Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Tasty Treat: Best Ever Chocolate Pudding

So many bloggers and food writers have written about pudding and pointed out that it's just as easy to make from scratch as from a packet. No lie, it's just as easy, it's tastier and it's better for you. However, I have yet to find a recipe that doesn't include cornstarch. Cornstarch drives me crazy because, in my humble opinion, it zaps flavor and can add a grittiness!

This week, after absentmindedly buying twice the amount of milk we usually drink, I set out on a mission to use it all up. Chocolate pudding struck me as one of the tastier options. I scoured web sites, cookbooks and magazines and failed to find any recipes without cornstarch. Then, I opened my new favorite cookbook The Craft of Baking by Karen DeMasco. I've already made several recipes out of it including the Spicy Caramel Popcorn and I was drawn to her chocolate pudding recipe which uses egg yolks to thicken rather than my nemesis, corn starch.

Only problem is DeMasco wanted me to bake the puddings in a water bath for 20 minutes and also called for 70% chocolate, which I didn't have. So, I decided to live on the wild side and change her recipe to suit my needs. I cooked it on the stovetop to make the recipe easier and faster. I also used 55% chocolate (basically semisweet), didn't add any extra sugar and switched out the vanilla bean in favor of vanilla extract. I must pat myself on the back: the result was a creamy, chocolatey masterpiece. Since I made a double batch, the hubby suggested I fill some jam jars with pudding and give it away. It was such fun packaging and a lovely surprise for the friends I bumped into this week. Enjoy!


Chocolate Pudding
(While I've started with chocolate, this is my new method for pudding making in general and I'm already brainstorming other creations. Oh, and I do promise, you can whip this up in about ten minutes. The hard part is waiting the two hours until it's set.)

What You'll Need:

1 cup (5 oz.) Semi sweet chocolate chips (I use the Guittard 55% extra semisweet. They are incredible!)
1 cup Heavy Cream
1 cup Milk
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
2 moderate pinches Salt
2 Egg Yolks in a small bowl

Add the cream, milk, vanilla and salt to a medium pot. Set over a medium high heat and stir until nearly boiling. Add the chocolate and stir continuously until it's melted.

Dip a ladle into the chocolate mixture and, while vigorously whisking the egg yolks, slowly slowly slowly add the hot chocolate mixture. Whisk well and then pour it all back into the pot.

Whisking continuously, moderately boil the pudding for a few minutes until it feels thickened. You'll feel a difference almost immediately once the egg yolk mixture is added.

Remove from the heat and pour the pudding into a heat-proof bowl or ramekins or jam jars. Cover the pudding's surface with plastic wrap* (If you like the skin as my husband does, just cover the bowl itself) and refrigerate for a couple hours until it's set.

To serve, eat this luscious pudding all by itself or with a nice dollop of unsweetened whipped cream!

*Note: I don't usually use plastic in my cooking, but I don't know of a better way to prevent the skin from forming. Maybe parchment next time?

Approximate Groceries Cost:
Groceries: $4
Cost per Meal: Do your best to make it to six servings!

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37 comments:

  1. That looks very rich, creamy and delicious. I would love to try some.

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  2. Oh Mary! Let me know if you try it. It's addictive!

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  3. This looks wonderful! I love pudding - what a treat.
    Maybe parchment paper would work for preventing a skin from forming. I'd like to know if anyone tries it.

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  4. I love the idea of "living on the wild side" by daring to change recipes, based on available ingredients. Your chocolate pudding looks amazing. I bet it tastes amazing, too.

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  5. Wonderful. I have trouble with skins forming as well as water forming around the top and edges when I make pudding.

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  6. This looks and sounds delish. Love the idea of putting it into jelly jars to give away - wish I had bumped into you this week :)

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  7. Christine, I think I'll give parchment paper a go next time. Will have to trace the bowl to make a proper cutout, but it's probably a better option.

    Alexandra - It was a fun thing to do - something I often do, but not always with such grand success!

    Marthaandme - no skin if cover and zero problems with water! Let me know if you try the recipe.

    Sheryl! I wish I'd bumped into you too:)

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  8. I love a homemade pudding. I've used a recipe over on the Hillbilly Housewife to good effect, although it does have cornstarch.

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  9. I'd like to know why I wasn't on the gift list :) Sounds awesome!

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  10. Sounds yummy! I'll have to give it a try! Thanks for living on the "wild side".

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  11. who knew pudding was so easy to make from scratch?

    think this would work as a special dessert with whipped cream and berries on top in our house...

