I can't believe I've been making Almond Milk Chocolate Pudding for over 10 years, but this recipe has been on Cookie Madness since 2012. It's tried and true and has held up to a lot of changes, including different brands and types of almond milk and cocoa powder. It's extremely easy, flexible and pretty quick, though you do have to give it some time to chill.
Almond Milk Chocolate Pudding Batch Size
This original source of the recipe was Silk Pure Almond Milk’s recipe center, but I’ve made a few personal changes. Because I wasn’t sure we'd like it, I made a half batch. We ended up loving it, but the half batch is still more than enough for three people, so the measurements in the recipe card are still for the smaller size batch.
Silk Vanilla Almond Milk
I originally made this with Silk Vanilla Almond Flavor and the extra sweetness and flavor from the milk added to the overall flavor and texture. Now I use unsweetened almond milk, which makes a less rich and sweet pudding. It keeps the calories lower, but it's less sweet and you may want to add a little extra sweetener at the end. Or maybe not. Or maybe you'll want to drop in a little extra butter for richness.
Hmm, not much else to say about pudding except that you can also make this with oat milk. Oat milk, if you happen to have some, makes the pudding a little smoother. Speaking of which, the NYT has an oat milk pudding recipe that is also very good, so you may want to check that one out as well.
Recipe
Almond Milk Chocolate Pudding
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened natural style cocoa powder Dutch is fine, too!
- ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 ½ cups almond milk (such as Silk Vanilla Almond)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla and/or almond extract
- ¼ teaspoon chocolate extract optional
- 1 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
Instructions
- Whisk the sugar, cornstarch, cocoa and salt in a medium (2 quart) nonstick saucepan.
- Slowly whisk in the almond milk. Bring mixture to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly.
- Reduce heat to low and simmer, whisking occasionally, until mixture thickens. It usually takes about 3 minutes. Once it thickens, continue whisking for another 30 seconds to a minute.
- At this point you can sieve or not. I only use the sieve if there are lumps, which there usually are not.
- Set a sieve over a bowl and drain pudding into the bowl to ensure that there aren’t any lumps. Otherwise, just pour into a bowl. Add the butter and stir until it melts. Add the extract(s). Cover with a piece of parchment or wax paper and let cool.
- Serve with whipped cream and chocolate shavings.
Anna says
No, but thanks for the tip! We don't have Trader Joe's here (yet). I've made it with Penzey's, Callebaut, Hershey's and Scharffen Berger.
Yvette says
Have you tried it with Trader Joe's brand cocoa powder?? Thats actually what Ill be using here in a few minutes!!
Anna says
I think you'll like it, Yvette. It's become a mainstay around here and I've made it using different brands of cocoa powder. Last night I made some with Callebaut cocoa powder and a dash of Kahlua.
Yvette Rice says
You live in Texas??!!(If so that's awesome!!--->I knew by the brand of almond milk you used HEB's prices are AWESOME!!!!!) I cant wait to try this recipe:) Thanks for sharing
Anna says
Thanks for the encouragement, Elizabeth! I will have to give it a try. I noticed Whole Foods sells the special cloths needed to make the milk, so a lot of people must be doing it.
Elizabeth says
Making your own is so easy, we make a quart a day. No special tools needed, just blender, a quart jar, and a piece of fabric, 18x18 inches. Soak a cup of almonds overnight in 2 cups of filtered water (in that jar). Next morning (or 4-6 hours later) rinse those almonds and the jar. Put almonds in blender with a quart of filtered water and blend for 2-3 minutes. Drape fabric over mixing bowl, pour blender over fabric wrap pulp up in the fabric to squeeze it out into bowl. When you have milked the mass pretty dry, unfold fabric and dehydrate (or just freeze in baggie) to make your own almond flour/pulp (instead of 10-15 dollars a pound) to use in gluten free baking recipes. Pour the milk back into that quart jar and store in fridge. You can shake it up if it separates. We order our organic raw almonds online from Italy, but any bulk almonds will work. So much cheaper and fresher than anything from the store.
Jessica says
I love this recipe! I have made it about 4 times already. Thank you so much for sharing this!
Anna says
Hi Megan,
Thanks for the tip! I saw a special cloth for making it at Whole Foods. Sounds like it's pretty easy.
Megan says
I found that making my own almond milk is not only rewarding but affordable and yummier.
Lots of recipes on line.
bookie says
Hey! =)
Just made a batch of pudding from your recipe.
