Thanks to Billy Madison, packing a school lunch always makes me think of, and then crave, chocolate pudding snack packs. Then I remember how they are so full of trans fat, artificial dyes, and emulsifiers that even the Snack Pack website doesn't want to list the ingredients. Of course, you initially might not want to list the ingredients for this pudding recipe from Mother Nature Network if your kids are picky eaters, but I promise you the avocado is undetectable. It's creamy and chocolatey and full of fantastically healthy ingredients, and it takes less time to make than it would to drive to the store to buy snack packs. I think Billy would approve.
Chocolate Avocado Pudding
recipe from MNN
Ingredients*
- 2 medium size ripe avocados
- 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 1/3 cup agave, maple syrup, or honey
- 3 dates soaked in warm water for 15 minutes and chopped
- 1/2 cup fair trade cocoa powder
- 2 Tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 − 1 cup unsweetened original almond milk
Method
- Add ingredients to a blender or food processor in this order: oil, dates, honey, vanilla, half your non-dairy milk, avocados, cocoa powder.
- Blend for 2-3 minutes until smooth. Pour in additional non-dairy milk a little at a time until the pudding is the consistency you want. Remember it will thicken after chilling in the refrigerator.
- Spoon the pudding into ramekins or bowls, cover and chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
*my notes: I prefer canola or coconut oil - coconut if you want the pudding to have a slightly coconutty flavor. I have made this many times, experimenting with the ingredients each time. I've used whole milk and canned coconut milk, but prefer using unsweetened vanilla almond milk. The best version I have made didn't include dates because I didn't have any. Instead, I used Date Lady Date Syrup in place of the dates and the sweetener and it was phenomenal. I like to top mine with chopped pistachios, a sprinkling of Maldon sea salt and an excessive amount of freshly whipped cream.