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  12. Oh my god, looks sooo delicious. It reminds me that I love making pudding. I'll have to try this. Thanks for the inspiration!!

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  13. Sarah, with whipped cream and berries, it will knock you down. Enjoy!!

    Jennifer, let me know what you think!

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  14. Any chance you could post the weight of those choclate chips?
    Different sizes might have different yields, and I also might want to chop my own.

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  15. I just saved this recipe - it sounds great. I had no idea pudding was so simple. Thank you for encouraging me!

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  16. Meredith! Let me know what you think!!

    Anonymous, wonderful question. It's 5 oz of chocolate. I'll update and repost the recipe. Please do let me know if you make it!

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  17. Chocolate and heavy cream, what could be better? I'm making the ultimate chocolate cake this weekend for my daughter's birthday it calls for a chocolate custard to fill each layer (there's four), but it's sooo good. The recipe is very similar for the custard.

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  18. Oooh, that chocolate cake sounds incredible! I hope you'll be writing about it. And, happy birthday to your daughter!!

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  19. i've a question: is there any lower-calorie substitute for the heavy cream? one cup is about 800 calories!

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  20. Clifford, great question. I use lowfat milk instead of whole milk and haven't had a problem. However, I haven't tried switching out the heavy cream. I would imagine you could use half&half or regular milk, but you'll lose some of the creaminess. If you try it out, please let me know!!

    PS - I do try to put things in perspective and remember that there are 6 servings so 6 into 800 calories isn't so bad:)

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  21. Blegh, cornstarch in pudding! My grandma would smack me for that. ;)

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  22. Lately I've been finding it's just as easy to cook a lot of foods from scratch than buy processed. The trick is building up your confidence :). Yummy pudding!

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  23. I am planning to use this with light cream instead. wish me luck!

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  24. jnnkaro98 - I think it should be amazing! Let me know!!

    Unplanned Cooking - I couldn't agree with you more. Pancake mix? A total sham. I think the issue is it's intimidating when you aren't skilled in the kitchen and the boxes make things look so much easier. Even I get a little nervous when tackling something new!

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  25. Hi again, Peggy! So I ended up making the pudding with heavy cream--might as well go all out :P

    I have a question though. It's been in the fridge overnight to set and there is a layer of yellow on the top (coloured like fat). Is this normal? And I assume this is fat that's come up to the surface?

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  26. Clifford - I haven't had this happen to me, but I'd say as long as all of your ingredients were fresh, it's probably fine. I'd skim it off and give the pudding a taste test. If something is off, I'd try again. Did you cover the top with plastic wrap or a piece of parchment? I never let mine form a skin so perhaps that's what happens?

    Not sure why there was separation (perhaps it needed a little more time on the stove?), but do let me know how it tastes!

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  27. I covered the top with plastic wrap. I'll taste it tonight and let you know how it is. The only thing I did differently from the recipe is that I forgot to add the salt so I didnt put it in until after the eggs were incorporated. Maybe that had something to do with it... oh well!

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  28. Hmm, wish I had an answer for you, but I think if everything else is in there, it should be really yummy:)

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  29. aww, so I tried it after skimming off the top layer. I think I let it boil for too long after incorporating the eggs. I kept thinking it would get thicker so I let it boil for longer than a few minutes. Anyway the taste is all there (and is it delicious!) but the texture is more like... a very dense chocolate truffle cake, but in a jar ;)

    actually i find it too sweet for my liking. If I remake it I think I will cut the chocolate chips down by about half... :) My sweet tooth is very very small!

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  30. oh, one more thing... i found a good use for my failed pudding this morning... spread on toast! I had a delicious peanut butter-chocolate toast this morning :)!

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  31. Brilliant!! Maybe I'll try that. Just cook it a little longer for a lovely chocolate spread. Mix in some toasted ground hazelnuts and it's probably just like nutella!

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  32. I've been looking all over for a chocolate pudding recipe without corn starch!! Thanks so much for sharing! Looks great, will be making it today :-)

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  33. Sleepy Bear - so happy you've found this recipe. Let me know how it goes!

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  34. Tried it with Lindt Chili chocolate - can't wait until it sets!!!

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  35. I was searching for a cornstarch-free version of chocolate pudding; this looks perfect. I don't see info on how many servings, however. Looks like maybe 4?

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  36. I was searching for a cornstarch-free chocolate pudding recipe, and this looks terrific. There is no mention as to how many servings; I would guess 4...

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    Replies
    1. Hi Becky, I hope you enjoy this! It's about 4 servings in our house, but in a less piggy household, you might be able to stretch it to 6. Thanks!
      Peggy

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