17 Upgrades To Boxed Pudding The Directions Don't Tell You

Boxed pudding may be one of the easiest and most cost-effective desserts in the grocery store, but that doesn't mean it has to be basic. It's convenient enough to keep on hand for last minute special occasions and sudden urges for something sweet. But you can also use it as the start of something more sophisticated and flavorful. All it takes is a few handy hacks and you too can turn simple boxed pudding into a dessert with sweet style to spare.

If you've never tried jazzing up your boxed pudding with tempting and tasty tidbits, smooth swirls and incredible add-ins, this is your invitation to pull out all the stops. From using the contents of the packet in new and unexpected ways to working instant pudding mix into upgraded desserts that taste like professional creations, the possibilities for elevating boxed pudding to the level of near-gourmet creativity are practically unlimited.

The most direct way to make your boxed pudding into a more premium version of itself is to replace the milk you'd ordinarily use with heavy cream. The higher fat content in the cream will give the pudding essentials in the pouch a luscious dose of silky style that thickens the finished dessert and makes the texture more dense than even whole milk can do.

To hack your boxed pudding and make it so much better, simply substitute whole cream for the water or milk listed on the instructions 1-to-1. There's no additional measuring or calculating required, and the end result will be so much more elegant than what you're used to. Once you have a creamier base pudding, you can doctor it up with whatever other upgrades you like, though it's perfectly enjoyable on its own. And it's such an easy switch-out, you may never go back to the old way again.

You probably have a collection of extracts in your spice collection, elixirs you use to make your baked goods a more premium prospect. Why not haul them out and give your boxed pudding a more impressive flavor profile too? Be sure to check for freshness before using what you have on hand; some extracts include alcohol, which can evaporate over time and leave you with an empty bottle when pudding time arrives.

What extract flavors work best to add pizzazz to boxed pudding? Pretty much anything that makes your taste buds perk up and take notice. Try adding a few drops of mint extract to chocolate pudding, lemon or orange to vanilla pudding, and rum to butterscotch pudding. Or pick up almond extract, a universal flavoring that adds a light, cherry-like essence to just about any boxed pudding on the shelf.

Basic boxed pudding flavors like vanilla and chocolate provide a perfect blank canvas for experimenting with your favorite ground spices to produce exciting gourmet effects. The combinations are practically limitless, bound only by your preference for the flavor blends of your favorite spiced desserts. An easy one to test out is a homemade pumpkin spice mix that turns any boxed pudding flavor into a cozy treat. The recipe features all the essential warm spices used in autumn-ready bakes, though it makes a perfectly delicious add-in any time of year.

Zeroing in on specific spices to achieve a desired gourmet effect might lead you online to decrypt the seasonings in your favorite dishes. With its peppery heat, chai spice is a fantastic inclusion in vanilla pudding, giving the simple background flavor notes that are stimulating without adding more sweetness. Ramping up the ginger and cinnamon will create a flavor closer to gingerbread, especially in a butterscotch pudding. Even a simple sprinkling of nutmeg over your boxed pudding is enough to provide a dash of style.

What is mousse but a fluffier version of pudding? It's easy to transform the simplest pudding into an airy, cloud-like treat without adding a ton of extra work or exotic ingredients. Just mix instant (not cook and serve) pudding powder with 1 ½ cups of cold milk and a 16-ounce container of whipped topping. Once you've mixed the pudding powder and milk together, fold in the whipped topping and chill until set.

Though chocolate mousse may be the most obvious flavor for this approach, you can bring surprising lightness by trying the mousse technique with any flavor that appeals to you. And while it's perfectly wonderful served on its own in fancy glass dishes that give the illusion of haute cuisine, it's even more phenomenal served over layers of fruit and cake as parfaits or a showstopping trifle — impressive enough to fool your guests into believing you've pulled off a culinary coup!

Boxed pudding doesn't even have to be the whole dessert; with a simple hack anyone can pull off, you can turn the contents of the box into a lush whipped topping that adorns other desserts deliciously. Mix a 3.5-ounce box of instant pudding mix into one cup of cold milk and add a teaspoon of vanilla extract. Fold in an 8-ounce tub of thawed whipped topping, and voilà — a light, flavorful fluff perfect for dipping fruit or adding to finished pudding.

A more elevated form comes from incorporating instant pudding mix into cold whipping cream, adding confectioner's sugar to ramp up the sweetness if needed. Continue mixing until stiff peaks form, just as you would with regular whipped cream. When you're finished, you'll have a terrific topping for ice cream, pies, cakes — whatever dessert dish your heart desires. Once you give it a try, it's a safe bet that your usual whipped cream will never be the same again.

