First, an apology.
A few weeks ago, I changed the website format to show only previews of the recipes on the homepage. While this did increase my blog traffic, it also upset some readers who resented having to go through an extra step to see the recipes.
I’m going back to showing full recipes on the homepage. Blog traffic is important to keep the site up and running (i.e. for me to keep my job!), but I don’t want you to ever think I value page views over my readers, because this is NOT true. Thank you for your honest opinions.
And thank you for reading ♥
On to more fun things!
Today’s sugar free vanilla pudding recipe is soy-free, gluten-free, coconut-free, egg-free, low-calorie, and it can of course also be sugar-free. The finished pudding reminds me very much of JELL-O vanilla pudding!
Serve it in fancy glasses for an easy dessert, or layer it in a recipe such as the famous Sex in a Pan.
Above, sugar free vanilla pudding topped with fresh strawberries and my Homemade Reddi-Wip Whipped Cream.
Sugar Free Vanilla Pudding
Ingredients
- 2 cups milk of choice
- scant 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup more milk of choice mixed with 3 tbsp cornstarch (23g cornstarch)
- 3/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 tsp uncut stevia (OR 1/4 cup sugar)
- optional 2 tsp buttery spread
Instructions
Sugar Free Vanilla Pudding Recipe: Heat the 2 cups milk in a saucepan. Meanwhile, whisk cornstarch and the 1/2 cup milk until dissolved. When milk is warm, add cornstarch mixture and bring to a boil. Once boiling, stir constantly about 3 minutes. Lower to simmer and simmer a few minutes. Turn off heat. Stir in the remaining ingredients, then let cool completely. Refrigerate a few hours, uncovered, where it will get much thicker.
Link of the Day: Chocolate Cherry Cupcakes – with a secretly healthy pink frosting
A few posts back, I also mentioned a new blog feature coming soon. It’s unfortunately taking longer to set up than I’d expected, but it should be up within the next week! (If you’re curious, you can click one of the recipe thumbnails on the right side of the blog to see the new feature in action.)
Leah (goodnight cheese) says
2nd October 2014 at 1:50 pmThank you for listening to reader feedback and changing it back!
kathleen says
6th October 2014 at 1:53 pmi’m sorry. but i have to ask you and others like you:
Katie gives so much through her really excellent work. and having a preview which means you and some others have to literally ‘lift a finger’ in support is a problem… how?
Leah (goodnight cheese) says
6th October 2014 at 3:59 pmHaha, seriously? I have a question for you: Why do you seem to be more bothered by this than Katie herself was? She made a change that would increase page views, got a negative response from her readers, and gracefully changed it back. She doesn’t need anonymous commentators telling her readers that they’re not allowed to say they don’t like something about a blog just because the content is free. That might work for small, non-monetized blogs, but not here.
Katie provides an excellent service from which she earns her income. This is her job, and her readers are her customers. And just like thousands of other free websites and businesses that make money off page views and ads, Katie’s blog will get both positive and negative feedback from its consumers. Are people not allowed to voice dissatisfaction with something on Buzzfeed or even the WSJ website because that’s free too?
anonymous says
6th October 2014 at 7:19 pmFYI Katie, Leah is a member of an internet hater site where they have nothing better to do than waste their time complaining about bloggers they don’t like. So while her response here may sound professional, she is anything but.
Leah (goodnight, cheese) says
7th October 2014 at 2:37 amNice straw man there… but it has nothing to do with my comments here.
Not going to spend time defending the “hater” site because if that’s what you’re calling it, you’ve already made up your mind.
kathleen says
8th October 2014 at 1:39 pmBuzzfeed (etc) is rather different wouldn’t you say? That’s a huge, huge thing. It is not so personal, and they’re probably not having to make much of an effort to gain an audience.
It’s not that people aren’t allowed to voice their dissatisfaction – but when the issue is something aimed at a person – over something that seems breathtakingly petty – it’s a bit questionable.
and you didn’t answer the question… what exactly is it about the extra finger-lift that you couldn’t handle?
To reiterate why i felt impelled to ask you about this: if having previews would have such a positive impact on Katie (a very pleasant individual – much sweeter than me! – and not a strong collective running a massive site like buzzfeed) what makes your moment’s inconvenience, seem more important to you than how it would be really good for her? I am trying to understand your reasoning.
Tiffany says
2nd October 2014 at 2:35 pmHi Katie,
This looks delicious and simple! Love it! Do you if any testers tried using arrowroot in place of cornstarch?
