In a large bowl add the softened, room temperature cream cheese.
8 oz Cream cheese
Using a hand mixer, beat until there are no lumps then add sweetened condensed milk, vanilla, and the pudding mix to the cream cheese mixture. Beat until combined and no lumps appear.
14 oz can Sweetened condensed milk, 3 cup Milk, 1 teaspoon Vanilla, 5 oz Instant vanilla pudding
Fold in 8 oz whipped cream topping.
3 8 oz Whipped topping
Chill mixture for 30 minutes.
In your trifle dish, lay the vanilla wafers on the bottom and up against the side. Add ½ of the pudding mixture and spread evenly across, layer bananas on top of the pudding, and then layer ½ of the whipped cream topping over the bananas.
4 Bananas, ½ 12 oz Box Vanilla wafers
Repeat that step another time.
Once your trifle has been constructed chill for at least 1 hour, best if overnight.
Garnish as you wish and serve!
Cherries
Notes
Best to let the banana trifle set in the fridge as long as possible before serving. Best if overnight and a max of 48 hours. This will allow the wafers to become soft and cake-like.
For smaller personal-sized dishes, layer as described. Keep refrigerated and wrapped with plastic wrap until ready to eat.
If you do not own a trifle dish, any 9 x 13 baking pan or casserole dish would work perfectly.
Store covered and in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.