These banana pudding stuffed cookies combine everything we love about classic banana pudding with the comfort of a soft, chewy bakery-style cookie! They come together easily with a real pudding center (no boxed mixes) and wholesome ingredients but taste like they’re straight from heaven!
the best recipe for stuffed cookies
If you love classic banana pudding and soft, bakery-style cookies, these banana pudding stuffed cookies are sure to be a hit! Each cookie is filled with a creamy homemade banana pudding center, then baked until golden on the edges and soft in the middle. They’re naturally gluten-free, made with almond flour, and easy to adapt for dairy-free or refined sugar–free diets.
Unlike most banana pudding cookie recipes, this one uses a real banana pudding filling (no boxed mixes) and a sturdy cookie dough that actually holds the filling without leaking. These cookies are so fun for holiday baking or anytime you want a wholesome-ish sweet treat!
Why You’ll Love These Banana Pudding Stuffed Cookies
- True banana flavor from real mashed banana & no instant pudding mix or artificial ingredients!
- Creamy pudding center that stays thick after baking
- Gluten-free using almond flour (or tiger nut flour for nut-free!)
- Perfect for parties, holiday baking, or a bakery-style treat at home!
- No refined sugars or dairy – unless you want those! 😉
Recipe video
ingredients You’ll Need
The full recipe & measurements are in the recipe card at the bottom of the post, but here’s an overview!
Homemade Banana Pudding Filling
- Milk of choice
- Banana (about 1 medium banana)
- Granulated monk fruit or granulated sweetener of choice
- Organic cornstarch
- Cashew butter or almond butter: Oat house granola butter or sunflower butter are great nut-free options.
- Vanilla extract & sea salt
Cookie Dough
- Almond flour: Tiger nut flour works as a 1:1 nut-free substitute but I wouldn’t recommend trying any other flour as the cookies will not turn out the same!
- Coconut oil, grass-fed butter, or vegan butter: I prefer using butter (I use dairy-free) for the best results but coconut oil works great as well!
- Coconut sugar: You can use regular granulated sweetener, but do not sub monk fruit as the cookies need the sugar to help create the perfect texture!
- Egg: I haven’t tested an egg substitute and can’t say for sure how this will work!
- Pantry staples: vanilla extract, sea salt, cinnamon
- White chocolate chips (optional but DELICIOUS): I love Pascha white chocolate chips for a vegan white chocolate or Lily’s white chocolate chips for a sugar-free option!
How to Make Banana Pudding Stuffed Cookies
Be sure to scroll down to the recipe card for the full measurements & steps! Here’s an overview:
Step 1: Make the Banana Pudding Filling
In a small saucepan, whisk together the milk, mashed banana, cashew butter, monk fruit sugar, cornstarch, and salt until smooth. Place over low-medium heat. Warm the mixture, careful to not let it fully boil, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens into a pudding-like consistency (about 5 minutes). Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract until fully smooth. Once cool to touch, either cover the pan and place in the fridge or move the pudding to a bowl with a lid and place in the fridge while you make the cookie dough.
Step 2: Make the Cookie Dough
In the bowl of your stand mixer, or using a hand mixer, whip the butter or coconut oil and coconut sugar for a few minutes until fluffy, light in color, and well combined. Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat again until combined. Add the almond flour, baking soda, and sea salt. Beat just until a cohesive dough forms, then fold in white chocolate chips.
Step 3: Assemble the Stuffed Cookies
Scoop about 2 tablespoons of cookie dough and roll into a ball. Place on the parchment-lined baking sheet. Using a small round teaspoon or even your thumb, create an indent in the center of the cookie. You can reshape the outsides to make them smoother if needed. Place a little of the banana pudding portion in the center. Grab a little more cookie dough and roll into a ball. Flatten it completely between your palms, making sure then top with another small piece of dough. Seal the edges completely and gently roll into a ball. Place cookies 2–3 inches apart on the baking sheet.
Step 4: Bake
Bake for 11–12 minutes, until the edges are lightly golden but the centers are still soft. Do not over-bake, as these cookies firm up as they cool. Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for at least 10-15 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
Tips for Perfect Banana Pudding Stuffed Cookies
- Seal the dough completely: Any cracks will cause the filling to leak.
