Vegan Vanilla Pudding

Why We Love This Recipe

• Quick and easy: You only need 6 ingredients and about 15 minutes of hands on work to make this pudding. It's a great recipe for any skill level!
• Make ahead dessert: This is the type of recipe you can make up to a few days ahead of time, so it's a great option for holidays or dinner parties that require a lot of prep time.
• Extremely versatile: There are so many ways to enjoy this vegan vanilla pudding! It's great on its own, in a trifle or a parfait and so much more (see below for more suggestions).

Ingredients

Here's what you'll need to make this vegan vanilla pudding:

Ingredient Notes

• Nondairy milk: We typically use oat milk, which has a relatively neutral flavor and a creamy consistency. If you want your pudding to be even creamier, try using 1 cup of nondairy milk and 1 cup of nondairy creamer or a heavy cream subsitute.
• Cashews: Cashews make for a thick, super creamy pudding texture once blended. Make sure to use unsalted, unroasted (raw) cashews in this recipe. It's also important to soak your cashews in water ahead of blending so they can soften, otherwise they may not fully blend.
• Sugar: Regular granulated sugar is the best option in this vegan vanilla pudding. You can use a liquid sweetener if preferred (agave or maple syrup), but note that it will make the color significantly darker.
• Cornstarch: This is the key ingredient to make sure your pudding thickens up correctly. You can also use arrowroot starch.
• Vanilla extract: Have some pricey vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste sitting in your pantry? Now's the time to use it! For a strong vanilla flavor, we recommend using a good quality vanilla extract. Feel free to sub in vanilla bean paste or the beans from 1 vanilla pod for 1 teaspoon of the vanilla extract for an extra strong flavor.
• Kosher salt: We always use Diamond brand kosher salt in our recipes unless otherwise. We do not recommend using table salt. Sea salt is fine to use, but it has a finer grain than kosher salt, so you may want to start with less and add more if needed.

Instructions

PREP: Soak cashews in warm or room temperature water for 1-2 hours. Drain and rinse. 

STEP 1: Add cashews, milk, sugar, cornstarch, 3 teaspoons of vanilla extract, and the salt to a blender and blend until completely smooth.

STEP 2: Pour the mixture into a saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to a boil, whisking frequently.

STEP 3: Reduce heat to medium low and simmer until it thickens, about 15 minutes, whisking frequently so it doesn't stick or form clumps.

Remove from heat and let cool at room temperature, then cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Tips and FAQs

• Stir constantly: While the pudding is cooking on the stove, be sure to whisk frequently to prevent burning/clumping.
• Blend thoroughly before cooking to make sure your vegan vanilla pudding is as smooth and creamy as possible! This is especially important because of the cashews – you don't want any cashew pieces in the pudding.
• The pudding will thicken after a few hours in the fridge, so don't be too concerned if it doesn't look thick enough when it comes off the stove.
• Storage: Transfer to an airtight container and place in the fridge. It should keep for about 3-5 days.

More Dessert Recipes to Enjoy

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