I just added 2 scoops of chocolate whey protein powder to make it more of a snack.
I couldn't stop licking the spatula while making it.
Thanks!! =)
Laura says
It's been a while since your original post, but I have to share: you can make one heckuva alfredo sauce with plain almond milk. I use the "original" sweetened kind, butter, flour, and garlic powder. It's dang near as good as Olive Garden's!
melissa@the hungry artist says
I switched to almond milk awhile ago because of my lactose intolerance (it's cheaper than Lactaid!), so I cook a lot with it too. I really like the Trader Joe's almond milk.
By the way, one of the things I do if I find we have a lot of milk I have to use up before it goes bad is to freeze it into ice cubes. Then I use those in J's milk to make it extra cold and not watery...or in smoothies. But we rarely have a problem with leftover milk as D and J drink it so much!
Anna says
Hi Kaity,
A lot of stove top pudding recipes call for butter, and I think it just adds a silkiness, richness and adds depth of flavor. If there's a lactose free spread you like, you might try that.
By the way, I actually bought some Almond Breeze. It tastes nuttier than the grocery store brand and doesn't have quite the same vanilla flavor, but it's good in its own right. Fuzz doesn't like any of the almond milk, unfortunately. I was happy she tried it, at least.
Kaity Walter says
So glad I found this, I LOVE pudding. But most recipes are either made with milk (I'm lactose intolerant) or they're loaded with calories.
Saving this and making sometime this weekend.
Question though - what purpose does the butter serve? Is it for texture and/or taste? Just wondering since its mixed in after the pudding thickens.
Also, I buy AlmondBreeze brand, I've tried both boxed shelf and refrigerated versions. I like them both and, like you, am really interested in trying the chocolate version. I use it in everything. If it calls for milk - I sub with it and have never had any problems.
TG says
love it and have found it fine for baking. my favorite isn't mentioned yet: Almond Dream, by Hain/Celestial. texture and flavor are as good as Blue Diamond. i agree with Erin that Silk is yuck. (i also prefer Soy Dream soy milk to Silk's soy milk, and i like the refrigerated version better than shelf-stable. unfortunately, Silk has muscled Soy Dream right out of the refrigerator case so i can only get the shelf-stable)
i've never heard of a pudding mix that requires the use of dairy for a reaction.
but i love the idea of making a buttermilk from almond milk using vinegar - thanks to Rebecca for that suggestion!
shannon says
I just recently tried almond milk too! So far, I've only bought it twice, but I'm liking Blue Diamond Unsweetened Vanilla. I like that it's unsweetened but has a hint of vanilla. I use it in my coffee and cereal, but haven't baked with it. I used to use skim milk in coffee, but I'm really liking the flavor the almond milk adds.... almost like a flavored creamer. (If you're used to really creamy coffee though, almond milk's probably not a good choice.)
I would love to see more recipes using almond milk!
Winnie says
Can't wait to try this. You had me at "Almond Delight"..I used to LOVE that cereal, and then it disappeared. I haven't tried almond milk, thanks for the recipe.
erin says
I like the Almond Breeze by Blue Diamond much better than Silk's unsweetened or HEB's store brand (they seem to model their recipe after Silk). For some reason, the Silk tastes really phoney to me. I've had good luck baking with it, but then I tend to make weird stuff, so not sure how it'd work out in more standard recipes. 🙂
Rebecca says
I've been baking with almond milk for a year or so now. I started using it for the same reason as you, I was tired of throwing out half a carton of milk. I haven't had any problems with substituting it for milk in baking. I've even added vinegar to create my own "buttermilk" in a pinch. I like the vanilla unsweetened the best, Almond Breeze or Trader Joe's refrigerated varieties. The only baking I don't use it in are things where fat content is important, such as biscuits.
Jennifer says
I like the unsweetened almond milk, vanilla flavor, sold in the dairy aisle. I haven't tried it in pudding yet, but I have substituted it in Cooking Light's fudge-y brownie recipe that is supposed to have a 1/3 cup of skim milk and they turned out really good.
I think the only possible negative of the almond milk is the lack of protein (vs. "regular" milk), but since I don't like cow's milk and wouldn't drink it anyway, it's not really a loss for me.
