This creamy old fashioned butterscotch pudding can be served as is or folded together with whipped cream for a lighter texture. Either way, the butterscotch flavor is intense and perfect.
1 1/2-2Tablespoonscornstarchdepending on how thick you like your pudding once it has set
2ozwater56 grams or 1/4 cup
4ozabout 1/2 cup, packed dark brown sugar, by weight
3oz3/4 stick or 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter
⅜teaspoonkosher saltI use Mortons
2cupswhole milk
1teaspoonvanilla extract
Optional
½cupheavy cream
small pinch of salt
1Tablespoondark brown sugarpacked
Instructions
In a medium bowl, whisk the yolks and cornstarch together. Mixture will be very thick. Set aside convenient to the stove.
Put the vanilla extract in another medium bowl and place a fine mesh strainer over the top. Set aside convenient to the stove.
In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat the water and butter together over medium heat until the butter is melted. The addition of water will help the sugar (added in the next step) to completely dissolve before starting to caramelize.
Add the dark brown sugar and salt, and cook together over medium-high heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or high-heat spatula. The mixture will look very creamy and bubbly, and then all of a sudden, the butter will separate out and the whole thing will look kind of sad and like a failure. Keep going. In another couple of minutes, the mixture will come back together again. Don't stop stirring.
As soon as the butterscotch comes back together, pour in the milk, all at one time and remove the pan from the heat. Do it carefully. The butterscotch will hiss and bubble and then turn into a hard mass. Carefully pry the hard mass off the bottom of the pan with your spoon or spatula and then return the pan to medium-low heat. NOTE: You can heat the milk until steaming but not boiling to minimize seizing.
Stir until all the butterscotch has melted back into the milk. This could take 4-5 minutes. Just be patient and stir and stir. You will most likely have butterscotch stuck to your spoon or spatula. That's okay. It will melt too. Just keep stirring.
Once the "butterscotch milk" is nice and smooth, continue to heat until the milk is steaming. Then, temper about half the butterscotch into the egg yolk mixture, whisking very well.
Pour the tempered yolks back into the pan and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Allow the mixture to boil for 2 full minutes, whisking constantly..
Pour the pudding through the fine mesh strainer into the bowl with the vanilla. The mixture will be very thick, so use the pack of your spatula to press it through.
Stir until the vanilla is mixed in.
At this point, you can pour into small bowls or leave it in the large bowl and press plastic wrap down onto the surface of the pudding. Either way, refrigerate until cold, or you can eat it warm. I won't judge you.
See NOTES below for how to serve. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
The video shows the recipe for creme brulee, but it also shows the butterscotch making process in "live action," which you may find more helpful than just the still, collage shots.Whip together the whipped cream, salt, and brown sugar until it reaches medium peaks. You can either serve individual puddings topped with the whipped cream, or, if you want a lighter texture, remove the plastic wrap from the surface of the big bowl of pudding and:
Whisk the pudding well so it is smooth and creamy.
Whisk in a portion of the whipped cream to lighten the pudding.
Once incorporated, fold the rest of the whipped cream in until no streaks of white remain. Serve in individual bowls.
You can make more whipped cream to serve on top of the "butterscotch mousse" if you'd like. Your call.