- Let cool on the pan for 10-15 minutes, then move to a cooling rack.
- Careful not to over-stuff the cookies. This can cause the pudding filling to ooze out and make covering the cookies harder.
Flavor Variations
- Chocolate banana: Use dark chocolate chunks instead of white chocolate chips.
- Pecan banana pudding cookies: Add chopped pecans to the cookie dough.
Storage & Make-Ahead Tips
- Refrigerator: Up to 5 days (you can warm them up for a few seconds if you’d like or leave them out at room-temp for a bit before enjoying).
- Freezer: Freeze baked cookies for up to 2 months. Thaw and warm before serving.
FAQs About Banana Pudding Stuffed Cookies
- Why is my filling leaking out? The pudding wasn’t cold enough or the dough wasn’t sealed completely.
- Are these cookies gluten-free? Yes, they’re made with almond flour and naturally gluten-free.
- Can I make these refined sugar–free? Yes, this recipe is already refined sugar-free using a mix of monk fruit and coconut sugar!
More healthy dessert recipes to try
- 6 Ingredient Snicker cookies
- Gluten-free Monster Cookies
- No-bake Samoa Cookies
- Homemade Tagalong cookies
- 3 Ingredient fudge stripe cookies
- Cinnamon Pecan sticky bun cookies
- Banana caramel cookies
- Frozen protein S’mores
If you try them and love, it’d mean the world to me if you left a star rating & review below! Be sure to save this recipe and share it with fellow banana pudding lovers!
Banana Pudding Stuffed Cookies
Ingredients
Banana pudding
- 1 cup milk of choice (I used almond milk)
- 1/2 cup ripe, mashed banana
- 1/4 cup granulated monk fruit or other granulated sweetener
- 1 tbsp + 1 tsp organic corn starch
- 1 tbsp almond or cashew butter
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/8 tsp sea salt
Cookies
- 2 1/4 cup almond flour
- 1 egg, room temp
- 6 tbsp cold coconut oil, grass-fed butter, or dairy-free butter *I prefer these with butter! I use Monty's dairy free butter – ingredients are great!
- 2/3 cup coconut sugar
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 3/4 cup white chocolate chips
Instructions
- Begin by preheating your oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Make the pudding: Add the milk, banana, monk fruit or sugar, cornstarch, cashew butter, and salt to a saucepan over medium heat. Stir occasionally until a few bubbles start to form. Once bubbles form, stir continuously. Be careful not to bring it to a boil! If it’s bubbling too much, lower the heat slightly.Continue stirring until mixture thickens up enough that when you drag a spoon through the mixture it slowly comes back together instead of immediately filling in the gap you drew with the spoon. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla.
- Let the pudding cool until it's cool to touch. Cover the pot or move the pudding to a bowl with the lid and store in the fridge while you make the cookie dough – this will keep a skin from forming on top.
- Make the cookie dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the coconut oil and coconut sugar for 2-3 minutes, until super smooth and no lumps remain. Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat until fully incorporated.
- Then, add the almond flour, baking soda, and a pinch of sea salt. Mix just until a cohesive dough forms. Fold in the chocolate chips last.
- Using a cookie scoop, drop dough onto the prepared baking sheet. Press your thumb into the center of the dough ball to create a small well. Add a dollop of the chilled pudding, filling the indent. Grab a small amount of additional dough and roll it into a ball. Flatten it between your palms. Then place it over the cookie, being sure to seal it completely around the edges so the pudding doesn't ooze out. Repeat with remaining dough.
- Bake for 11–12 minutes, until the edges are set and lightly golden and the centers are still somewhat soft. Remove from the oven and allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 15 minutes, before moving to a wire rack. The bottom centers of the cookies will be slightly soft, so handle with care!
- If you didn't use chocolate chips, you could frost the cookies with a little cream cheese frosting and sprinkle of chopped pecans or however else, but they're great as-is, too!
I was so surprised at how much we all liked these as we can be picky with banana things. The flavors were amazing!
Hi Katy-anne! I am so happy to hear this! We are also picky with banana, so i totally get it! Thanks so much for giving them a go!