Easy Homemade No-Bake! Coffee Caramel Pudding

So today we’ve got something really simple and delicious, a Creamy & Sweet Cornstarch Coffee Pudding that is honestly one of those desserts that just feels like a warm hug in a bowl. It brings together the bold, intense flavor of coffee with the sweet and ever so slightly bitter touch of caramel, and the whole thing honestly tastes like a latte that decided to become a pudding… which, let’s be real, was an excellent life decision ;D

Made with milk, egg yolks, sugar, and cornstarch, this is essentially a classic cornstarch pudding all dressed up with coffee and caramel, and it is absolutely gorgeous served hot on a cold morning or a chilly evening, or chilled in little cups for a proper chilled dessert moment. Simple and delicious! 😀

Now, here’s a little secret that the big food companies would rather you didn’t know, you know those “instant” pudding mixes sitting on the supermarket shelf? They’re basically just cornstarch with some flavorings thrown in. That’s it. And because of that, they will pretty much always be inferior, in both texture and taste, compared to making it yourself with real ingredients. Plus, doing it from scratch is way cheaper! So honestly, once you try this, there’s really no going back to the box stuff.

And the best part? This recipe is incredibly versatile. This time around I went with instant coffee, but you can honestly add whatever you like from cocoa powder, vanilla, a bit of cinnamon, as long as it’s not too liquid and dissolves well into the milk, it’s going to work. Want more coffee? Add more coffee. More sweet? A little more sugar. Want to go full mocha? Throw in some chocolate. It’s your pudding, make it yours! 😀 Let’s check the recipe!

Easy Homemade No-Bake! Coffee Caramel Pudding

Servings: 6-8
Time: 30mins
Difficulty: Easy
Rating: ★★★★★
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Gotta love these simple desserts, nothing like a silky, comforting Portuguese- style pudding that tastes like a latte in dessert form, rich with coffee and caramel!!!! Hehehehe its outrageously easy to make from scratch.

Ingredients

Cornstarch – 120g (Maizena)
Sugar – 120g
Milk – 1000ml (Semi-skimmed)
Instant Coffee – 40g (Gold variety)
Caramel – 1 Tablespoon
Egg Yolks – 3
Salt – A Pinch

Directions

In a large bowl, combine the cornstarch, egg yolks, and a pinch of salt, then add a little milk at room temperature (about 150 ml, taken from the total amount of milk) and mix well.
Pour the remaining milk into a saucepan, followed by the sugar, instant coffee, and caramel. Place over medium heat and stir until the coffee and caramel are completely dissolved.
When the milk starts to get hot (do not let it boil), lower the heat to minimum and pour a little of the hot milk into the bowl with the milk/cornstarch/egg yolks, stirring constantly. You do this to heat the mixture before adding it to the hot milk in the saucepan (if you add it directly without heating it, you risk the cornstarch thickening without spreading throughout the liquid and the egg yolks coagulating without being well dissolved in the milk), pour just enough to heat the mixture of egg yolks and cornstarch, lukewarm is enough.
Now pour this warm mixture back into the pan with the milk and coffee, stirring constantly over low heat.
Continue stirring without stopping. It should take about 5 to 10 minutes of constant stirring for the mixture to start thickening. You will notice this immediately. After that, cook for another minute until it becomes creamy and thick.
And that’s it! You can serve it in soup bowls to eat immediately while hot, or you can pour it into individual cups, let it cool, and then put it in the refrigerator to make beautiful chilled puddings. Bon appétit!

Notes & Tips: You can absolutely mix it up and make it your own, more coffee for a stronger kick, more sugar if you like it sweeter, add cocoa powder or melted chocolate for a mocha version or throw in some vanilla. It’s a super versatile dessert you can make any time! 😀

Use a good quality Gold or premium instant coffee for the best flavour. Lower quality instant coffee can make the final result taste bitter or flat rather than rich and aromatic.

No caramel on hand? Use a tablespoon of dark mascavado sugar instead. It won’t have quite the same slightly bitter caramel edge, but it still works great and adds a lovely depth of color.

If the mixture seizes up, immediately drop the heat to the absolute minimum and blitz it with an immersion blender. It won’t fully rescue the texture, but it’ll smooth things out considerably.

Straight from the pot it’s like a warm creamy latte pudding perfect on a cold morning or a chilly evening. Set in the fridge it becomes a firm, silky individual pudding cup. Two desserts in one recipe!

After its done and set, you can drizzle a bit more of caramel sauce on top. Or go fancy with a few dark chocolate twirls for a beautiful finishing touch.

This recipe for Easy Homemade No-Bake! Coffee Caramel Pudding was originally created on BakeAfter.com. Esta receita de Pudim de Maizena com Café e Caramelo foi publicada em português no Iguaria.com.