TWD: Feels Like the First Time

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The first dessert I ever remember my mother making for me when I was a little girl was chocolate pudding. She used a packaged brand called My T Fine. With great anticipation, I'd watch as she measured out the milk into a pot, added the pudding mix and stirred and stirred until steam began to rise. Then, she'd pour it into little cups and set it on the counter to set. That was the hardest part for me - waiting for it to thicken up and settle into smooth, creamy, chocolately pudding. While I waited, she'd let me lick the spoon for a tasty preview of what was to come. When the pudding was ready, I'd dig my spoon through the firm and slightly chewy skin on top and take my first bite. I always took really small spoonfuls to make the pudding last longer, because I loved it so much.

To this day, chocolate pudding holds a special place in my heart. It represents all the warm, fuzzy and sweet parts of my childhood. So, when I learned that this week's Tuesdays with Dorie recipe was a homemade Chocolate Pudding, I got a little excited. I'd never made a pudding from scratch before, and I was anxious to try it. I was also thrilled that I didn't have to turn on my oven for this one.

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The recipe for this pudding seemed relatively basic, although it involved a lot of steps, that seemed a bit unnecessary. The main ingredients were milk, sugar, cocoa powder, cornstarch and chocolate. I used some Valrhona 61% dark chocolate that I had left over from another recipe. For variety, I added some instant espresso powder to some of my pudding to give it a mocha flavor.

I found those cute little glasses in the top photo at a local restaurant as we were dining there one evening. I asked the server where they got them and he sold me some for a dollar each. Aren't they perfect? I'd been waiting for a chance to use them and this was it. I decided to make little pudding parfaits in them. For the parfaits, I made some white chocolate pudding with a lovely recipe that I found over at Tartelette's place. In between the dark and white chocolate puddings, I put a thin layer of red raspberry sauce. I think raspberry goes so well with both white and dark chocolate! I think they look adorable!

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I'm sure you're wondering how this pudding tasted. Did it hold its own against My T Fine, my childhood standard? Of course, the proof is in the pudding, as they say, and this pudding was definitely "My T Fine"! Oh, quit groaning, already. It's my blog and I'm entitled to a few trite cliches now and then. Seriously, this pudding was fantastic! The bittersweet chocolate gave it a rich, complex depth of flavor that you just can't get out of a box. The texture was impossibly silky, like velvet. It was a truly luxurious dessert. Best of all, it brought back such wonderful memories of my childhood. I would absolutely make it again, and since they don't sell My T Fine in my neck of the woods, I probably will. It beats the hell out of Jello Pudding Cups!

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Many thanks to Melissa from It's Melissa's Kitchen for choosing this recipe for us this week! If you would like to try this for yourself, and you should, you can find the recipe on Dorie's site here in addition to her book, Baking: From My Home to Yours. And finally, pop on over to the Tuesdays with Dorie blogroll to see what the other members have done with this recipe.