Maria says
I LOVE almond milk!! I always have the shelf-stable kind in my cupboard for when I need it. I'm not a big milk drinker but like having it around for smoothies or making oatmeal (especially overnight oats in the refridgerator), and I love how long it lasts once open. I get the unsweetened vanilla, which works perfectly for how I use it, and I typically get Blue Diamond brand, although I've occasionally bought Silk. I've used it in baking and in instant pudding mixes and it works great (as opposed to soy milk - pudding doesn't set with soy milk!). And the hint of sweetness on cereal is a perfect combination. 🙂
lisa says
My latest find is hazelnut milk. The unsweetened version is nutty and sweet. Have used it in banana bread, but bet it would be great in pudding, a la nutella.
Lisa Ernst says
Before almond milk was on the market, maybe 10 years ago, I made home made almond milk. It was richer than the grocery store kind (less water) and a real treat on cereals, in puddings, etc. I've not personally tried the store brands yet, but my husband has started using it on cereal.
Rodzilla says
you might be haha. I like coconut milk (not the heavy canned stuff) even better. The only thing either of them don't work well with are pudding mixes where you need dairy for the reaction.
jessie says
this is pretty surreal as I sat down this morning with my cup of tea to read some blogs before work and in my tea is some almond milk. Some almond milk I picked up yesterday for the first time ever. I'm loving it and look forward to more recipes with it in!
Kinda spooky tho.
Katrina says
I've never tried almond milk either. Need to try it!
Michelle says
ones!
Michelle says
I really like Blue Diamond and Trader Joe's brands of almond milk (the kinds in the refrigerator case, the shelf stable one's aren't as good). They work well for baking and in other desserts like rice pudding. I also use almond milk for cooking steel cut oats. Looking forward to trying the pudding!
Sue says
I haven't been drinking milk for a couple of years. My problem has been that I don't use enough almond milk to justify the purchase even though I like it quite a lot. I've used it in baked goods successfully. I love it in smoothies.
I'm quite happy to see this recipe and will try it very soon.
Claire says
LOVE almond milk and have used it in baking with no problem. I used the unsweetened vanilla from Blue Diamond.
Sarah says
I looooove almond milk! I use it to cook and bake pretty interchangeably with "regular" cow's milk and haven't had any problems so far, but I've mainly stuck to puddings and sauces (works great in a curry!) so far. Welcome to the club!
Dee says
I really like the Blue Diamond (company is located where I live, but I believe it's available nationally) brand of almond milk. I like both vanilla & chocolate, although I don't think the chocolate is super 'chocolaty' tasting. We also use the unsweetened, 45 calorie variety. There is a fairly new product that is a blend of almond & coconut milk. It's good but mostly tastes of almond milk. I use it to bake with & haven't encountered any problems. I made pumpkin pie with it, but didn't care for the flavor in that. Use it for smoothies all the time If you're looking for calcium, I believe the refrigerated (I normally buy the shelf stable ones) cartons have much more calcium. Have fun experimenting!
Mackenzie@The Caramel Cookie says
I use almond milk all the time for baking! Works great!
Chewthefat says
I used almond milk exclusively when a vegetarian and trying to transition to veganism. Now I'm no longer a vegetarian and eat dairy regularly, I don't really use almond milk anymore, unless I'm baking for people with special dietary constraints. I've used it pretty interchangeably with milk, although for baking I would use unsweetened almond milk, so there would be no interference with any of the other flavors.
I still don't drink milk, actually!
Anna says
Meredith, I'm going to have to try the chocolate flavored. Fuzz doesn't like chocolate milk, but I think it's part of her milk aversion as a whole. She might like chocolate almond milk, and the way you described it sounds very tempting.
Julie, so far it's working well in just about every recipe. The only one I didn't care for was an eclair cake made with almond milk. The pudding mixture wasn't as full and fluffy.
Cindy, shoot me an email and let me know what you think or leave a comment. I recommend the vanilla flavored (so far).
CindyD says
Like you, I have been reluctant to try almond milk. I think I will next time I have a coupon or Sprout's has it on sale.
Julie @ Sugarfoot Eats says
I usually use almond milk for my cereal, but haven't made a recipe with it. Great idea!
Meredith says
My kids absolutely love silk pure almond chocolate milk. It doesn't have any protein, per se (1 g. per 8 oz. glass), but each 8 oz. Serving has 45% DVA for calcium. It's very chocolatey-much more so that standard chocolate milk. I love it, too.
Dimple @ miami cupcakes says
thanks for sharing recipes 🙂 i like it and i will try to make that at home for my family.