DIY Chocolate Pudding

Last night I was craving something sweet.  Chocolate pudding to be more specific.  And I didn't even have any on hand, as it's not one of our staples.  Due to Winter Storm 2011, I wasn't planning to drive on icy roads to get to a grocery store that may or may not be open for a box of instant pudding.  So I looked online and found a recipe for chocolate pudding from scratch, which was surprisingly easy.  It was a microwave recipe, no less, so the mess was minimal.

Unfortunately, homemade pudding takes a little time to cool and set.  The recipe didn't indicate exactly how long, but I think that it would take about four hours.  Seeing as I didn't even start this recipe until 6:30 p.m., I was sound asleep by the time it was ready to be eaten.

The consistency was a little thinner than the instant pudding that I'm used to, but it could be due to several factors:  an ingredient substitution, using low-fat milk, or even not cooking it for long enough.  Or maybe homemade pudding is just a little thinner than instant.  However, the flavor is excellent and I would definitely attempt homemade pudding again.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup white sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 tbsp cornstarch (I didn't have any, so I substituted 6 tbsp flour)
2 cups milk
2 tsp vanilla

Directions:

1. In a microwave-safe bowl, whisk together the sugar, cocoa, and cornstarch/flour.  Gradually add the milk while whisking so the mixture doesn't have any lumps.
2. Microwave for 3 minutes on high.  Stir, then cook at 1 minute intervals, stirring for 2 - 4 minutes between cooking times, until shiny and thick.  Stir in vanilla.
3. Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pudding to prevent a skin from forming, and then chill in the refrigerator.

Winter Storm 2011

On January 9, 2011, the South was hit by a winter storm.  In Tuscaloosa, precipitation alternated between snow and freezing rain, and we woke up to a lovely blanket of ice on Monday morning.  Schools were closed as well as many local businesses.  We didn't get much in terms of accumulation of snow, but the icy roads made travel dangerous.  And you've got to keep in mind that in this part of the country, we don't have the resources to clear the roads of snow and ice.  They use sand, not salt, for crying out loud.

Here are some pictures of our back yard and deck this morning:

Winter Storm Cinnamon Rolls

Whenever we visit Baton Rouge, we can usually look forward to homemade cinnamon rolls made by my father-in-law.  This morning when we woke up to snow ice on the ground, I had a hankering for those cinnamon rolls.  My father-in-law uses Bisquick, which is banned in my house, so I found a similar non-Bisquick no-yeast recipe online.

Dough:
2 cups flour
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp + 1 tsp baking powder 
1 tsp salt
3 tsp butter, softened
3/4 cup milk

Filling:
4 tbsp butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
3 tsp cinnamon

Glaze:
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup confectioners sugar

Preheat oven to 400. 

In a large bowl, stir flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.  Cut in softened butter, then stir in milk to form a soft dough.  On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a rectangle about 1/4 inch thick.

Mix the filling ingredients (butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon).  Spread about 1/4 to 1/2 on the bottom of a greased 9 x 9 pan.  Spread the rest on the dough.

Roll the doughy rectangle into a log, and then slice rolls about 1 - 1.5 inches thick.  Place in the prepared pan and bake 20 - 25 minutes.

Combine the milk and confectioners sugar to make the glaze.  Drizzle on the finished cinnamon rolls.

The consensus:
We prefer my father-in-law's glaze, which (we think) consists of confectioners sugar and butter, but adding the cinnamon filling to the bottom of the pan makes these cinnamon rolls extra delicious.  Joey gives her "thumbs up:"  she ate three.