Thank you 🙂
Chocolate Covered Katie says
3rd October 2014 at 12:22 pmI’ve not tried. But if you experiment, please be sure to report back for others! 🙂
Ceara @ Ceara's Kitchen says
2nd October 2014 at 3:23 pmKatie, this vanilla pudding looks wonderful – such a versatile recipe that I imagine tastes good with just about any dessert (or by itself with a spoon!). And no need to apologize at all! You are one of the sweetest, most genuine bloggers and I love reading your blog! XOXO!
Chocolate Covered Katie says
3rd October 2014 at 12:23 pmThis made my morning. THANK YOU 🙂
Carrie (This Fit Chick) says
2nd October 2014 at 3:33 pmI LOVe pudding! Especially with cookies!
stephanie h says
2nd October 2014 at 3:45 pmDo you think you could put the chilled mixture through an ice cream maker or is it too think? I was trying to think of a sugar free “skinny” fro yo alternative.
Nicole AJ says
3rd October 2014 at 2:23 amhave you tried just using greek yoghurt in an ice cream machine? or if you’re vegan coconut yoghurt?
stephanie h says
3rd October 2014 at 2:46 amI am not vegan and can tolerate greek yogurt quite well. I haven’t tried doing that yet but I should. As I love anything peanut butter, maybe add that as well. Hmmm….
Kat says
2nd October 2014 at 4:32 pmThis looks delicious! I’ve been having major sweet cravings recently so I really appreciate your healthier alternatives to desserts 🙂
Megan says
2nd October 2014 at 4:33 pmIs uncut stevia different than the stevia in the packets, or can I use those?
Chocolate Covered Katie says
3rd October 2014 at 12:25 pmhttps://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/stevia-conversion-chart/ 🙂
Jeannie says
2nd October 2014 at 4:37 pmThank you for always being so considerate of your readers – but I’m now going to make a point of clicking through to your pages! 😉
And I second the question about a cornstarch replacement. Do you think arrow root or even xanthum gum could work? I might try coconut flour if I have time tonight…
Chocolate Covered Katie says
3rd October 2014 at 12:26 pmYou can always experiment 🙂
Heather Mason says
2nd October 2014 at 5:13 pmKatie, you don’t need to apologize. Screw the haters. Just do what is best for you and your blog.
Jessica says
2nd October 2014 at 5:13 pmMmm, pudding. Have you ever tried making chia seed pudding? It’s something I’m experimenting with right now.
Chocolate Covered Katie says
3rd October 2014 at 12:29 pmYes, I need to experiment with more flavors as well, but I love the basic concept. https://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2014/03/30/chia-pudding/
Brenda says
2nd October 2014 at 5:18 pmYay! Finally a recipe that doesn’t rely on coconut! My son is allergic to coconut so any recipe without it as an ingredient is a must-try!
Gail says
2nd October 2014 at 5:26 pmHooray! Been waiting for that new blog feature! That is GREAT, Katie! Thank you!! 🙂
Tammy K says
2nd October 2014 at 6:19 pmI love your site and the recipes are scrumptious!!! Although it didn’t really bother me to got the extra step for finding the full recipe – how wonderful it is to find someone to think of people first and business second!! As a counselor – it is wonderful to find people like this in the world. Have a great day! and THANKS
Hi says
2nd October 2014 at 7:14 pmThis is a great recipe! I make something very similar on hot days except it is a chocolate version. I love how thick and creamy it gets. 🙂 It is very thoughtful of you to apologize to everyone about you blog. It didn’t bother me, but it is nice of you to show you do take suggestions. Also, I think that your recipes are becoming better formatted so thank you. ( once again, I do not give my email adress to websites, it is not that I distrust you, you are a good person, but you know, just in case. )
Jules @ WolfItDown says
2nd October 2014 at 7:17 pmMmm almost like a vegan panna cotta, clever, and it looks really delicious too 🙂 x
Melissa says
2nd October 2014 at 7:48 pmThanks for not making the recipe be after a “continue reading” link… I didn’t mind clicking the link so much. What I did mind was that my browser would start the page back at the top, not where the “continue reading” left off…
Daniella says
2nd October 2014 at 8:34 pmIt’s really sweet of you to apologize to your readers! I didn’t mind clicking through, though. I just figured that as it’s your blog and you put awesome content out for free, however you chose to format it was great for me.
I also can’t wait to make this pudding! I have a pretty similar recipe that has only properly set once out of the numerous times I’ve made it, so a different version from a reliable source is really appreciated. A tofu-based vanilla pudding sounds pretty exciting, if you do decide to try that as well 😉 I love serving your tofu-based chocolate mousse and then telling everyone what it’s made of AFTER they’ve raved about it — priceless expressions!
