Pudding Cake

Dessert. Old school.

A lot of the "pudding" that I ate as a kid was not the typical custardy stuff that most people think of. Pudding is a bit of an all purpose word for dessert in some parts of the world, and most of the ones I ate were usually baked, and looked kinda like big sweet dumplings served with a caramel-like sauce.

And then there was the chocolate version. 

Granted, my mom was a fan of all things boxed and so hers was a little more instant than this one. Hers also advertised that no bowl was needed. The packets were emptied and mixed right in the baking dish.

No dishes! I'm in.

Chocolate Pudding Cake

Cake

• 1 c flour
• 5 tbsp cocoa
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 3/4 c brown sugar
• 1/2 c milk
• 1/2  butter, melted
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp vanilla

Pudding

• 3/4 c brown sugar
• 5 tbsp cocoa
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1-1/2 c boiling water
• 1 tsp vanilla

Preheat the oven. Do it now. 350 degrees. (yes, I forgot this time)

Since we're doing this with no bowls, get out a baking pan. My mom used to make the boxed stuff in a corningware casserole dish, so that's what I'm doing. A glass pan would also work nicely.

Sift in the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and cinnamon.

Sifting removes lumps not only from cocoa,

but also from baking powder.

Now, the sugar.

Mix, mix, mix.

Okay, so far, I've used the baking pan, and one dry measure, and a measuring spoon. Things used to measure dry stuff can be rinsed and put away and therefore don't count as dishes.

Measure out half a cup of milk, and then drop in blobs of butter until the liquid level rises to 1 cup. This means you've added half a cup of butter.

Microwave this for about 30 seconds until the butter is just about melted. It should finish melting as you stir it. You want it warm, but not hot, since you're going to add the egg to this. And the vanilla.

I actually measured this time.

Beat the liquid until the egg is nicely mixed in, then pour it into the dry stuff.

Stir, stir, stir.

You'll have a lovely dark, glossy, brownie-like batter.

Okay, so since we mixed the liquid in the measuring cup, you're going to have to either get a bowl or wash the cup. I washed the cup, because all that's going into it now is dry stuff, which means I can just rinse it and put it away, and therefore it is washed only once and counts only as one dish.

You have no idea how often I rationalize shit like this.

Now, for the pudding part. More brown sugar, more cocoa, and more cinnamon. Mixed all together in the measuring cup

and then sprinkled over top of the batter.

DO NOT MIX.

A cup and a half of boiling water, with a teaspoon of vanilla in it (wait, does this mean I have to wash it again?? dammit) gets poured over the back of the mixing spoon.

This does two things: one, it removes momentum from the flow of the water so that it sprinkles gently over the batter and topping, and two, it rinses the spoon off.

DO NOT MIX.

I know it looks weird, and I know you want to mix it, and I know you don't believe me that this is going to work.

Ha, totally did.

30 minutes later it comes out of the oven looking like a pan of rich, dark brownies, with hot fudge sauce bubbling all around them.

Freaky.

Tasty.

Chocolatey.

Do you think I should try the caramel version?

Intoxicatingly Indulgent Fudge

Pistachios are one of my favorite things, so when it comes time to think of something green to make for St. Patrick’s Day, they are always at the top of my list of ingredients.  This year, I decided to put them in fudge, but not just any fudge.  Bailey’s Irish Cream fudge.  What other kind of fudge would you make for St. Patrick’s Day, after all? 

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 2 cups sugar
• 2 Tablespoons brown rice syrup (or corn syrup)
• ⅓ cup cream
• ⅓ cup Bailey’s Irish Cream
• 2 Tablespoons water
• 4 Tablespoons butter
• Pistachios

Before you start cooking, butter a pan and set it atop a kitchen towel, then drop in 4 Tablespoons butter.

In a 3 quart or larger saucepan, place your sugar and syrup. 

Measure out the cream, Bailey’s, and water, then pour that over the sugar. 

Stir everything together over low heat. 

When the sugar is mostly dissolved, increase the heat to medium and continue to stir constantly until the mixture comes to a full boil.  Pop on a lid for 2 minutes. 

During that time, get a clean spoon or thoroughly wash the one you’ve been using, and get a small dish of ice cold water.  When you remove the lid, scoop a small amount into the spoon and allow it to drip into the cold water. 

When you’ve reached the right temperature, the mixture will easily come together into a ball that will just hold its shape, but is very pliable still.  If it’s not there yet, allow it to continue boiling, checking it again every minute or so. 

Turn off the heat and pour the hot mixture over the butter in the prepared pan.  This mixture is extremely hot so be very careful.  

While that’s cooling, line a smaller pan with parchment and set it aside. 

After that, it’s time to work on your nuts.  Break the pistachios out of their shells and remove any loose skin.  It just covers the pretty green color. 

When your mixture has cooled to the point that you can comfortably hold your hand on the bottom of the pan, it’s time to start stirring.  A wooden spatula is the perfect tool for this job.  Start on one side and begin scraping the edges into the middle. 

It’ll look like a broken mess at first, but eventually all the butter will be incorporated. 

Continue scraping and stirring.  As you do, the mixture will begin to become opaque.  But at this point, it’s still running in ribbons like a thick syrup. 

Keep stirring.  See it becoming more opaque?

Just a bit more, and when you see the texture start to change it will become less sticky and blob like and will start to hold its shape somewhat. 

It’s time for your nuts.  Sprinkle on about ⅔ of them. 

Stir them in and spread the mixture into the parchment lined pan. 

Sprinkle on the rest of your nuts and press on them lightly with your palm. 

My reason for making this fudge was really just because I thought it would be cute for St. Patrick’s Day.  I was surprised by how amazingly delicious it is.  It’s one of the best flavors of fudge I’ve ever tasted.  Definitely worth the trip to the liquor store, especially if you can get your hubby to go for you. 

What’s your favorite green food?