Butterscotch Pudding with Brown Sugar Whipped Cream

So yesterday we closed on a home which is equal parts exciting and scary for me.  And we now own five acres with a fixer-upper house, an old rusty barn, a fruit orchard, blueberry bushes, a muscadine vine, and a partridge in a pear tree.

Just kidding about the partridge.  But the pear tree is for real.  As well as some gorgeous old magnolia and pecan trees.  Oh, and fig trees.  And some kind of bush that blooms pretty purple flowers.  And there are azaleas too.   And another bush/tree thing that blooms pink flowers.

I need to grow a green thumb quick because things are budding in my yard and needing attention. The next few weeks will be hectic.  Hopefully not stressful, but very, very hectic.  There is all the moving and rearranging  and organizing to get through.  Mississippi Kitchen is getting a new Mississippi kitchen.  Bear with me if things slow down for a little while. 

But for now, I am still here and I made some delicious homemade butterscotch pudding the other day.  I had never made butterscotch pudding before, so I searched the Internet for a recipe and settled on Gale Gand's.  The taste was exceptional.  My daughter who is not a big fan of butterscotch even raved over it.  I only slightly adapted the recipe.  The original recipe is here.

 Here are my notes:

-The only change I made in ingredients was to add in some dark brown sugar.  Loved, loved, loved the flavor.

 -When cooking the brown sugar and butter, the mixture was thick. 

-When whisking the brown sugar mixture into the milk mixture, some of the brown sugar mixture solidified a little, but I kept whisking until it was smooth.

-I meant to strain the pudding through a fine wire mesh, but I was so excited to pour it into my little jelly jars, I forgot to.  I almost always strain puddings and custards because there is usually something that needs to be strained out of them--little bits of eggs that have scrambled, maybe some cornstarch that didn't dissolve all the way.  If you want it really smooth and silky, I would strain it.  Just push it through the strainer with a rubber spatula.

-You could used powdered or regular sugar for the whipped cream.  I kept my brown sugar theme going.

Butterscotch Pudding with Brown Sugar Whipped Cream

(Adapted from Gale Gand)

Printable Recipe

2 1/4 cups whole, 2 percent fat, or 1 percent fat milk

1 cup heavy cream

6 tablespoons butter 

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

3/4 cups light brown sugar, packed

3 egg yolks

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 cup heavy cream, well chilled

2 tablespoons light brown sugar

Heat the milk and cream over medium heat in a medium saucepan until simmering (about 180 degrees on a candy thermometer). Turn off the heat and set aside. 

Meanwhile, in a large, heavy skillet, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Stir in the dark brown and 3/4 cup light brown sugar and cook 5 to 7 minutes, stirring constantly, to  caramelize the mixture. Mixture will be thick. 

Whisking constantly, gradually add the butter/brown sugar mixture to the hot milk/cream mixture. Whisk until the sugar is dissolved.  Put the egg yolks in a medium bowl. Whisk in about 1/2 cup of the hot milk mixture. Whisk in the cornstarch and salt until dissolved. Whisk the cornstarch mixture into the hot milk mixture. Whisking constantly, cook over medium-high heat until thick and just boiling. When the mixture thickens, the whisk will leave trail marks on the bottom of the pot and the mixture will have a few large bubbles boiling up to the top. Turn off the heat and strain through a fine wire mesh strainer into a clean bowl.  Whisk in the vanilla. Pour into 6 to 8 custard cups or small jelly jars and chill, uncovered, at least 2 hours or overnight. 

To make the whipped cream, beat the heavy cream on high speed until foamy.  Add 2 tablespoons light brown sugar and beat until soft peaks form.  Top pudding with whipped cream before serving.