Luscious butterscotch pudding

10
Points®
Total Time
22 min
Prep
10 min
Cook
12 min
Serves
6
Difficulty
Easy
This easy butterscotch pudding recipe yields a delicious dessert in less than 25 minutes. Butterscotch is traditionally made by cooking a mixture of brown sugar and butter, but we’ve omitted the butter and used cornstarch instead, shaving calories while maintaining flavor. The tempering step—adding a little bit of the hot half-and-half mixture to the egg mixture—is important. Warming them up before pouring it all into the rest of the half-and-half mixture prevents them from scrambling. For the smoothest pudding, strain the pudding mixture before refrigerating it. You can replace 1 tablespoon of the half-and-half with an equal amount of bourbon or brandy for a more sophisticated pudding.

Ingredients

Packed brown sugar

cup(s)

Cornstarch

2 Tbsp

Fat free half and half creamer

2 cup(s)

Egg yolk

3 item(s), medium

Table salt

¼ tsp

Vanilla extract

1 tsp

Fat free whipped topping

tsp, thawed frozen variety (optional)

Butterscotch candy

2 item(s), (2 Tbsp) c­oarsely crushed (optional)

Instructions

  1. Whisk together the brown sugar and cornstarch in a medium saucepan. Slowly whisk in the half-and-half until smooth; set over medium heat. Cook, whisking, until the mixture thickens and bubbles, 8 – 10 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat.
  2. Whisk together the egg yolks and salt in a medium bowl. Whisk about 1⁄2 cup of the hot half-and-half mixture into the egg mixture. Return the mixture to the saucepan and cook, stirring, over low heat until thickened and bubbly, 1 – 2 minutes.
  3. Pour the pudding through a sieve set over a medium bowl; whisk in the vanilla. Divide the pudding evenly among 6 parfait glasses or dessert dishes and let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate, covered, until thoroughly chilled and set, at least 2 hours or up to 1 day. Served topped with whipped topping and butterscotch candies (if using). Yields 1⁄2 cup without whipped topping and candy per serving.