Rich, chocolatey, and ultra creamy, this delicious healthy chocolate pudding recipe is surprisingly easy to make at home!
A classic chocolate pudding recipe with no tofu, no banana, and no avocado!
Not that there is anything wrong with avocado, but sometimes you just want traditional homemade chocolate pudding without any surprise ingredients.
As much as I love recipes where you can’t taste the hidden vegetable, such as in the famous Sweet Potato Brownies, my everyday meals are usually much more simple.
This thick and healthy chocolate pudding can be soy free, sugar free, egg free, gluten free, nut free, and dairy free.
Also be sure to try these Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
Creamy vegan chocolate pudding
In sixth grade, I went through a chocolate pudding phase, where I’d make a package of Jell-O chocolate pudding, add an obscene amount of Cool Whip to the top, and savor it slowly with a small spoon as I watched the Dallas Stars games.
(Hockey was another of my sixth-grade obsessions. I am a girl of many obsessions!)
Today’s recipe is a homemade version of that packaged chocolate pudding. And like most homemade recipes, it is so much better than anything that comes in a box.
This healthy chocolate pudding is super creamy, chocolatey, and absolutely fantastic!
If you want to avoid the hydrogenated oils, artificial flavors, high fructose corn syrup, and hard-to-pronounce ingredients found in store bought Cool Whip, try topping the dairy free chocolate pudding with Coconut Whipped Cream or Coconut Ice Cream.
Healthy chocolate pudding ingredients
Here is what you need: milk, cocoa, sweetener, salt, cornstarch, and vanilla extract.
A few readers have substituted arrowroot for cornstarch and say it works if you use less arrowroot. I have not personally tried this substitution.
For healthy chocolate pudding with no cornstarch, try my Vegan Chocolate Mousse or this sugar free and paleo Keto Chocolate Mousse.
Feel free to test out different milks in this recipe to find your favorite taste and texture. If you use canned coconut milk, it is super thick and velvety like chocolate mousse.
I also love making the dairy free pudding with almond milk or cashew milk.
You can also change up the flavor if you wish, by adding a few drops of pure peppermint extract, maple extract, or even coconut extract along with the vanilla.
Still craving chocolate? Make your own Chocolate Truffles
How to make the healthy dessert
Start by heating two cups of milk in a small pot with the salt, cocoa powder, and sweetener of choice.
Meanwhile, whisk the cornstarch and the remaining half cup of milk in a small bowl until the cornstarch is completely dissolved.
When the mixture in the saucepan is warm, whisk in the milk with cornstarch and bring to a boil. Once boiling, stir constantly with a whisk or spoon for two minutes.
Lower the heat to a simmer for an additional minute, then turn off the heat and add the pure vanilla extract. If using the optional chocolate, stir it until completely melted.
Transfer the chocolate pudding to the refrigerator to thicken. It gets thicker and thicker the longer it sits and will be ready to eat after a few hours or overnight.
*If you do want a recipe with avocado, make this Avocado Chocolate Mousse.
Watch the healthy chocolate pudding video above
Healthy Chocolate Pudding
Ingredients
- 2 cups milk of choice OR canned coconut milk
- heaping 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup dutch cocoa powder
- 1/3 cup sweetener (sugar, pure maple syrup, erythritol, or honey)
- 1/2 cup milk of choice + 3 tbsp cornstarch
- optional 3 oz chocolate chips or broken-up bar
- 3/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Healthy Chocolate Pudding Recipe: Heat the 2 cups milk of choice in a saucepan with the salt, cocoa powder, and sweetener. Meanwhile, whisk the cornstarch and 1/2 cup milk in a small bowl until dissolved. When the 2 cups milk are warm, add the cornstarch mixture and bring to a boil. Once boiling, stir constantly for 2 minutes. Lower to a simmer for an additional minute, then turn off the heat. Once the heat is off, stir in the vanilla and broken-up chocolate pieces until the chocolate melts. Transfer the pudding to the refrigerator to thicken. It gets thicker the longer it sits and will be ready to consume after a few hours or overnight. *Note: I’ve not tried arrowroot and have only tried this recipe with Dutch cocoa powder so can’t vouch for the taste if regular unsweetened cocoa powder is used in its place. But you are always free to experiment!View Nutrition Facts
Video
Notes
More Healthy Desserts
Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookies
O.M.G! The thickness of that pudding in the picture. I faint! T_T
This is so good – and easy!! I subbed Almond milk, Cacao powder, and agave nectar and it worked great! (for those wondering) 🙂
Makes 3 generous servings but splits up nicely into 4 servings that are the same size as a normal pudding cup each.
I’ve used this recipe twice now, once with soy milk and once with coconut milk. With soy, it was perfect, creamy and delicious. The only issue I had was that my cocoa powder was clumpy, which lumped in the pudding and threw the texture off. The second time I used coconut milk, and avoided clumpy cocoa powder by mixing it in with a bit of the milk in the beginning to make a smooth paste before adding in the rest of the milk. The coconut, though, was not creamy, the texture was all wrong somehow. Mealy even. I mean I still ate it, but I would definitely recommend soy milk over coconut to anyone trying this recipe.
sorry,can we use it as a frosting for cakes?
Hi Katie,
I love your recipes and your healthier treat options. I was just wondering how you calculate your nutritional information. I like to pay attention to calories, but do not like to use sugar alternatives. Is the nutrition on your recipes calculated using the sugar alternative or sugar?
Thanks,
Eliana
HI! Great recipe, I cannot wait to try! Could you please tell me how many grams are 1/4 cup cocoa please ?
is the Dutch process cocoa powder sweetened or unsweetened that you use? I have Hershey’s special dark unsweetened that I just used for it but I am now not sure if it will be sweet enough. I love your recipes!!
That works!
FANTASTIC!!! This chocolate pudding is amazing!! beats snack-packs a million times over it was perfect!! 😀 Thank you so much Katie!!!
I can totally get behind a chocolate pudding obsession – especially if the chocolate pudding is this one!!!
Would substituting the sugars/honey for Agave still work? I’m trying to expand my diabetic friendly recipe box for family gatherings.
Yup! Subbing honey for agave will work pretty much anywhere, as they are structured very similarly.