It’s National Chocolate Pudding Day!

It’s National Chocolate Pudding Day! Did you know that dessert puddings can be traced all the way back to the 17th century? During that time, this English “pudding” was actually a very moist cake (similar to a modern-day bread pudding or plum pudding – see food facts, below).

The sweet and creamy confection we know and love today emerged in the mid-19th century when an English chemist named Alfred Bird developed an egg-free custard powder. This remarkable invention made it very easy to produce a delicious pudding with the perfect consistency. Today, pudding is a popular dessert all over the world.

Here are Five Fun Food Facts about Pudding (courtesy Foodimentary.com):

• Originally a British dish, this pudding could be made on very short notice.

• Ingredients vary, but it was basically a sweetened porridge made from flour, tapioca or oatmeal and milk. The term originated in the late 16th century.

• In Colonial America cornmeal was cheaper and more readily available, so here, Hasty Pudding was a cornmeal mush (cornmeal added to boiling water and cooked) with molasses, honey, brown sugar or maple syrup and milk.

• There are both savory and dessert versions of this dish.

• An example of a savory version would be a meat pudding.

Sorry, but none of those options hold a candle to good ol’ American Chocolate Pudding.  To celebrate National Chocolate Pudding Day, make your own chocolate pudding for dessert tonight!

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Photo Credit:  Lana Langlois / Shutterstock.com