! Thanks so much for your review.
Quick, easy, delicious and I don’t feel guilty having dessert or a snack! My kids have been loving this too!!!
Starting with this recipe I also added two teaspoons of chia seeds a tablespoon of hemp heart seeds and a heaping spoonful of creamy peanut butter. I did have to add some coconut milk but my immersion blender did just fine and to top it off I used chopper walnuts. I did admit the maple syrup as I don’t like sweetness. But it makes a very good morning shake
I made this and froze in popsicle molds. Instead of graham cracker crumbs, I pushed a few mini vanilla wafers down inside the molds before putting them in the freezer. They were SO good!!
Honest question….does this taste like cottage cheese?! I hate cottage cheese but I need more protein and healthier options so I’m trying to be optimistic.😂
I don’t think so, but I also love cottage cheese so I may not be the best judge! Perhaps start with more maple syrup the first round just in case 🙂