Banana Pudding Surprise

As I was cleaning out the fridge I came across three boxes of Banana Creme Sugar Free, Fat Free Instant pudding mix. First of all, if it has that many adjectives in the name, it's probably not good for you and in full disclosure, I later realized it had expired in Oct. 2008.

The good news is, it tasted wonderful :) I had Grandpa stop and get some bananas to top it with and we put some almond nut granola on top of it instead of vanilla wafers for some crunch and it was a wonderful Sunday night dessert.

The practical side of me was proud for using up some stuff I had on hand that was actually not that many WW points, but the "trying to eat healthier" side of me started wondering exactly what is IN Banana Creme Sugar Free, Fat Free Instant pudding mix?

When I told Bryon it was sugar free he asked what made it sweet... aspartame? Dang! Didn't even look at it. Of COURSE it was aspartame, along with virtually every other artificial or man made ingredient available. The only ACTUAL food that was in it was the fat free milk and bananas I put into it along with nonfat milk and salt. Seriously, here are the ingredients on the back of the box as they are listed:

modified food starch, maltodextrin, tetrasodium pyrphospate and disodium phospate (for thickening), contains less than 2% of nonfat milk, natural and artificial flavor, salt, calcium sulfate, xanthan gum, mono and diglycerides (prevent foaming), aspartame and acesufame potassium (sweeteners), tetrapotassium pyrophosphate, dipotassium phosophate, yellow 5, yellow 6, artificial color, phenyletonurics: containes phenylaline.

Nice.

So then I Googled banana pudding recipes, which obviously I should have done FIRST and found this WW one:

Banana Pudding


POINTS® Value: 4
Servings: 12
Preparation Time: 10 min
Cooking Time: 15 min
Level of Difficulty: Moderate

Vanilla wafers make a quick and crunchy crust for this creamy, layered treat.


Ingredients
1/3 cup(s) all-purpose flour
3/4 cup(s) sugar
1/4 tsp table salt
2 large egg yolk(s), lightly beaten
2 1/2 cup(s) 1% low-fat milk
3 Tbsp butter, divided
1 tsp vanilla extract
36 item(s) reduced-fat vanilla wafer(s)
3 large banana(s), sliced
2 cup(s) fat-free whipped topping, thawed
Instructions

* Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife.

* Combine flour, sugar and salt in a 3-quart saucepan. Combine egg yolks and milk; stir with a whisk. Gradually add egg mixture to dry ingredients, stirring well. Add 2 tablespoons butter. Cook over medium heat until thick and bubbly (about 10 minutes), stirring constantly. Remove from heat; add remaining 1 tablespoon butter and vanilla, stirring until butter melts.

* Place 12 vanilla wafers in bottom of an 8-inch square baking dish. Arrange one-third of banana over cookies. Spoon one-third of pudding mixture over banana; repeat procedure with remaining cookies, banana and pudding, ending with pudding. Spoon whipped topping over pudding and spread evenly. Cover and chill until ready to serve. Yield: 12 servings (serving size: about 3⁄4 cup).

I had every ingredient already at hand except for the wafers and whipped cream which I didn't want anyway.

Another day, another lesson in eating.

Sometimes you just need to do it Old School my friend.