Puddings That Pop

With the new year comes new trends. The sweet that's literally flavor of the month is pudding. This old fashioned comfort food is making a comeback as people clamor for its' classic creaminess. There are even pudding restaurants that are popping up, featuring different pudding based dishes along with new and old flavors.

Go to Manhattan and you can find trendsetters slurping up a well homemade pudding alongside cupcakes and macarons. The East Village has just welcomed Puddin by Clio,a small dessert bar that features what else -  customized homemade puddings. According to the creator, Clio, Puddin whips up high quality puddings with top notch ingredients. There is dark chocolate with the chocolate coming from Iceland and butterscotch with real scotch thrown in. There is the rare coffee along with lemon too. The puddings are layered with whipped cream and fresh baked cakes and cookies.This create a homestyle parfait that keeps bringing in and satisfying customers.

Anyone , though, can create an exquisite pudding dish. There are some good recipes on the web. I found one site that offers the classics such as chocolate and vanilla as well as as the eggier custards. However it also offers a blackberry - perfect for the summer and a peanut butter one - great poured into a chocolate crumb pie crust. This last is made with only three ingredients - peanut butter ,bananas and yogurt.There is also a burnt sugar one that sounds  like flan. Of course there is the famed banana pudding which really isn't a pudding  - more of a refrigerator cake.

Puddings are going to be hot this year and maybe it's no surprise. As we become more techno, we crave the simplicity of the past. An easily made dessert is what we need. It's unfussy and comforting.