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Ninja Creami Banana Pudding Ice Cream
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If you’ve never made banana pudding into ice cream, you’re in for a good one. This recipe takes all the flavors of that classic Southern dessert — ripe bananas, vanilla pudding, a little crunch from vanilla wafers — and turns it into a creamy, scoopable treat that tastes like nostalgia in a bowl. It’s simple, it comes together with basically no effort, and the Ninja Creami does all the heavy lifting for you.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
This one’s a winner for a few reasons. First, the flavor is spot on — you get real banana taste, not that fake banana candy flavor, plus a rich vanilla pudding creaminess that makes every bite feel indulgent.
It’s also ridiculously easy. You mix a few ingredients, freeze them, and let the machine do the work. No churning by hand, no fussing over ice baths, no watching a pot on the stove.
And honestly, it’s just a fun way to use up those overripe bananas sitting on your counter. Instead of another loaf of banana bread, you get ice cream. Not a bad trade.
Ingredients You’ll Need
The base of this recipe is your typical Creami setup — milk, heavy cream, and sugar — but the magic happens with a couple of extra additions. Ripe, spotty bananas are key here. The riper they are, the sweeter and more flavorful your ice cream will be, so don’t be afraid to use bananas that are past their prime for snacking.
Instant vanilla pudding mix is what gives this ice cream that unmistakable banana pudding flavor and helps it set up with a nice, thick texture. You really can’t skip it — it’s doing a lot of the flavor work.
For mix-ins, crushed vanilla wafers are the classic choice, and they add that little bit of crunch that makes banana pudding so good. If you want to switch things up, crushed graham crackers work well too, or you could fold in some white chocolate chips for extra sweetness. A ripe banana mashed into the base (rather than just blended) also gives you little flecks of real banana throughout.
Tips for the Best Results
Make sure your base is fully chilled before freezing it in the pint container. If it’s even a little warm, you’ll end up with ice crystals instead of that silky texture the Creami is known for.
Don’t skip the respin if your first spin comes out crumbly. This happens sometimes, especially with dairy-heavy bases, and a quick respin almost always fixes it.
When it comes to mix-ins like vanilla wafers, add them during the mix-in cycle rather than blending them into the base from the start. This keeps that crunch instead of turning everything into mush.
Storage and Reheating
This isn’t really a “reheating” situation since it’s ice cream, but storage still matters if you want it to taste as good on day five as it did on day one. Keep any leftover ice cream in the same pint container with the lid on, tucked toward the back of your freezer where the temperature stays more consistent.
It’ll keep well for about two weeks, though honestly it rarely lasts that long in my house. After that, the texture starts to get a little icier and the flavor fades a bit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use fresh bananas instead of frozen?
Yes, fresh ripe bananas work great here. You don’t need to freeze them separately since the whole base gets frozen in the pint container anyway.
Do I have to use instant pudding mix?
It’s really what gives this recipe its signature banana pudding flavor and helps thicken the texture, so it’s worth using. If you skip it, you’ll still get banana ice cream, just without that pudding-specific taste.
Can I make this dairy-free?
You can swap in a non-dairy milk and cream alternative, though the texture may turn out a little different. A sugar-free or dairy-free pudding mix will help keep the flavor close to the original.
Why did my ice cream come out crumbly?
This usually means it needs a respin. Just run it through the Creami one more time and it should smooth right out.
product: Ninja Creami Deluxe Ice Cream Maker
Ninja Creami Banana Pudding Ice Cream
A creamy, easy-to-make ice cream that captures the flavor of classic banana pudding using the Ninja Creami.
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole milk
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 ripe banana, mashed
- 2 tablespoons instant vanilla pudding mix
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup crushed vanilla wafers
Instructions
- Step 1. Whisk together the milk, heavy cream, sugar, mashed banana, pudding mix, and vanilla extract in a bowl until smooth. Pour the mixture into the Ninja Creami pint container. Freeze the pint container for 24 hours on a flat surface. Remove the lid and place the pint into the Creami machine. Run the Ice Cream program. Check the texture; if crumbly, run the Respin program. Create a mix-in well and add the crushed vanilla wafers. Run the Mix-In program to fold in the wafers. Scoop and serve immediately.
