Banana Pudding Cake Recipe: Easy, Moist Cake to Make

By Ashton · Updated October 19, 2026

posted by Ashton

on October 19, 2026

This homemade banana pudding cake recipe starts with a deliciously moist cake made with buttermilk. Then it’s topped with classic layers of Southern banana pudding, whipped topping and finished with crumbled vanilla wafer cookies.

Dixie Crystals sponsors this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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Why You’ll Love This Banana Pudding Cake Recipe

Okay, can we talk about how this is basically banana pudding and cake had a baby and that baby is ah-mazing? This isn’t some fussy layered situation with yellow cake mix and a piping bag full of frosting roses — it’s a humble, homemade, stir-it-together kind of cake that happens to taste like a Southern church potluck dream. Simple ingredients, big payoff. I make this for every single special occasion around here, and honestly also for zero occasion at all, because sometimes a girl just needs banana pudding poke cake vibes in her life. Be still my heart, you guys.

Main Ingredients Needed for Banana Pudding Cake

Nothing wild here, friends, just simple ingredients that come together into something way more special than the sum of its parts.

bananas
sugar
brown sugar
eggs
buttermilk
vegetable oil
flour
vanilla pudding mix
sour cream
milk
vanilla wafer cookies
Cool Whip

How To Make It (And Get the Best Results)

Start by whisking your mashed bananas, sugar, and brown sugar together in a medium bowl, then mix in the eggs one at a time with an electric mixer until things get nice and fluffy. Add your room temperature buttermilk, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract, then fold in the sifted dry ingredients until just combined — don’t overmix or you’ll lose that tender crumb we’re after! Pour the batter into your prepared 10×15-inch pan (not cake pans like you’d use for a layered situation — this is a one-and-done poke cake) and slide it into your preheated oven. For best results, bake until the cake springs back when you gently poke the middle of the cake and a toothpick comes out clean.

Building the Banana Pudding Layers

Once your cake has cooled completely on a wire rack (seriously, be patient here — warm cake plus pudding equals a soupy mess, and nobody wants that), arrange a layer of sliced banana right on top of the cake. In a medium saucepan or just a mixing bowl, whisk together your vanilla pudding mix, sour cream, and milk over medium heat if you like it a little warm, though honestly I usually just whisk it cold and let it set up in the fridge. Pour that dreamy pudding mixture over the bananas, letting it seep down into all those poked holes. Then comes the best part: a big fluffy layer of Cool Whip or whipped cream spread clear to the edges.

Recipe Tips & Notes

This recipe calls for a 10×15 inch baking dish, and I mean a 10×15 inch baking dish— not a 9×13. If you only have a 9×13, that’s okay! Discard about 1 cup of batter before pouring it into the baking dish.
Always try to use very, very ripe bananas in baking. This will keep your cake moist and increase the sweetness.
If you don’t want to use Cool Whip on top, try using my favorite Homemade Whipped Cream (it’s stable!).
For a fun twist, drizzle some melted white chocolate over the second layer of pudding before you add the whipped topping — it’s not traditional, but it’s so pretty and adds a little extra sweetness.
Crumble your vanilla wafers generously over the top of the cake right before serving so they stay crunchy instead of going soggy.
Transfer any leftovers to a serving plate with a lid, or just cover the pan tightly — this cake keeps beautifully in the fridge for a few days (if it lasts that long, ha!).

🍌🍌🍌 CELEBRATE BANANAS with us: our favorite Banana Bread Recipes 🍌🍌🍌

Ready To Make This Recipe?

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If you’re a banana fanatic like me (no shame!), you absolutely have to make this one next — and while you’re at it, don’t miss my Banana Bread with Cream Cheese Frosting or this Chocolate Brownie Mix Banana Bread for your next banana craving. I literally can’t even with how many ways there are to love this fruit. Go grab your bananas, preheat that oven, and get baking — you guys are going to fall hard for this one!