It’s good for more than you think.
Instant pudding mix was always in my grandma’s pantry, but I hardly ever saw her make pudding.
That’s because it was part of many semi-homemade tricks she employed in her baking.
Credit:Caitlin Bensel; Food Styling: Torie Cox
A devotee of theCake Doctor cookbooks, her beloved baking was equal parts scratch-cooking and clever store-bought tricks.
Thecornstarchin the mix helps with rise, for tall and fluffy confections.
Its worth noting, the cornstarch in pudding mixes is unlike the stuff in your pantry.
Credit:Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox
Instant pudding mix contains modified cornstarch, which thickens mixtures without using heat.
Heat is what activates regular cornstarch to thicken items like puddings, but also soups and sauces.
Without heat, regular cornstarch in liquid just turns into a viscous sludge.
Credit:Caitlin Bensel; Food Styling: Torie Cox
Modified, the starch can harness its thickening powers without heat.
My grandma swore by this trick, and often suggested matching the pudding to the cake mix flavor i.e.
chocolate cake mix with chocolate pudding mix.
Credit:Molly Bolton
I think it can be fun to mix and match.
No matter what flavor you chose, instant pudding mix will help protect you from producing adry cake.
Note:you might also enhance homemade cake batter with pudding mix, and no one will be wiser.
Add it to the dry ingredients and proceed as directed.
Molly Bolton
4.
But if you like super soft chocolate chip cookies instead, the secret is vanilla pudding mix.
Vanilla flavored pudding mix is the classic choice, but butterscotch pudding mix also works as well.
