Indian Pudding

Indian pudding is New England’s oldest dessert — a slow-baked pudding of cornmeal, milk, molasses, and warm spices that dates back to the colonial era, when English settlers adapted Native American corn porridge with the molasses, butter, and ginger of the rum trade. It bakes for hours into a dense, caramel-sweet, spoon-coating pudding that is the taste of a New England Thanksgiving and a centuries-old bridge between two food cultures.

Why this recipe works: Cornmeal and milk are simmered into a thick porridge, then sweetened with molasses and enriched with butter and eggs, and baked slowly in a low oven. The long, gentle bake deepens the molasses into caramel notes and lets the pudding set into its signature dense, custardy texture. A scoop of vanilla ice cream melting over the warm pudding is the traditional — and essential — finishing move.

Key ingredients

• Cornmeal: yellow or white, fine or medium grind.
• Milk: whole milk, simmered with the cornmeal.
• Molasses: the deep, bittersweet flavor — not honey, not maple.
• Butter and eggs: richness and structure.
• Cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg: the warm spice blend.

Tips for the best Indian pudding

Simmer the cornmeal into the milk slowly, stirring, until it thickens into a smooth porridge — about 10 minutes. Stir in the molasses, butter, spices, and beaten eggs, then pour into a buttered baking dish. Bake at 300°F for 2 to 3 hours, stirring once after the first hour, until the pudding is thick, dark, and fragrant. Serve warm, straight from the dish, with vanilla ice cream melting into it.

Variations and storage

Use maple syrup for part of the molasses, or add a spoonful of bourbon. Leftovers keep 4 days in the fridge and reheat gently — a splash of milk brings back its creaminess. It is equally good for breakfast the next morning, a very New England move.

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