There's no need to get fancy with your boxed pudding upgrades when a simple toss-in of your favorite candy bar will suffice. The relatively nondescript vanilla and chocolate flavors make the perfect stage to let chopped up Snickers, Hershey's bars, Twix, and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups steal the spotlight. Go for Butterfingers in butterscotch pudding to give an old-fashioned favorite a deluxe twist that doubles-up the buttery goodness.

If you're serving guests, instead of hoping to please the whole room with one dessert, why not create a pudding bar that lets them make their own? Set out dishes with chopped candy bars, cookie crumbs, and ice cream sauces that let them recreate their favorite candy bar combinations from scratch. They'll have a blast customizing their pudding to their specific tastes. To keep everything firm for the special occasion, pre-chop your mix-ins and store them in the freezer until the big moment arrives.

Take your boxed pudding ideas into more adult territory by zhuzhing them up with a splash of booze. The most familiar of the liquored-up pudding is the classic pudding shot, a party favorite and an easy way to incorporate spirits into your dessert opportunities, as well as adding pudding to your cocktail-centered celebrations. Presentation is key, so remember the whipped cream, sprinkles, and crushed candies to top your shots.

Though vodka gives you carte blanche with just about any flavor of pudding, adding booze to upgrade store-bought pudding requires a bit of finesse. Try pairing chocolate pudding with tequila or bring out the zesty floral essence of lemon pudding with gin. Vanilla and rum are a perfect partnership to consider, and rum or caramel-forward whiskey can complement butterscotch pudding deliciously. It's your chance to play pudding mixologist to come up with exciting flavors no one sees coming. Fireball cinnamon rice pudding, anyone?

For the dessert purist hoping to add just a little more oomph to their boxed pudding prospect, some fresh fruit can do wonders. The contrast of tastes and textures that exist between the silken pudding and various fruits gives your sweet treat a more intriguing presentation than either ingredient served on its own. Experiment with adding chopped bananas, sliced strawberries, mandarin orange segments, or fresh kiwi cubes into just about any pudding flavor to come up with enticing combinations.

If a more finished dessert option sounds more your speed, try spooning a little canned pumpkin purée into your finished pudding for a soothing autumn custard. Top it off with a sprinkle of cinnamon and toasted almonds for a stylish garnish. You can also scoop canned cherry pie filling into chocolate pudding for a Black Forest cake situation, or try blueberry fruit pie filling in vanilla pudding for a pie-like dish that doesn't require baking.

The unspoken secret in the boxed pudding world is that this humble store-bought product aspires to become something special like crème brûlée. It's not difficult to help the little pouch inside achieve its dreams with a genius boxed pudding hack that gives you homemade crème brûlée without the hassle of going to culinary school or traveling to Paris to learn the more bougie techniques.

The genius hack that brings boxed pudding into the crème brûlée realm: use cream in the mix and pour your finished mix into individual ramekins or ceramic dishes to mimic real crème brûlée. Then sprinkle sugar over your pudding after it sets up in the fridge and pop it in the broiler to achieve the telltale crackly shell. If you happen to have a kitchen blowtorch, you can pull off this impressive feat for your dessert lovers right before their eyes. Boxed pudding never had it so good!

It doesn't take much doing to jazz up your boxed pudding when you have coffee on your counter. Work a ½ teaspoon of espresso powder into vanilla or chocolate pudding to achieve a latte-style dessert that'll remind dessert lovers of their favorite coffee shop creations. A sprinkle of chocolate chips or a drizzle of caramel sauce will give this crossover creation even more impact.

If espresso powder is out of reach, go for instant coffee instead. These granules may be more cost-effective and come in a variety of roasts, letting you tailor your pudding to your taste. Should you find yourself with leftover brewed coffee, you can also use it in place of water in your boxed pudding to achieve a similar effect. And if you're up for a little experimentation, you can incorporate a splash of your favorite creamer into the bowl to give the impression of a true-to-life coffee creation in dessert form.

Who hasn't been to a party serving a pudding-based dip and come back to the bowl for seconds? Even if you didn't realize there was pudding in the recipe, having a pudding-based dip on the table gives you a great excuse to elevate boxed pudding into a treat that's as easy to create as it is to love, no matter the occasion.

A familiar favorite on fall tables, a quick pumpkin pie dip gives you a crowd-pleasing contribution to family gatherings and Friendsgiving occasions. Even novice chefs have no excuse for not jumping right in; if you can stir, you can blend pumpkin purée, whipped topping, vanilla pudding mix, and spices into a rich and silky winner of a dip. For a more cheesecake-like version, omit the pumpkin elements and work in cream cheese with a splash of vanilla extract. Top either of these dips with a swirl of caramel sauce and serve with fruit, pretzels, and cookies.

