My Go-To Dessert

My Go-To Dessert

Peppermint Pudding

With the crisp Peppermint chocolate and sweet caramel and cream, I can’t think of a better combination. This dessert is super easy to make and affordable, and is perfect for any occasion. I’ve been making it since I was 12 years old and am still making the exact recipe 17 years later.

Some people call it Peppermint tart, Peppermint fridge tart, Peppermint and caramel pudding but growing up we simply just called it Peppermint Pudding. You know what they say potato, patato, it’s all the same.

This dessert is so easy to make, you can even do it with a toddler on your arm(something I’m guilty of doing hehe). Most of the time I make it in a large dish, but if I feel like being fancy, I bring out the expensive glass cups and make the pudding in there in smaller servings.

South Africa experiences loadshedding from time to time so this pudding is also perfect for South Africans including myself as it doesn’t require any electricity i.e. the oven. Let me explain for those that are unaware, in South Africa, strategic blackouts known as load shedding leave residents without power for six to twelve hours every day. In order to relieve pressure on a struggling power grid, the load-shedding procedure involves cutting off the electrical supply.

There are many different ways to make this pudding, but here is my recipe:

Ingredients

 1 tin caramel

 2 packs tennis biscuits

 250ml fresh cream

 150g peppermint crisp chocolate (any one will do but I prefer to use Nestle)

Method

1. In a large bowl, beat the fresh cream with a whisk or an electric hand mixer until soft peaks form. Next add your caramel to the cream and beat further until all the ingredients are well combined.

2. Now, grate or finely cut the peppermint chocolate in a separate bowl.

3. Next, place your tennis biscuits into a large deep dish ensuring that there are no spaces in between the biscuits. You can break the biscuits into smaller pieces to fit into the smaller holes or spaces in the dish.

4. Spoon a third of the caramel and cream mixture over the biscuits and spread evenly.

5. Sprinkle the grated or cut peppermint chocolate over the caramel and cream mixture in the dish.

6. Repeat the layering of biscuits, caramel mixture and sprinkling of peppermint chocolate.

7. Place in the fridge to set for a few hours and it will be ready to serve.

*Tips:

-Try to sprinkle the peppermint chocolate layer nice and thick especially the layer right on top. The more chocolate, the better!

-You can garnish the top layer with piped cream or a sprig of mint.

-I prefer cutting up the peppermint chocolate instead of grating it.

Cutting up the chocolate provides bigger pieces than the grating and therefore tastes better. I have tried both methods. However, to each his own.

-You can add more caramel to make it sweeter or more fresh cream to make the mixture thicker, some people even add the grated peppermint chocolate into the caramel and cream mixture instead of my way, which is sprinkling the peppermint chocolate on top of each caramel and cream layer in the dish. It all depends on your taste and how you like it.

But in the end you can never go wrong with this recipe! Unless the fresh cream is sour. That’s another very important tip, always check the date of your fresh cream, you can even smell or taste a bit of it before mixing it with the caramel just to make sure.

Like the saying goes, “the proof is in the pudding!” Enjoy!