Chocolate Pudding

Double Chocolate Pudding

I have plenty of chocolate on hand. I have cocoa powder, mini chocolate morsels, dark, semi and milk chocolate baking disks, etc. Since, they'll keep, I didn't have to make anything, but I was bombarded with images of pudding. See, I am a my fan of the television show Scandal. On it, there is a character called Edison, who bares an uncanny resemblance to Bill Cosby. The pudding jokes were everywhere and endless. Couple that with my other adoration, Pinterest, where a plethora of chocolate pudding recipes suddenly appeared, and I figured that the universe was trying to tell me something: make some pudding. When I glanced at some of the recipes, I found that I had everything that I needed to make this favorite. I chose a recipe without eggs, and that I thought I could experiment with; in essence, a template. I choose to make this recipe somewhat straightforward, but you could add coconut extract and garnish with toasted coconut. Or maybe some peppermint extract and crushed peppermint candies. Perhaps you can add a dollop of peanut butter or hazelnut. How would you customize your pudding?

This recipe was based on the Simple Chocolate Pudding recipe . 

The List:

1/2 c sugar

3 tblsp cocoa powder

1/4 c cornstarch to start (you may need to add more if the mixture isn't thickening. Make sure to sift this in. Otherwise, it will be lumpy).

1/8 tsp salt

2 3/4-3 c milk (go buy feel. The weather will impact ingredients).

1-2 tbls butter (depends on the milk used. If using full fat milk, you can reduce the butter. If you're using reduced fat milk, increase your butter).

1 tsp vanilla

1/3 bag of chocolate morsels*

Sift the dry ingredients to fully incorporate the ingredients and to smooth out lumps. Then add milk and heat. Whisk continually until there are no lumps and mixture is thickened. You may need to add more cornstarch; just be sure to mix well. Or sift it in; your choice.When the mixture is just starting to boil, take it off of the heat.

*this makes very smooth and creamy. It also gives the pudding an extra boost of chocolate flavor. You can skip this step, but then it wouldn't be double chocolate pudding, right? I melted my morsels over a double boiler and then added it to the pudding, off of heat, with the butter and vanilla. Whisk until smooth and then chill in the fridge for 3 hours. Enjoy!