Indian pudding dates back to colonial New England. Despite its name, Indian pudding did not originate with Native Americans, but with the colonists themselves who used the Native American ingredient of cornmeal to stand in for wheat flour as they attempted to produce a dessert similar to the English puddings of their home country. The original British version of hasty pudding was available in printed form as early as the 1600s. The first mention of Indian pudding in an American cookbook occurred around 1796. Indian pudding combined the old version of hasty pudding with the products and spices available to the colonists. 
Ingredients:
4 cups whole milk
½ cup cornmeal
2 Tbsp. butter
½ cup molasses
½ cup maple syrup (preferably Grade B)
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. ginger
Pinch of nutmeg
2 large eggs, well beaten
Ingredients:
4 cups whole milk
½ cup cornmeal
2 Tbsp. butter
½ cup molasses
½ cup maple syrup (preferably Grade B)
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. ginger
Pinch of nutmeg
2 large eggs, well beaten
Directions:
Preheat oven to 325°F. Butter a 2-quart casserole dish. In a medium pot, bring milk to a gentle simmer. Very slowly whisk in cornmeal briskly to prevent clumping. Cook for 20 minutes, adjusting heat to maintain a gentle simmer, until mixture has thickened and coats the back of a spoon well. Remove from heat. Stir in the butter, molasses, maple syrup, salt and spices until well blended. Temper the eggs (meaning slowly whisk in about ¼ cup of the hot pudding mixture to the beaten eggs), then return tempered mixture to the pot. This prevents the eggs from scrambling. Pour mixture into a buttered casserole dish and bake about 1½ hours, until center is set (the center will still be soft, but you don’t want it to look liquidy). Let the pudding sit for at least 20 minutes. Then serve warm topped with vanilla bean ice cream. ~ Chef ~
Preheat oven to 325°F. Butter a 2-quart casserole dish. In a medium pot, bring milk to a gentle simmer. