I see a lot of people on the keto diet eating the sugar free pudding and I looked at the ingredients and thought there has to be a better option!!! I suppose it's fine for dirty keto which I do indulge in many dirty keto options like bars, and chips but I stay away from anything that may spike my blood sugar. So maltodextrin and modified cornstarch are the first two ingredients in sugar free pudding then it is also sweetened with aspartame which I try to avoid.
There are better options out there like Simply Delicious brand but it is still pretty high in carbs and the package kinda leaves you guessing at the carb count. It doesn't give carb counts depending on the type of milk that is used. So the nutrition label says 4 g Net carbs for a 1/4 of the package but then gives direction for adding milk, then an alternative milk version but no explanation on the nutrition label of what the different carb counts will be. So are the nutrition facts just for the mix and then you have to add in carbs from your milk choice? I don't know... And the alternative milk version only used 1-1/4 cups of milk so you get even less pudding than when using 2 cups of regular milk. Just confusing and making your own is pretty easy I think.
Just like Jell-O brand pudding, my cook and serve is more delicious than the instant, but the instant has it's place and is convenient and still tasty, just not as tasty as the cook and serve version! And I weighted a batch so that you can sift together double, triple or quadruple the ingredients and keep them in your pantry to just weigh out a batch and mix with you milk alternative or cook it up!
The cook and serve version I used arrowroot powder which I have been using mostly for thickening my keto meals. I don't use cornstarch anymore, it just has no nutritional value and isn't great for keto. But you can use it in this recipe but half the amount is needed. I also added 2 Tbs. of heavy cream powder to the dry mix which is a great way to get a little creaminess with only using alternative milk to cook the pudding with. This keeps it much lower in carbs instead of using heavy cream. But you can use any milk you would like with this recipe. If you plan on using heavy cream to make your pudding just leave out the heavy cream powder. You can leave it out either way but it does add a nice richness to your pudding. I literally used a homemade pudding mix recipe to make a keto version and they all had mix powder in them.
The boxed pudding ingredients didn't have gelatin in them either. This is the other way I cut the carbs in my pudding recipes. It took a lot of trials to figure out the perfect ratios of powdered thickeners and gelatin and when and how to add the ingredients together. But I figured it out and the results were delicious!
Cook and Serve Keto Chocolate Pudding Recipe:
2 tsp. Arrowroot Powder (starch)
1/4 Cup Dutch Cocoa Powder (Ghirardelli has one with no carbs)
1/3 Cup Powdered Alternative Sweetener
2 Tbs. Heavy Cream Powder (optional but will make a creamier pudding when using alternative milks
1/4 tsp. Finely Ground Salt
1 tsp. Powdered Gelatin
1 1/2 Tbs. Cold Water
2 Cups low carb milk
Instructions:
Measure, sift and whisk together the arrowroot, cocoa powder, sweetener, heavy cream powder, and salt in a bowl
Bloom the gelatin in the 1 1/2 tablespoons cold water
Place your 2 cups of liquid of choice in a heavy bottom sauce pot and turn on medium low heat
Whisk in the dry ingredients, keep whisking until fully combined
Switch to a silicon spatula and stir, continuously scraping the bottom until it just starts to bubble
Once it is bubbling cut the heat and stir in the bloomed gelatin until its fully melted
Measure or weigh out 1/2 Cup or 4 ounces, into 5 small bowls for easy portion control
Place plastic wrap directly on top of the pudding if you don't want pudding skin (I love it so I just place it in the fridge with no cover)
Let set for a few hours before serving, can top with keto whipped cream or anything else you would like or just eat it as is
If you want to triple of quadruple the dry ingredients and keep it in the pantry you can! I weighed the dry ingredients so that you can weigh out a portion and just add to the 2 cups of alternative milk and add the teaspoon of bloomed gelatin. To make a batch just weight out 3.5 ounces or 100g of mix and follow the cook and serve instructions.
The scale I bought from amazon is great and cheap, I use my scale all the time. If you want to help support my recipe making in a small way use my Amazon link for ingredients and equipment I use at no cost to you: Thanks in Advance!!!!
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Mixing bowls- https://amzn.to/32ZZclx
Spatulas- https://amzn.to/3u8rQNw
Silicon whisks- https://amzn.to/3ujOMtn
Pyrex measuring cups - https://amzn.to/2QIcd0J
Powdered monkfruit- https://amzn.to/3eHaz7u
Heavy Cream powder - https://amzn.to/3vwgcfv
Check out the video on 5/15 on Youtube.com/ketoupgrade
Macro for whole the recipe: using unsweetened almond milk
243 Calories
13 g Fat
20 g Total Carbs
10 g Fiber
10 g Net Carbs
12 g Protein
For the instant pudding I used a combination of xanthan gum and gelatin to get it thick. I tried to just add the liquid to the dry ingredients but it doesn't dissolve the ingredients fully. So I opted to heat the liquid until around 160 degrees in the microwave and dissolve the gelatin before adding it to the dry ingredients. It just ensures a more smooth uniform texture to the pudding.
The other keto thickening agent that don't need heat to thicken are agar powder and guar gum. Agar powder is a one to one replacement for xanthan gum. Guar gum is a tiny bit more complicated and not sure if it would work in this application. It's 3 parts guar gum for every 2 parts xanthan gum so I think that would be 3/4 tsp guar gum for this recipe.
You can also make multiple batches of these dry ingredients, one batch weighs 2.8 ounces or 80 grams.
Instant Keto Chocolate Pudding
3/4 tsp. Xanthan Gum
1/4 Cup Dutch Cocoa Powder (Ghirardelli has one with no carbs)
1/3 Cup Powdered Alternative Sweetener
1/4 tsp. Finely Ground Salt
1 tsp. Powdered Gelatin
1-1/2 Tbs. Cold Water
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
1 Cup Low Carb Milk
1 Cup Heavy Cream
Instructions:
Measure, sift and whisk together the Xanthan gum, cocoa powder, sweetener, and salt in a bowl
Bloom the gelatin in the 1-1/2 tablespoons cold water
Heat the cream/milk mixture in the microwave for about 3 minutes until it reaches about 160 degrees
Melt the bloomed gelatin in the hot mixture and add the vanilla extract
Once fully dissolved, slowly whisk the hot mixture into the dry ingredients
Whisk for about a minute until all ingredients are fully incorporated and it begins to thicken
Place into 5- 4 oz. portion cups or into a big bowl refrigerate for at least 4 hours
Decorate with whipped cream if desired, serve and enjoy!
Oh and if you don't want pudding skin on your pudding cups, place plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the pudding before refrigerating.
Macros for full instant pudding recipe: Using unsweetened almond milk
890 Calories
88 g Fat
18 g Total Carbs
10 g Fiber
8 g Net Carbs
15 g Protein