EVA says
2nd October 2014 at 11:03 pmTHANK YOU for making the full recipes available without having to jump through hoops! Trust me, I literally click through your blog daily for food porn. I have no idea why since I have memorized each and every recipe ten times over. Ah well, good for you!
Do you think this could work with flour instead of cornstarch?
Beatriz says
2nd October 2014 at 11:31 pmMy mother used to make a similar recipe using sugar and regular dairy milk, and we ate it hot. It’s delicious, I don’t know why I never tried to veganize it!
I STRONGLY sugest to add caramel, tastes even better than the vanilla and the chocolate versions of the recipe.
Bri says
2nd October 2014 at 11:57 pmI just made this and it turned out pretty well! It is a bit clumpy, I think because the cornstarch didn’t dissolve properly but either than that it is delicious!
Sara says
5th October 2014 at 12:48 pmMine came out free of lumps, but I thought I’d leave you this link about cornstarch in case it can help you or another reader. Cornstarch can be tricky! http://www.culinate.com/columns/ask_hank/thickening_sauces
Bri says
5th October 2014 at 4:07 pmThanks! I’ll check it out for sure.
Beth B says
3rd October 2014 at 1:35 amI love your blog and the recipes that you post. Ignore the negatives! You do a great job.
I’d love to try this recipe but don’t know about “uncut” stevia. Would you elaborate? Liquid or powder? Any particular brands that you prefer? Thanks so much.
Chocolate Covered Katie says
3rd October 2014 at 12:34 pmhttps://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/stevia-conversion-chart/ I used the pure extract, but this chart has options for you!
Nicole AJ says
3rd October 2014 at 2:25 amLOVVVVEEEEEE this recipe!!!! Made it pretty much to instruction but with a little coconut milk, honey and cinnamon and it is delicious!! Going to be a regular now for me I feel! Thanks Katie!!
Chocolate Covered Katie says
3rd October 2014 at 12:35 pmThank you for making it! 🙂
Jessica says
3rd October 2014 at 2:51 amMy daughter is allergic to dairy so I would like to try this with a milk alternative. Any recommendations?
Chocolate Covered Katie says
3rd October 2014 at 12:36 pmSilk almondmilk or canned coconut milk both work well here. I actually don’t drink dairy milk either.
Brandy says
3rd October 2014 at 3:46 pmhi Katie- Do you know of a way to turn this into “Protein Pudding?”
Thanks!
Sara says
5th October 2014 at 12:49 pmJust add protein powder!
Alana Riverson says
3rd October 2014 at 5:31 pmDear Katie,
I found your website always wonderful no matter how you display your recipes. An additional click was one calorie burnt more :). Nothing is to much an effort to get your recipes. But doesn’t matter how they are displayed , always happy to read your blog the recipes and your spirit. Please keep the spirit up , there will be always unhappy internet trolls and mean old grumpy people that have that obsessive need to complain and are always to lazy to do an effort.
Just keep spreading the choco-happyness. and know your blog is great, and you are too.
thank you !
Courtney Beaver says
3rd October 2014 at 6:36 pmWould this work for a tapioca pudding recipe?
TerriK says
15th June 2015 at 8:30 pmDiscovered a shirataki rice that I think would make a great tapioca substitute. Would like to try it with this recipe.
Librarian Lavender says
3rd October 2014 at 8:05 pmSuch a delicious recipe and it is healthy too!
Sweetavril says
3rd October 2014 at 9:37 pmI have to try this recipe right now!
I’ve found your blog a few weeks ago and it’s the first time I’ve tried so many recipes in such a small amount of time!
Your recipes are so useful for me because I tried to cut down sugar but it’s hard to find something to eat as a desert without sugar.
Thank you so much!
Molly says
3rd October 2014 at 9:57 pmWhat brand of stevia do you use? I was a NuNaturals-only gal. But, they have changed their supplier. And, it isn’t good anymore 🙁 ….Looking for a delicious stevia again!!!
ChocoholicPhilosopher says
4th October 2014 at 12:12 amI’m not sure where I went wrong, but the texture was a bit off. The flavour was great, but the texture behaved a bit like melted cheese, each spoonfull tried to stretch back to the bowl I was spooning it out of. It looks rather like an eggless custard recipe, but with those you’re not supposed to boil the mixture, just stir it over heat for a really long time. Does boiling the cornstarch make it cheesy?
