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Last week our Community Support Agriculture (CSA) basket fro our local farmer included some fresh mint. The smell was out-of-this-world and I immediately knew that I wanted to make something fabulous with it.
I also know who I am in the kitchen: someone who likes to get in and out without too much hassle. I thought perhaps a chocolate mint pudding mightbe the perfect use for this mint. I’d love to show you how easy it is to recreate a made-from-scratch pudding!
I think the bulk of your success with this recipe is going to happen when you choose your ingredients. I recommend choosing local for as much as you can, as well as choosing items that aren’t highly processed. For example, when you are selecting your milk, look for the DairyPure sign on the carton. You can Learn more about DairyPure by clicking the link, but the main thing you should know is that only DairyPure milk comes with the exclusive 5 Point Purity Promise:
- No artificial growth hormones (No significant difference has been shown between milk derived from cows treated with the artificial growth hormone rbST and non‐rbST‐treated cows.”)
- All milk is tested for antibiotics
- Continuously quality tested to ensure purity
- Only from cows fed a healthy diet
- Cold shipped fresh from your local dairy
I also opted for locally grown mint and eggs. I went with a more naturally processed cacao powder and I chose a coconut sugar, which is lower on the glycemic index and doesn’t result in a sugar crash when you consume it.
Chocolate Mint Pudding
Ingredients:
- 2 cups DairyPure whole milk
- 1/3 cup fresh mint leaves, muddled
- 1/2 cup coconut sugar
- 1/3 cup natural cacao powder
- 4 tsp cornstarch
- 3 large egg yolks
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp salt
Servings: 6 smaller servings or 4 larger servings
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 40 minutes
Total time (including chilling): 4 hours, 45 minutes
Begin by removing the leaves from your mint and placing in a bowl. Add 1 Tbsp from the milk you have set aside, and 1 Tbsp from the sugar you have set aside. Use a muddler to crush the mint leaves, or simply use the back of a spoon. Crushing or bruising the leaves releases the oils much better than chopping, so the flavor will be better. Muddle for about 10 seconds.
Place the remaining milk in a saucepan and heat until it is hot to the touch but not boiling. Add the crushed mint mixture and turn off the heat, allowing the leaves to steep in the milk for half an hour.
Meanwhile, combine cornstarch, salt, egg yolks and vanilla extract in a bowl. Mix well and set aside.
Once the mint has steeped in the milk for half an hour, remove the mint. If few tiny bits remain, don’t sweat it! Now slowly add the egg mixture to the steeped milk, stirring constantly while combining.
Return the saucepan to the stove. Add the sugar and cacao powder and cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly until it begins to boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low or low (just enough for a gentle simmer) and cook for another 2-3 minutes, until thick, whisking almost constantly (whisking makes it frothy, so you will have to stop here and there to see if it is boiling, yet).
Place the pudding in individual serving cups and chill until set (at least 4 hours) (yes the waiting is the harest part).
The finished product is worth the wait, and that pop of fresh mint is delightful in every way. This is a yummy sweet treat that actually isn’t overwhelmingly sweet, which I love. I hope you’ll try it! 
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