Homemade chocolate pudding is an outstanding and incredibly easy dessert to make. There’s just no comparing boxed pudding with this dark chocolate pudding recipe, especially with some espresso whipped cream dolloped on top!
Dessert was a big thing during my childhood. A big, legit thing. I spent many a-night hiding green beans in my napkin under my plate just so I wouldn’t miss dessert. I was, after all, an upstanding member of the clean plate club. And for what it’s worth, the napkin thing totally worked.
Dessert in our house wasn’t fancy though. Ice cream was always always always in the freezer and I suppose that my love for making homemade ice cream is a result of this. Other times there was jello – not my fave but I ate it anyway since eating as a kid in the 80s wasn’t full of choices.
And then there were pudding nights. Glorious pudding nights!
When I peeked in the fridge after school and saw mom’s silver tray filled up with glass cups of pudding, my heart soared. The flavor didn’t matter; it was only a matter of which one mom chose that night – chocolate, vanilla, or butterscotch – and I never ever complained about those options.
And it also didn’t matter that it came from a blue box – at that age, I had no idea that pudding didn’t only come from a blue box.
The only reason why I registered for a bunch of small Pyrex bowls when we got married was because all the pudding I planned to make could not be served in anything else. Are you surprised that in 8+ years since receiving those bowls, I’ve never made pudding? (The bowls do make great prep bowls though!)
That is, until this week. I’m now completely and utterly hooked on this rich, creamy, and decadent homemade dark chocolate pudding, as is evidenced by the fact that I had to hide the leftovers in the back of the fridge to keep myself from overindulging.
Just like homemade chocolate mousse is a cinch to make, so is this chocolate pudding. It actually took more time to chop the chocolate than it did to make the pudding itself (about 10 minutes total) and since this is a totally do-able thing on a busy weekday morning before work, chocolate pudding may just be a regular thing for us from now on.
Before I leave you with this, my new/old favorite dessert, can I just mention the espresso whipped cream? Because let me tell you something!
This whipped cream is the stuff dreams are what made of, especially paired with a deep, dark chocolate pudding. You must not skip the puffs of pillowy espresso whipped cream dolloped atop this pudding.
You might need to restrain yourself from sneaking extra spoonfuls…but don’t skip it. Trust me!
More Pudding-Like Desserts
Homemade Chocolate Pudding with Espresso Whipped Cream
Homemade Chocolate Pudding is SO incredibly easy to make without a box mix! This dark chocolate pudding dessert a deep and rich treat that's topped with pillowy espresso whipped cream.
Ingredients
For the pudding:
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- A scant ½ cup or heaping 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- ⅛ tsp table salt
- 3 cups whole milk
- 6 oz semi- or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
For the espresso whipped cream:
- ¾ cup very cold whipping/heavy cream
- 1 tsp espresso powder
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp powdered sugar
Instructions
- To make the pudding: Whisk cornstarch, sugar, and salt together in a medium saucepan.
- Pour 1 cup milk slowly into the dry ingredients while you quickly whisk everything together to avoid creating any lumps, then gradually whisk in the remaining milk. Heat the milk over medium, stirring occasionally, until the milk begins to simmer and then stir constantly with a rubber spatula. When the milk thickens and just coats the spatula, take the pan off the heat. Quickly stir in the chocolate and mix until melted and thoroughly combined. Stir in the vanilla extract.
- At this point, you can push the pudding through a strainer if you wish to remove lumps. Divide the pudding evenly between small bowls or one large bowl for community serving. If you are a stickler about a skin on pudding, press some plastic wrap against the pudding and wrap the bowl(s). I didn't find that this pudding had much of a skin so I didn't miss not wrapping them up first. Chill for at least 2 hours before serving.
- To make the espresso whipped cream: Chill a mixing bowl and whisk attachment for 30 minutes. Combine the cream, espresso powder, and vanilla in the cold bowl and beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then gradually increase the speed up to high, continuing to beat for another 30 seconds. Stir in the powdered sugar and then continue to beat the cream on high speed until stiff peaks form, about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Dollop the whipped cream on top of the pudding.
Notes
chocolate pudding adapted from Smitten Kitchen | espresso whipped cream is a Smells Like Home original
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That whipped cream is totally calling my name. So yummy!
Thanks, Katrina! I’ve never met a whipped cream I didn’t like but this one is something else. 🙂
this pudding is legit! So silky and chocolatey
Yep, totally legit!
Pudding is an extremely popular dessert in my family. In fact a rich chocolate pudding was the dessert for my big Xmas holiday dinner. This is a wonderful recipe. And the change up you did on the whipped cream was inspired.
I’m sorry but I don’t count calories. My Fitness Pal has a free calorie tracker where you can create input ingredients to a recipe and it will give you the calorie count.