ChocoholicPhilosopher says
5th October 2014 at 10:45 amIt turns out that the “cheesy” texture issue I was having was the result of not having let it sit in the fridge for long enough – It was cold, but musn’t have been properly set, it had been in the fridge for maybe an hour, max 2. The other half that was left in the fridge overnight was both delicious and with a pleasant pudding texture.
Amber says
4th October 2014 at 1:20 amOkay, so that note at the top of your post just made me think you might possibly be the nicest blogger ever. 🙂 🙂 🙂 Thanks for caring so much about your readers!
RunnerGirl says
4th October 2014 at 2:07 amYou’re so gracious Katie! Thank you for all your recipes <3
Shannon Taggart says
4th October 2014 at 8:17 amI find it absolutely ridiculous that your readers had the nerve to complain about having to click one extra time to reach your recipes. Have they forgotten that they receive all of your amazing recipes for free. Considering all of the clicking they do each day, they are complaining about one extra click? I am shocked. I think that if one extra click increases your traffic, it would be a simple gesture to say thank you that we could all do without complaint. Katie, as always I am impressed with your calmness despite some of your readers selfishness. I would be happy to click many times extra if it meant more success for you. Thank you for all you do.
Nikki says
5th October 2014 at 11:10 amI have never and will never complain about a person’s blog but I am someone who appreciates the more you put on one page. Since reading food and heathy living blogs is my guilty pleasure, I only do so while on the elliptical at the gym on my IPad. I actually choose blogs where I can scroll and read more without having to click. On the laptop, it’s easy. But with different devices, it’s much preferred.
KC says
4th October 2014 at 3:14 pmThanks Katie! Not sure if you already have a sugar free chocolate pudding posted, but could you add cocoa to this and make it chocolate? Also, do you have a version using a banana to sweeten instead of stevia?
Sara says
5th October 2014 at 12:50 pmhttps://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2013/07/11/banana-pudding-recipe-healthy/
Steph says
5th October 2014 at 1:43 amI think it’s really cool how you listen to your readers over anything else and that pudding looks great- so few ingredients too! 🙂
Abby says
5th October 2014 at 4:08 pmYum! I made it and its really good! 🙂
Alicia says
5th October 2014 at 6:53 pmHi Katie! I love your blog. I always read it from Spain. The thing is we don’t have cornstarch here. Do you have any ideas on what could work instead of it?
Erin L says
5th October 2014 at 11:08 pmTHANK YOU for SOY free options. It’s brutal finding pudding with no dairy, no soy/tofu.
kathleen says
6th October 2014 at 1:45 pmi wish those few who complained about something so petty were as supportive of you as you are of them! really gracious and kind of you.. and your work is so great.
Pooja Parikh says
9th October 2014 at 3:38 amKatie,
I recently found out that my body cannot tolerate dairy AND sugar (tears were involved), so this recipe was a real Godsend. Thank you so much for posting it! I’ve already made it plain (topped with chopped berries and a sprinkle of cinnamon–unreal) and with cocoa powder added, and I am seriously loving it. It’s perfect to hit that sweet tooth without compromising my food allergies.
Thanks for everything you do. You’re the best!!
Lisa says
12th October 2014 at 9:55 amThank you for going back to the old format. It’s easier to follow. I really enjoy your recipes. I make a different oatmeal almost everyday.
Laura says
23rd October 2014 at 5:32 pmThis pudding is outstanding! I have been looking for a non-dairy pudding. How would this work with adding pumpkin? When would you add it, at the end with the sugar?
Chocolate Covered Katie says
23rd October 2014 at 5:38 pmI’m not sure… but I like your idea! If you try it, be sure to report back! You might also possibly try subbing some of the milk for pumpkin? Possibly? Sounds like a fun experiment in any case.
Ann says
8th December 2014 at 12:53 amThis pudding could be used in a Cream Puff Chocolate Eclair Cake recipe! (I’m talking about this one http://amandascookin.com/2013/06/cream-puff-chocolate-eclair-cake.html , which I made because I’m bad. ) That cake was good beyond human words, so good that I knew I had to healthify it somehow. Luckily, the ingredients are pretty simple and can be swapped with some tweaking for vegan options! The pastry can be made with flax eggs, Earth Balance or coconut oil, and 1/4 cup coconut flour for low carb; the chocolate filling can be made with Earth Balance or coconut oil, vegan chocolate, and your sugar-free powdered sugar. The pudding layer can be made with vegan cream cheese and this pudding recipe. The cool whip layer can simply be made with your coconut cool whip! I’ll report back when I get the chance to experiment!
