If you love banana pudding, I have just the cheesecake for you to try! It is a southern banana pudding cheesecake recipe with instant pudding.

If you have ever had classic banana pudding, you know how it is a creamy pudding and an easy dessert to make.

This southern banana pudding cheesecake recipe is pretty easy to make too. It is an oven-baked recipe, where the pudding mixture is baked into the cheesecake.

If you are wanting a banana pudding cheesecake with pudding on top, be sure to check out my other Banana Pudding Cheesecake Recipe.

If you are a banana pudding lover either of these cheesecakes will soon become one of your favorite desserts. The combination of pudding and cheesecake puts a spin on a classic dessert.

Here are a few other cheesecake recipes you may enjoy.

Southern Banana Pudding Cheesecake Ingredients:

Crust:

45 Nilla Wafers or Butter Biscuit Cookies
3 Tbsp Sugar
5 Tbsp Butter, melted

Cheesecake Filling:

8 oz Cream Cheese, room temperature
1/2 Cup Sugar
2 Tbsp All-purpose Flour
1 Packet Dry Banana Cream Instant Pudding Mix
1/4 Cup Sour Cream
2 Large Eggs
1/2 Tsp Vanilla Extract
1/2 Cup Mashed Ripe Bananas

Topping/Garnish (optional):

Whipped Cream or Cool Whip (can or tub will work)
1 Large Banana (or a few small fresh bananas)
3-4 Waffers or Cookies

How To Make This Banana Pudding Cheesecake:

Preheat oven to 350F degrees.

Grind the cookies in a food processor until they are crumbs. Then add the sugar and melted butter and mix well.

Grease a 7-inch cheesecake pan. Press the crumb mixture on the bottom and part the way up the sides of the pan.

Put the pan in the heated oven for 8-10 minutes. Then remove and set aside to cool down.

In a large bowl beat cream cheese, sugar, flour, and pudding mix with an electric mixer on low speed until fully blended.

Add sour cream, mashed bananas, and vanilla extract. Mix well. It will be a little lumpy and that is ok.

Add eggs and mix slowly until fully blended. You want the eggs to be well blended with the mixture but be careful not to add a lot of air to the mix.

Pour the cheesecake batter onto the crust.

Bake for 1.5 hours at 300 in a water bath. You can either set the pan in foil before placing it in the water bath or you can use a Bath Cheesecake Wrap.

Turn off the oven and leave the door closed for 30 minutes. The cheesecake will continue to cook but will also start to cool slowly.

Remove from oven and allow to cool on the counter before placing the completely cooled cheesecake in the refrigerator.

Before serving arrange a single layer of banana slices on top of the cheesecake. Then garnish with whipped cream, sliced bananas, and cookies or vanilla wafers.

Frequently Asked Southern Style Banana Pudding Cheesecake Questions:

Q. How should you store this cheesecake?

A. The best way is to store it in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic wrap. Then store it in the fridge.

Q. Can this cheesecake be made in advance?

A. Yes! It is actually better if it is allowed to set in the fridge until the next day before serving it.

Q. Could you top this southern banana pudding recipe with a meringue instead of whipped cream?

A. You sure can! You will just need to beat some egg whites with sugar in a glass bowl until it forms stiff peaks. Then spread it over the cooked cheesecake. Pop it back in the oven at 375F and cook until lightly browned on top. Cooks for about 6 minutes.

Q. Do you have to use instant banana pudding mix?

A. We tried to stick with simple ingredients and found the pudding really works best. If you do not have a pudding mix, you could use some extra sugar and banana flavor in its place to make this delicious dessert.

Q. Do you have to bake this cheesecake in a water bath?

A. You could skip that step if you really wanted. However, you may end up with crunchier sides of the cheesecake and it may split a little on the top.

Q. Could you use homemade pudding in this cheesecake?

A. No. This recipe only works with the powdered instant pudding mixes.

Q. Could I use instant vanilla pudding mix if I can’t find banana cream?

A. You can! You will just need to also add a few drops of banana flavoring.

Q. Do you have to add fresh banana slices to the top of the cheesecake?

A. No. You can skip those if you want. I just like it as it adds more banana flavor and reminds me more of the real southern style banana pudding.