Chocolate Pudding
Chocolate Pudding was one of my first posts back in 2011, way before I knew a thing or two about photography or videos. This is one of my favorite recipes and I, therefore, simply had to update it with new pictures and a video to show you just how easy Chocolate Pudding is to make. Think outside the box when it comes to serving your pudding. Cups, saucers, ramekins and martini glasses are just as beautiful as a crystal bowl!
Watch it:
Confession time. I hate sifting…ANYTHING. I think I have tried just about every kind of sifter out there; plastic and metal, hand crank and pull the handles together types. The sound that the metal to metal makes while sifting and/or the dust that flies and/or the itty bitty bits that I can’t get rid of when I try to clean the darn thing do me in.
Many years ago, there was not really a choice for most recipes. The flour that I bought was always clumped together and that was not acceptable. Then I discovered King Arthur Flour (KA) and my troubles went away. I contacted KA to find out if there was a reason for this and they were very helpful. KA flour has less clumping because their flours are of a very fine particle size and they are triple sifted at the mill before packaging, so any particulates are removed then. KA is pricier than the other flours I used to work with, but since my hatred of sifting runs deep and the flour feels so silky smooth and never fails me, it is worth the money in my book.
I know some of you are thinking that there are many recipes that call for sifting and I must be an idiot not to do that. You are probably right on both counts, but my cakes always turnout just fine, so I stick by my no-sifting rule.
I have turned to whisking dry ingredients together when a recipe calls for sifting. Is it the same thing? Absolutely not. Will I ever earn a living as a pastry chef? Absolutely not. Will I continue to bake and have incredibly delicious desserts? You betcha!
Are you wondering why I go on and on about sifting for a recipe that does not even have flour in it? It is because cocoa powder is also one of those pesky ingredients that is often times a tad clumpy and bumpy and needs a bit of caressing to smooth out. For itty bitty amounts (1 tablespoon or smaller,) I used to spoon the cocoa into a small strainer and stir a spoon through it until all the cocoa passed through the strainer. After an intense cocoa ingredient filled baking period of time, I decided I was tired of this method of straining, too.
In this incredibly decadent Chocolate Pudding, the dry ingredients get whisked together before the ½ and ½ is added. Once the cooking starts, and I see little bumps of cocoa floating around, I simply mush them against the side of the pan and they melt away. It does not get much easier than that.
Of course, the option to sift the cocoa and/or all of the dry ingredients together is always available to those who want to make sure they do not have any bumps in their Chocolate Pudding. For me, I don’t think much about them one way or the other as the pudding is so incredibly rich and creamy that a bump would have to be the size of a golf ball to actually get my attention to switch from Ahhhhh to Yuck.
I have never taken a spoonful of Chocolate Pudding and eaten a lump of cocoa. Perhaps because this has not happened, it has given me a false sense of confidence that cocoa can be mushed into a hot ingredient and forced to behave. Until this no longer happens, I will continue to buck the sifting trend and hang on to my whisk.
| Chocolate Pudding | | Print |
- Pudding:
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ cup cocoa
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 4 cups Half and Half
- 6 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- Topping (optional):
- 1½ cups heavy whipping cream
- 3 tablespoons confectioners sugar
- 2 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
- For the pudding:
- Combine the sugar, cocoa, cornstarch and salt together in a medium size saucepan and whisk until well blended. Gradually stir in the half and half. This will first form a paste and then turn into a smooth liquid. Add the chocolate chips and vanilla.
- Stirring constantly, cook the mixture over medium heat until it is thick and creamy, about 10 minutes.
- Immediately transfer to a 1½ quart bowl. Cool on a wire rack and then refrigerate until cold.
- For the topping:
- Just before serving, beat the whipping cream and confectioners sugar in a large mixing bowl until peaks form when you raise the whip. Pour over the pudding. Grate the chocolate chips on top and serve.
- Betsy's tidbits:
- I am a diehard Chocolate Pudding fan, the kind that stands on its own without whipped cream. Additionally, I really love the chocolate film on top of the pudding. If you do not care for the film that forms on top of pudding, cover the Chocolate Pudding with wax paper immediately after transferring to the serving bowl to cool. Remove wax paper before topping with whipped cream and grated chocolate, which you will want to add for a more desirable presentation.
- I cannot remember the origins of this recipe and my apologies to the food magazine that I adapted it from.
- Chocolate Pudding is beautiful when served in a crystal bowl.