Chrissy says
2nd March 2015 at 7:18 pmThis sounds awesome, and makes me wish there was a chocolate version for my poor mum, who is diabetic and a chocoholic. (She even has a sign that says “Chocolate is the answer, I don’t care what the question is!”)
Also, I wonder what would happen if you froze the pudding mixture? Would it be like a healthy Jell-O pudding pop?
Unofficial CCK Helper says
6th March 2015 at 6:21 pmMight be icy. But if you try, definitely report back!
Adrienne says
7th April 2015 at 5:10 pmLast night I wanted this recipe. I also wanted chocolate. So I added 1/4 cup cocoa powder and 1/2 tsp instant coffee (so that the coffee would bring out the rich depth of the chocolate). It was amazeballs!! Highly recommend.
Also…. topping it with some date salted caramel sauce is highly recommended. Just saying…..
Julia says
14th April 2015 at 5:32 pmHey Katie!
I was wondering, but do all types of milk work?
Thanks ! 🙂
Peekaboo says
21st July 2015 at 7:19 pmHi Katie,
I came across your blog while searching for a simple sugar free vanilla pudding.And I got exactly what I wanted and a huge collection of healthy desserts..I have a big sweet tooth and your blog is a blessing for people like me who have genetic links to Diabetes.Thank you sooo much..
Kristine says
15th September 2015 at 9:01 pmAmazing recipe! I used almond milk and added 3 tbsp of cocoa. Yum!
jon says
21st September 2015 at 10:53 amthis isn’t sugar free. milk has sugar
Unofficial CCK Helper says
29th September 2015 at 12:52 pmThis is a dairy-free blog, and unsweetened nondairy milk is in fact sugar free.
Bonnie says
1st July 2016 at 3:13 pmHi! I really enjoyed your chocolate pudding and would like to try this one, but I keep scorching the milk when I try to bring it to a boil. How do you bring yours to a boil without scorching?
Carter says
26th February 2017 at 8:55 pmI made this using another sites recipe that I altered because I’m trying not to use sugar or dairy (a challenging but fun weekend of baking)
I used almond milk, with 1.5 teaspoons of stevia, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. Everything else was equal. It was horrible. A great texture just tasted nasty. I think it’s a combination of replacing dairy and sugar.
When you make this what milk besides dairy do u think works best?
lina says
9th March 2017 at 4:19 pmOh dear! I couldn’t understand what the fuss about the comments was as I was totally into the recipe and the yumminess of it. I cannot believe that people actually complain about having to click X amount of times to get to a FREE AND AMAZING recipe!!!! OMG so sorry for you honey that you have to change things up . And I am a 20+tabs open at once all recipe related sites and a mom of a young child.
I thought to give me 2 cents in, thank you so much for creating a lovely blog with yummy recipes and you seem like a lovely person who really just loves good and healthy foods. I will be along with (I hope) many others who will gladly click on as many pages as you see fit and benefit from your recipe testing and posting. I am just grateful that I have food porn lol, and recipes that work.
I hope to get your book soon too! Much love.
Aaron says
15th March 2017 at 8:27 pmOkay so I am a 15 year old teenage boy with extreme limits in my diet because I’m picky. For starters I am vegan and I usually don’t bother making breakfast because my family isn’t vegan so I have trouble finding breakfast options. But I made this one night and put it in the fridge and ate it for breakfast the next morning. It was so good, I wasn’t expecting such a good flavor and it is extremely low in calories . Since I watch my weight but I am still a kid I sometimes get upset because I feel restricted from a lot of sweeter foods but thanks to you, Katie, I now have a versatile pudding that I can add just about any flavor to. ?
Rae says
3rd September 2017 at 4:51 pmThis pudding was so gross that I am giving chocolatecoveredkatie a break for awhile. Note that this comment is coming from a gourmet cook from a house full of dessert bakers and a professional chef…this was the clumpiest, most powdery-textured, sad tasting dessert that I have ever made. So sad in fact that we had to throw it all away in the end because no one could be convinced to eat it. I tried some variations after, adding more sweetness, some fruit, more vanilla etc…but this recipe cannot be saved.
Jason Sanford says
10th September 2017 at 1:41 pmI would guess it’s either the type of milk you used or that an ingredient was either bad or accidentally left out (which I’ve done before). I’ve made this recipe multiple times and it has always turned out well. So maybe worth trying again!
Tom Durrant says
23rd September 2017 at 9:29 pmCornstarch is starch. Starch is two sugars that come apart when an enzyme in you bod comes in contact.