Butterscotch Pudding

There is nothing more comforting than a bowl of creamy, velvety pudding with a dollop of whipped cream on top.  My flavor of choice is butterscotch.  I have to admit that I haven't made pudding from scratch in a long time.  I forgot how much goes into it.....

I got this recipe from a Williams-Sonoma cookbook, Comfort Food By Rick Rodgers, that my mom gave me for my birthday.  Which, by the way, is my new favorite cookbook; I want to make everything in it, especially while it is cold outside.

They say to cool the pudding in the fridge for 2 hours, but I had to have some right away....  I just couldn't wait, and warm pudding is delicious!  I should have taken a picture of the warm pudding, but I ate it too quickly for that....  The above photo is of the pudding with whipped cream after it had cooled in the fridge for the reccomended 2 hours.  Recipe, instructions and more pictures after the jump.

Large egg yolks, 6

Cornstarch, 1/3 cup plus 1 Tbs

Whole Milk, 3 Cups

Unsalted Butter, 6 Tbs

Fine Sea Salt

Sugar 1 1/4 Cups

Pure Vanilla Extract, 1 Tsp

Whipped Cream

In a heatproof bowl, whisk the egg yolks, cornstarch and 1/2 cup milk.  In a small saucepan combine 2 1/2 milk, butter and a pinch of salt.  Heat over medium heat stirring frequently until the butter is melted.  Set aside covered to keep warm.

 

In a large saucepan, combine sugar and 1/4 water.  Place over high heat and bring to a boil stirring constantly.  Once boiling, stop stirring and allow to full boil, brushing down any sugar crystals with a pastry brush and cold water, swirling the pan occasionally until the sugar turns golden brown and has a slightly toasty aroma.

Reduce heat and very carefully (mine boiled over and made a bit of a mess) add the milk/ butter mixture.  Cook stirring constantly, until the mixture is smooth and the caramel is dissolved.  Add some of the hot mixture to the egg mixture.  You want to heat the egg mixture up carefully because you don't want scrambled eggs....  Pour the warmed egg mixture into the caramel mixture and heat over medium heat until some bubbles rise to the top whisking constantly.  Remove from heat and strain through a coarse mesh sieve placed over a bowl.  Press plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pudding, or else a film will form on the top, and cool in the fridge.  Serve with whipped cream.  If you can't wait, I do enjoy a warm bowl of pudding....  Eat and enjoy!