Top | Puddings, Custards, and Other Dairy Desserts

Creamy Chocolate Pudding

(recipe, Caroline Cummins)


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Introduction

This recipe is a bit more involved than Moosewood's low-fat Dark Chocolate Pudding, but it's still fast and easy. And the greater richness of the ingredients makes the extra effort worthwhile; the results are intensely chocolatey.

Ingredients

  1. 4 Tbsp. cornstarch
  2. ½ cup granulated sugar
  3. ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder (natural or Dutched)
  4. ⅛ tsp. salt
  5. 1½ cups half and half
  6. 1½ cups whole milk (see Note)
  7. 1 egg, beaten (optional)
  8. 2 Tbsp. butter (optional)
  9. 8 oz. (about 1¼ cups) chopped semisweet chocolate (chocolate chips are fine)
  10. 2 tsp. vanilla extract
  11. Whipped cream, for garnish (optional)
  12. Grated chocolate, for garnish (optional)

Steps

  1. Put the cornstarch, sugar, cocoa powder, and salt in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Whisk the ingredients together thoroughly, making sure no cornstarch or cocoa-powder lumps remain. Whisk in the cream and milk.
  2. Heat over medium-low heat, whisking steadily and scraping the sides of the pan occasionally. When warm (but before the pudding comes to a boil), whisk in the egg, the butter, and the chopped chocolate. Increase the heat to medium and continue cooking and stirring until the butter and chocolate have melted and dissolved into the mixture.
  3. When the pudding has come to a low boil and begun to thicken, remove from the heat. Whisk in the vanilla extract and pour the pudding into dessert dishes or a single large bowl.
  4. You can let the pudding cool slowly on the countertop and serve it soft and warm, if you like. If you prefer to serve it firm and chilled, cover the pudding with plastic wrap (stretched taut if you like skin on your pudding, or pressed gently into the surface of the pudding if you don't) and refrigerate until set, about 30 minutes to an hour.
  5. Serve garnished with freshly whipped cream and grated semisweet chocolate, if you like.

Note

You can replace the 3 cups of liquid dairy with any combination you like: all whole milk, all half-and-half, etc. Don't use all skim milk, however; the pudding deserves the richness and thick mouthfeel of milk fat. Feel free to add a splash of liquor, such as Grand Marnier or brandy, to the finished pudding along with the vanilla extract.