Vanilla Spiced Pudding

We take pudding seriously around here. My grandma taught me to make it from scratch and I never buy it pre-made or in instant form. However, during the last several years I have made a concerted effort to reduce my dairy intake. Although I am not dairy-free, I do use alternatives to cow’s milk regularly. One of my favorite milk alternatives is soy milk which is very good for baking and making creamy dessert treats. I recently created this recipe for Vanilla Spiced Pudding which is dairy, egg, and gluten free. It is easy to make and very delicious. I used Silk’s new and improved better tasting Soy Milk which is so very delicious.

Before we get to the recipe, let me share the reason we use a lot of milk alternatives in our home. While there are no known milk allergies in our family, milk just doesn’t agree with me.  I am a vegetarian (even though hubby and the kiddos eat meat), and I am trying to eliminate as much animal protein from my diet as I can. Aside from the way dairy makes me feel (bad), there is also the matter of commercial  dairy farming practices. While there are surely some wonderful dairy farms out there, I have personally seen the ugly side of dairy farms. Suffice it to say that I made a choice a long time ago to avoid dairy when I can. I love rice milk, soy milk, and almond milk all more than cow’s milk these days.  Although I learned to make pudding using cow’s milk, I discovered that it can be made just as easily with soy milk. 

Vanilla Spiced Pudding

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 2 cups soy milk 
• 1  1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

1. Place all dry ingredients together in a saucepan and mix until combined.
2. Very slowly add in the milk stirring the whole time.
3. Cook over medium heat while stirring slowly and constantly until mixture thickens and starts to boil. Let the pudding boil for 30-45 seconds while you stir.
4. Remove pan from heat and stir in vanilla.
5. Pour pudding into 2 or 3 dessert cups.
6. Chill for 1 hour or until firm.

Notes

• Reduce the milk to 1 1/2 cups if using as pie filling.
• You may have to stir for a while – it is worth the effort.
• When cooling the pudding, place plastic wrap right on top of it to avoid getting a pudding skin (unless you like that).

This pudding is so good that my cat even wanted in on the action, interrupting my photo shoot.

Silk Soy Milk is in your grocery store’s dairy section. If you are lucky your store will have a wide variety of Silk products.  My local Walmart has almost a dozen Silk brand milk alternatives. Check out the shopping trip I made for my Silk products here. And in case you are wondering about the calcium content of these products, be assured that Silk milk alternatives have as much calcium or more calcium than cow’s milk, depending on which variety you are buying. In addition, all Silk milk alternatives are non-GMO verified.

Next time you go grocery shopping grab a Silk product or two. See which milk alternative you like best.  I just tried the Silk Mocha Iced Latte and I loved it.  Give it a try and I think you will be pleasantly surprised. #rethinkwhatyoudrink

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Disclosure:  I am a member of the Collective Bias®  Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias®  and WhiteWave #cbias #SocialFabric. All opinions are my own.