Instant Creamy Coffee & Caramel Pudding

Hehe, back with another instant pudding experiment! Last time I played around with instant pudding and black tea, and this time I’m mixing things up with instant pudding again, but swapping the usual caramel for a light sugar syrup instead, just to try and capture that cozy coffee-with-milk aroma ;D

This is basically a good guide on elevating a commercial pudding mix. Instead of the basic version you’d get at a from the package, you end up with a much better creamy, coffee flavored twist. I used a very common Portuguese pudding brand called Mandarim, but honestly, most commercial pudding mixes will work just fine here. This isn’t so much a strict recipe as it is a really good idea you can steal and make at home.

Instant Creamy Coffee & Caramel Pudding

Servings: 6
Time: 20mins
Difficulty: Easy
Rating: ★★★★★
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It's a delicious, easy pudding you can whip up any time you're craving something sweet with a little coffee kick. Perfect for using up that instant pudding packet sitting in your pantry.

Ingredients

Instant Pudding – 1 Sachet (Mandarin Brand)
Instant Coffee – 1 Tablespoon (Gold Coffee)
Milk – 500ml (Semi-Skimmed)
Sugar – 50g (For the Pudding)
Sugar – 60g (For the Syrup)
Water – 40ml (For the Syrup)

Directions

Start by adding 60g of sugar and 40ml of water to a small saucepan over low heat to dissolve the sugar and create a light sugar syrup. Remove from heat and pour a little into small molds or bowls where you will add the pudding.
In a bowl, add the instant pudding mix with 50g of sugar and a little of the 500ml of milk. Mix everything until well dissolved, then set aside (note that i’m following the instant pudding instructions, just adding instant coffee into the mix).

In a small saucepan, add the remaining milk with the instant coffee. Bring the milk to a boil, then remove from the heat.
Then pour a little of the milk and coffee mixture into the pudding and sugar mixture, just to increase its temperature slightly and prevent lumps from forming.
When it is lukewarm, slowly pour it into the remaining milk and coffee mixture, mixing well, and then return to medium/low heat, stirring constantly for about 4 or 5 minutes until the mixture begins to thicken.
Remove from the heat and pour into each mold or bowl (which should already contain the syrup) and refrigerate to set for at least 2 hours.

Once completely cold, you can serve in the bowls or unmold. Enjoy!

Notes & Tips: This mix makes 6 small puddings, if you want a larger pudding make it all in a bigger mold or fill to the brim 4 small molds.

As you can see in the photos, I should have mixed a bit more thoroughly, so the pudding ended up with a few lumps and the pictures didn’t turn out perfectly. That said, flavor wise, it’s a really pleasant variation, especially if you’re a coffee lover like me hehe ;D

Whisk continuously while the mixture thickens on the stove to avoid lumps, and if you do end up with a few, pass the mixture through a fine mesh strainer before pouring it into the molds, live and learn ;D

Use a good quality instant coffee (normally called gold coffee) since its flavor really carries through in the final pudding, weaker coffee will give a subtler result.

Keep the heat at medium low (around 150 to 175 degrees Fahrenheit, roughly 65 to 80 degrees Celsius, as an estimate for the milk mixture) since too high a temperature can cause the milk and pudding mix to curdle or scramble slightly.

Letting the pudding chill for at least 3 to 4 hours, or ideally overnight, gives it the best texture and makes unmolding much cleaner. If you want a stronger coffee kick, you can add a bit more instant coffee to taste, or even a splash of coffee liqueur for an adult version.

This recipe for Instant Creamy Coffee & Caramel Pudding was originally created on BakeAfter.com. Esta receita de Pudim Mandarim com Café foi publicada em português no Iguaria.com.