Instant pudding with heavy whipping cream and cream cheese

Table of Contents Show

• Consistency
• YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
• Figuring Out the Fat
• Blending With Other Ingredients
• Playing With Your Pudding
• Storing Your Cream
• Can you use heavy whipping cream for instant pudding?
• Can I use whipping cream instead of milk in pudding?
• What to add to instant pudding to make it taste better?
• What can I add to instant pudding to make it thicker?

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Instant puddings were first introduced to the public in the 1940s and quickly gained acceptance. They're fast, easy and require only two ingredients -- a box of pudding mix and some milk. Whisk the two together and you have a sweet dessert in less than 10 minutes. The cornstarch in the pudding causes it to thicken naturally, but you can increase this function by substituting heavy cream for milk.

Consistency

You can make instant pudding with heavy cream, rather than milk, if you're looking for an extra thick consistency. Although instant puddings thicken quickly when allowed to set for a few minutes, adding cream creates an even thicker texture, which is ideal for pie fillings. In addition to a thicker consistency, you'll also notice a richer flavor. If you use just heavy cream, the texture might even be too thick. Add a little milk, if necessary to thin the pudding. Most regular boxes of pudding call for 2 cups of milk. Substitute a portion of the cream for milk, or even add up to an additional 1/2 cup of milk if the pudding is too thick. Add a little milk at a time and mix it in until you get the consistency you want.

Nutrition

From a nutritional standpoint, it's better to stick with milk when making pudding. Thick and sinfully rich, heavy whipping cream packs an astounding 414 calories per cup, as well as 44 grams of fat -- 28 of which are saturated fats. Low-fat -- 1 percent -- milk, on the other hand, has only 102 calories per cup and 2 grams of fat. Milk also contains more nutrients -- 8 grams of protein, as opposed to the 2 grams you'll find in heavy whipping cream, and 29 percent of your recommended daily allowance of calcium. Heavy whipping cream provides only 8 percent.

Method

Most recipes for homemade cooked pudding call for the addition of a little heavy cream to improve the flavor and texture. There's no reason you can't do the same to an instant pudding mix because the ingredients are essentially the same -- sugar, flavorings and thickeners. Substitute an equal amount of whipping cream for the milk, or for a healthier version, substitute 1/4 to 1/2 cup of whipping cream instead. You'll still get a thick, creamy pudding with fewer calories and fat. Whisk the pudding for several minutes, until all lumps are gone and the pudding thickens.

Uses

Whether you thicken instant pudding with milk, heavy cream or a combination of both, you can use instant pudding in a variety of ways. Try it as a quick snack for kids or use it as a filling for cream pies. Mix it with pound cake, fruit and whipped cream for a fast and easy trifle. While pudding isn't a health food, it has more nutrition than most desserts because of the calcium and vitamin A dairy products provide.

References

Writer Bio

Julie Christensen is a food writer, caterer, and mom-chef. She's the creator of MarmaladeMom.org, dedicated to family fun and delicious food, and released a book titled "More Than Pot Roast: Fast, Fresh Slow Cooker Recipes."

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Yield: 2 lbs. 3 oz or 1000g

Ingredients:

1 lb. or 453 g Cream cheese (room temp)

1 (5.9 oz or 167 g) box instant pudding mix

2 Tablespoons vanilla extract

2 cups or 500ml heavy cream

1/2 cup or 1.75 oz (51 g) confectioners sugar

1.) Add cream cheese to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment .

2.) Cream on medium high until smooth. Note: you will need to stop the mixer a couple times and scrape the bowl.

3.) Add pudding mix and vanilla to the cream cheese on low and mix until incorporated.

4.) On low speed, add the cream in small increments, scraping the bowl in between additions.

5.) Add the powdered sugar and mix to incorporate.

6.) Switch to the whip attachment and whip on high until light and fluffy, about 1 minute.

BananaStock/BananaStock/Getty Images

Invented in the late 1940s, instant pudding was considered a miracle food, producing a luxurious, creamy dessert without the headache of pots, pans and thickeners. The seemingly magical ingredients that allow instant pudding to thicken with milk and without heat -- tetrasodium pyrophosphate and disodium phosphate – work together by gathering and binding the casein proteins in the milk. As a dairy product, heavy cream contains milk proteins that will thicken your instant pudding, but the higher amount of fat will also change your pudding's texture.

Figuring Out the Fat

Cream is the enriched layer of milk fat that rises to the top of whole milk when it is left alone. By definition, heavy cream must contain at least 36 percent milk fat. This amounts to 96 grams of fat per cup, as compared to whole milk, which contains 8 grams of milk fat per cup. In her book "Bakeless Sweets," Faith Durand explains that it is the fat that makes pudding so decadent, but you can have too much. She prescribes a balanced combination of whole milk and heavy cream when making pudding from scratch, because too much fat causes the globules to crowd and bead up on your tongue, changing the texture from creamy to grainy.

Blending With Other Ingredients

To make instant pudding using heavy cream, thin the cream first by adding another liquid. Try adding 1/4 cup of water to each cup of cream used. If the recipe on the box specifies cold milk, use cold water and blend it into the cream before pouring the mixture into the instant pudding mix. Other non-dairy ingredients, such as soy or almond milk, can be used instead of water in combination with the heavy cream. Using soy milk or almond milk alone will not thicken instant pudding, but when you combine them in equal amounts with dairy cream, the milk proteins will react with the chemical thickeners to bind your pudding.

Playing With Your Pudding

Besides traditional pudding, there are other desserts you can make using a package of instant pudding and heavy cream. Because of its high fat content, heavy cream can be whipped with the instant pudding to make a cake filling or frosting similar to bavarian cream or pastry cream. Combine one small package of instant pudding mix with 2 cups of heavy whipping cream and beat in a mixer on high for two to three minutes until stiff peaks form. You can use any flavor of instant pudding to create this cake filling or frosting. Refrigeration will further thicken the concoction.

Storing Your Cream

Heavy cream refrigerated between 38 and 40 degrees Fahrenheit will last one to two weeks before being opened. Once opened, heavy cream should be used within 10 days. Any unused cream poured out of the container should be stored separately and not poured back into the original container. While heavy cream can’t be frozen in its liquid state, it does freeze well once whipped. Store whipped cream alone by wrapping dollops in waxed paper, or freeze pudding and whipped cream concoctions in airtight containers.

Can you use heavy whipping cream for instant pudding?

Can I use whipping cream instead of milk in pudding?

What to add to instant pudding to make it taste better?

What can I add to instant pudding to make it thicker?