GFCF Chocolate Pudding

Has anyone here ever tried prepackaged dairy free pudding? If not, its nothing more than a chocolate, watery slop. My son Noah loves chocolate pudding. It was hard to give up when we started transitioning into a GFCF diet for him but with a little practice, I think I have got a solution :)

The first recipe was delicious. All ingredients were from scratch and of course it was GFCF. This recipe is perfect if you plan to eat it the same day. But.. after a day in the fridge it turned into that sloppy mess I was trying to avoid. So if its to eat same day, and you really wanna wow your kids (or even some guests!) here ya go:

1/4 cup cocoa powder 

(I like nestle 100% cocoa)

1 Tbsp of cornstarch

1/4 Tsp of salt 

(I used sea salt)

2 cups of nondairy milk 

(I like Silk Almond Milk)

1 Tsp gluten free vanilla extract 

(I used 100% Pure McCormick)

Combine all dry ingredients into a saucepan and mix well. 

Over medium heat gradually add the almond milk while continually stirring. 

Whatever you do, don't stop stirring! You will burn the pudding! 

Bring to a boil as you stir, turning up the heat a bit if you need to. 

Leave on full rolling boil for 2 minutes as you stir. It will begin to thicken. 

Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. 

Refrigerate 2 hours, uncovered for it to set.

Because I am not very certain when and how much the kids will eat in one sitting, I found that this wasn't a really a practical solution for us. And because the consistency changed so much the day after it wasn't really "grab and eat" friendly. I didn't want to go the box route, but at least it is still GFCF.

From reading the labels at the store, it seems that the only boxed pudding that was GFCF was the Jello brand (watch out for the sneaky ingredients!) You can use "cook & serve" or "Instant." (I now only use instant, as I think cook & serve is for those who like it warm.) The first time I made this I ran into the same problem- after it set- WATERY. I was reading up more on cooking with almond milk and learned that you only have to use 1/2 of what it is originally called for in the recipe. So if the box says to use 3 cups of milk, use only 1.5 of almond milk!

And it tastes great! I just pour it into a jar and its good for a whole week! Happy mama, happy chocolate faces!