Chocolate-Banana Pudding

Banana pudding shows up at almost every potluck, party or holiday dinner here in the south. Taste of the South magazine has a chocolate version for those of us who are cocoa-dependent.

• Ready In: 30 mins
• Serves: 12

Ingredients

• Crumb crust

• 24  chocolate graham crackers, crushed
• 1  cup sweetened flaked coconut
• 1 1⁄2 cups  finely chopped pecans
• 1⁄4 cup sugar
• 1⁄4 cup butter, melted

• Filling

• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 2 (3 ounce) packages instant chocolate pudding mix
• 3  cups  cold milk
• 5 -7  bananas, peeled and sliced into 1/2 -inch chunks
• 1 (8 ounce) container  frozen whipped topping, thawed

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300º.
2. In a large bowl, combine graham-cracker crumbs, coconut, pecans, and sugar. Add melted butter, stirring until well combined. Spread mixture on a rimmed sheet pan and bake for approximately 15 minutes until coconut is golden brown, stirring regularly and watching to prevent burning. Set aside to cool.
3. In another bowl, beat cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Add condensed milk and beat until well combined. Stir in pudding mix and milk and beat until mixture is smooth.
4. Reserve 2 tablespoons crumb mixture. In a large glass serving bowl or in individual stemmed glasses, layer 1/3 of the pudding, ½ of the bananas, ½ of the crumb mixture, another 1/3 of the pudding, ½ of the crumb mixture, remaining bananas, and remaining pudding. Top with whipped topping and sprinkle reserved crumbs on top.