Nutella Banana Coconut Pudding

My friend Bianca has been providing me with a lot of inspiration in the kitchen lately.  When I saw her recipe for Tuna Meatballs, it inspired me to make my own version - Lemon Pepper Tuna Meatballs.  And when I read her blog post for Nutella Banana Pudding, I knew that I would be making this immediately. 

Besides the skim milk and instant vanilla pudding, I had to get the rest of the ingredients.  Thankfully, I didn't have to go far as Top Shelf had everything, including the canister of whipped cream.  Yes, I used canned whipped cream.  No, I didn't feel the least bit guilty for doing it.

 

I used a smaller pie pan than Bianca did so my measurements were a little bit different than hers.  I also decided to add some shredded coconut to the recipe because I had some in my pantry and I though that coconut would make a lovely addition.

• 1/2 box vanilla wafer cookies
• 2/3 cup Nutella
• 1 package of instant vanilla pudding
• 2 cups skim milk
• 2 cups whipped cream
• 2 1/2 bananas, sliced
• 1/2 cup shredded coconut

I started out by making the instant vanilla pudding with the skim milk.

I let the pudding chill in the fridge for about five minutes before I folded in the Nutella.

I then folded in a 2/3 cup of whipped cream.

I quickly read Bianca's recipe and mistakenly forgot to start out with a layer of pudding on the bottom of the pan.  Instead, I started out with a layer of vanilla wafer cookies.

I added the sliced bananas on top of the vanilla wafer cookies.  Don't they look adorable?

I sprinkled a layer of shredded coconut to the dish.

And the last step was to gently spread the Nutella pudding mixture.

My dish was a little small so I only had room to repeat this layer one more time instead of adding two more layers like Bianca did.  I finished the Nutella Banana Coconut Pudding by adding a layer of whipped cream, crushed vanilla wafer cookies and shredded coconut.

I let the Nutella Banana Coconut Pudding chill in the fridge for several hours before we finally dug in. 

I decided to serve the dessert in martini glasses because I firmly believe that desserts in martini glasses are more fun - liquid desserts or otherwise.

The Nutella Banana Coconut Pudding was definitely the easiest dessert I've made in a long time.  I love that you can basically get all the ingredients at your nearest corner store or bodega.  Sure, it's not necessarily the most fancy dish but it hit all of the right notes of sweet, cold, creamy, and crunchy.  And I definitely went back for a second serving! 

Tell me, what food blogs have inspired you recently in the kitchen?