Chocolate Pudding with Cinnamin Cream

Recipe courtesy Meikel Reece
Pudding recipe courtesy Ina Garten
My additions are in blue:
For Pudding:
6 extra-large egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
3 tablespoons very good cocoa powder
Pinch salt
2 cups milk
1-ounce very good semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons heavy cream
For Cinnamon Cream:
2 pints Heavy Whipping Cream Sugar Cinnamon Vanilla Lindt Dark Chocolate 85% chopped for topping


Beat the egg yolks and sugar until light yellow and thick in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, on medium-high speed. On low speed, add the cornstarch, cocoa powder, and salt. Bring the milk to a boil in a medium saucepan and, with the mixer on low, slowly pour the hot milk into the chocolate mixture. Combine well, then pour the mixture back into the pan.

Cook the mixture over low heat, stirring constantly with a whisk or wooden spoon, until thickened. If the mixture begins to curdle, remove it from the heat and beat it vigorously with a wire whisk. Remove the pan from the heat, add the chocolate, butter, vanilla, and heavy cream, and mix until the chocolate and butter are melted. Add 1/4 tsp of Cayenne pepper and a 1 tsp of good Mexican vanilla. (regular vanilla is good as well, but Mexican is best with this pudding.)

Pour into serving bowls. Place plastic wrap directly on the top of the pudding, and chill thoroughly.

You could cheat and buy Kozy Shack chocolate pudding, but the real thing is so much better!

Whip 2 pints of heavy whipping cream with sugar, Cinnamon and vanilla. (by the way I believe cool whip to be sacrilege, use the real thing and you shall be blessed with tastiness.) You will notice that I am not giving amounts here. You need to season your cream to your taste, although watch the Cinnamon a little bit goes a long way.

In small glasses or whatever vessel you prefer layer about 2 inches of whip cream and 2 inches of pudding. Saving 1 1/2 cups of the cream for topping. Alternate until glass is full. Cover with clear wrap and chill at least an hour (1/2 is OK but you will sacrifice firmness.) Take out and top with chopped chocolate and serve immediately.