The Classic Dessert Bobby Flay Infinitely Improves With Milk Chocolate

Chocolate is the world's best pick-me-up. Add it to any dessert, and it's pretty much guaranteed to taste a million times better, whether you go for milk, dark, or white chocolate. We're especially big fans of adding milk chocolate to fruit: The chocolate's rich and milky flavor complements refreshing and sweet fruit beautifully, whether you're partial to berries or bananas. In terms of bananas, you could go with a simple chocolate-covered frozen banana to satisfy the craving. Or, you could follow the lead of celebrity chef Bobby Flay and take this pairing to the next level by adding milk chocolate to banana pudding to create the ultimate comfort food.

Classic banana pudding is made with just a handful of simple ingredients: vanilla pudding, whole milk, vanilla extract, vanilla wafer cookies, bananas, and whipped cream. For those who don't love cake and ice cream, banana pudding offers a different flavor and texture but is equally shareable, making it a great dessert for a party or large gathering. We love the traditional recipe, and if you've ever had Magnolia Bakery's famous banana pudding, you'll likely agree. However, even the legendary bakery added a chocolate hazelnut flavor to its lineup. Banana's vibrant and refreshing flavor pairs ever-so-sweetly with the rich vanilla wafers already, but add a bit of sweet milk chocolate to the mix, and you're on your way to making an unforgettable dessert.

In Flay's recipe, which he shared with Food Network, the milk chocolate is featured in the pudding. Instead of using a pudding packet, though, Flay makes a custard from scratch. It is made with egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch, vanilla, and a milk chocolate mixture. He recommends using high-quality milk chocolate for this to ensure that the flavor is top-notch. 

Once the custard has cooled down, it's layered between chocolate wafers instead of vanilla wafers. This, however, is a tricky step, since Nabisco Chocolate Wafers were discontinued. Oreo Thins, chocolate graham crackers, or Dewey's Bakery Brownie Crisp Cookies are all good alternatives. Otherwise, you can go the extra mile and make thin chocolate wafers from scratch.

Once the banana pudding has been assembled and all of your bananas, wafers, and custard have been used up, cover it with plastic wrap and let it sit in the refrigerator for at least four hours. We recommend leaving it to rest in the fridge overnight so that the cookies have enough time to soften; nobody wants a crunchy cookie in their banana pudding. Before you serve it, top it with a generous helping of whipped cream, and then shave some of your leftover milk chocolate over the top for one last sweet detail.