Peanut Butter Banana Pudding

The other day, I got seven boxes of Girl Scout cookies in the mail (Thanks, Katie!!). Then Darren's friend Chris came over and brought two more boxes. I don't know how familiar most people are with GS cookies, but there are two authorized bakers that I know about: Little Brownie Bakers and ABC. Depending on where you live, your cookies might be slightly different. Everyone knows classics like Thin Mints, but what about Golden Yangles. Those were actually little cheese crackers (like Cheez-Its or Goldfish) that used to be sold with the cookies. I don't think they exist any more. And Chalet Cremes? I love those, and they have an image of the Swiss Chalet on every cookie. The Chalet is one of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS) four world centers. One day, I'd like to see them all. And did you know that Girl Scouts originally baked and sold their own cookies. There is old literature with recipes and information about how much to charge based on the cost of flour and such.

I have a HUGE soft spot for Girl Scouts. I loved being a Girl Scout, and especially loved the summers I spent at Camp Wahi, which used to be the Middle Mississippi Girl Scout camp, but Middle Miss is now Girl Scouts of Greater Mississippi. Thanks to FB, a bunch of my old camp friends and I have been reminiscing lately. I could probably spend days talking about it. I also got to go to a national scouting event, Together We Stand II, in Nashville, Tennessee back in 1993, and on a WiderOp (now called a Destination, I believe), Canoe Country Rendezvous hosted by Northern Lakes Canoe Base, to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in 1994. We even got to go into the Quetico Provincial Park on the Canadian side of the lakes. Those were the days. But back to the cookies...

We had been talking about making banana pudding, and I thought it would be a great way to use up some of the cookies, so we bought some bananas and got a little creative. Banana pudding is a good Southern dessert. In my opinion, it's right up there with caramel cake, peach cobbler, and pecan pie. My grandmother, my dad's mother that we called Bubber, used to make banana pudding when I was a kid. The thing I remember most was that she would let me eat the meringue off the top. I loved it more than the pudding. I was young when she died (3rd grade), but I always think of her when I make banana pudding. I wish I knew her recipes. She was an amazing cook. Still, I think she'd be proud of my kitchen talents.

For this banana pudding, we added a peanut butter twist by using Do-Si-Dos (Peanut Butter Sanwiches or Savannahs in some markets). First I buttered a big pyrex bowl (it turned out to be too big, but that's okay).

Line the bottom of the bowl with Do-Si-Dos that have been split into halves. Place them PB side up. Don't worry if all of the PB sticks to one side; just spread those out. We actually used one sleeve of Do-Si-Dos and one of Peanut Butter Sandwiches, because the boxes were from different places, and we had eaten some of each doing taste tests.

Then slice up a couple of bananas and layer those alternating until you run out of cookies, bananas, or room in your bowl. About 12 oz. of cookies and 2-3 bananas will make enough for one batch of pudding.

Now it's time to make the pudding. You'll need eggs, milk, brown and white sugar, vanilla, and corn starch or flour. Start by separating four eggs.

Then put the yolks in a heavy sauce pan and whisk them up before adding the sugars. And then whisk around the sugars.

Measure the cornstarch, add some milk and mix it up really well, and then fill it up to two cups. Add the milk a little at a time while heating over medium-low heat. Stir the pudding frequently to prevent scorching the milk or having lumpy pudding.

Once the pudding starts to boil, it only needs a couple of minutes to thicken. Then remove it from the heat, whisk in some vanilla, and pour the hot pudding over the cookie-banana layers.

Feel free to lick the spatula when you're done.

Then use the egg whites to make some meringue. Beat them until peaks begin to form, add a little cream of tartar, and some sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form.

Then spread the meringue over the top of the pudding, making sure to seal the edges to the bowl. Then bake for about 10 minutes to brown the meringue.

Only lick the spatula if no one is watching, and you aren't afraid of salmonella.

Let the pudding cool for a while and then dig in!

Since we still had lots of bananas and Girl Scout cookies, I also make some small puddings for Darren to take to work using Trefoils and Shout-Outs. He says the pudding with Shout-Outs is delicious!