Anyone who's ever experienced the poke cake phenomenon knows what a tasty upgrade the recipe can be for a simple box of pudding powder. This confection may seem like a retro delight made for birthday parties of yore, but it's just as fascinating a bake today as it was all those years ago. In fact, a few gourmet twists will bring this nostalgic classic into the modern age for a whole new audience to savor.

A banana pudding poke cake that uses banana pudding mix over a yellow cake topped with whipped cream is a great place to start. The result is a sweet Southern flavor combination you can top with vanilla wafers to recreate the original dessert. You can also make the most of your pudding poke cake by using condensed milk to enrich your poke cake recipe even further. Remember to taste-test before serving and adjust the sweetness if you find the sugar content to be a little too much for your crowd.

If you have a jar of peanut butter in the pantry, you have the makings of an upgraded boxed pudding that takes nothing more than a spoon to achieve. Stirring a tablespoon of PB into the bowl until it merges with the milk and the pudding will not only add soothing peanut flavor, it will incorporate extra fat to create a silkier texture once your pudding sets. Don't be surprised if it turns out somewhere between basic pudding and more elegant custard!

This trick can be performed with any nut butter you have on hand. Almond butter generally ramps down the sweetness of whatever recipe it shows up in, which means you'll have a mellow base for adding a few premium toppings without going overboard. Sunflower butter and cashew butter are even nuttier, introducing more savory notes that can be great playmates for elegant chai-like spices or dried fruits.

Rice Krispies treats usually come in only one flavor: vanilla, thanks to the marshmallows and vanilla extract in the recipe. But if you want to knock the socks off of your treat-loving crew, try dropping a small box of instant pudding into the pot and see how the extra flavor blows their minds. It's perfect for taking your treats to next-level heights for holiday parties and Valentine's gifts, as well as just snacking on at home.

Vanilla and chocolate are the front-runners for premium pudding options here, but you can also head for gourmet territory with some of the more upscale instant pudding flavors available. Give them a nutty blast by using pistachio pudding mix and adding a few toasted pistachios as a finishing touch, or add a zesty citrus zing with lemon pudding mix instead. For special seasonal treats, keep an eye out for pumpkin pie spice pudding and use a pumpkin-shaped cookie cutter to create Halloween goodies for your ghoulish gobblers.

A dessert cheese ball made with boxed pudding puts a sweet conversation-starting spin on the usual savory cheese balls found on party deli trays and charcuterie boards. It's as easy as incorporating a 3.4-ounce box of your favorite instant pudding flavor into an 8-ounce brick of cream cheese mixed with a ½ cup each of butter and powdered sugar. The mash that results can be shaped into a ball using plastic wrap and chilled in the fridge.

Unwrap your finished cheese ball once firm, roll it in cookie or graham cracker crumbs, nuts or chocolate chips, and set it on a stylish plate. Surround your cheese ball with dippers like pretzels and cookies or invite guests to spread it on fresh fruit with a knife. Then, sit back and collect the compliments you so richly deserve for this too-easy boxed pudding upgrade.

You don't even have to prepare your boxed instant pudding mix to give it a glorious upgrade if you use it as a shake-on for popcorn. The ingredients are a blend of sweet and flavored elements that make a perfect sprinkle for popcorn sprayed with a bit of oil or butter to help the powder stick. With so many boxed pudding flavors available, you can create individual shakers to keep on hand to try a variety of popcorn flavoring effects.

Looking to replicate the flavor of kettle corn without risking the sugary burn that can arise from making it from scratch? Add a little cinnamon to your vanilla instant boxed pudding and shake it over salted popcorn. You'll end up with a sweet-salty-spicy snack that gives you carnival feels no matter where you enjoy it. Try the same technique with chocolate instant pudding to see how close your finished popcorn creation comes to capturing the flavor of Cocoa Puffs.

Pretty much everything you need to turn boxed instant pudding into hot chocolate is already in the box. Rather than mixing a 3.9-ounce box of instant chocolate pudding as instructed on the box, whisk it into 6 cups of milk in a saucepan. Keep stirring as the liquid heats up, and once it comes to a simmer, take it off the heat and pour it into cups. Serve it with whipped cream or marshmallows, and you have a pitch-perfect hot chocolate that never goes wrong.

And if hot chocolate can be achieved using boxed pudding, why couldn't you experiment with other flavors for fun beverages that take the chill off your wintery days? Butterscotch pudding can become a Hogwarts-worthy hot buttered sipper, banana pudding can turn into banana cream treats, and vanilla can become pretty much whatever you want if you toss in the right spices and flavorings. The fun in upgrading your boxed pudding this way is in putting your imagination to use to find out what delicious drinks you can come up with.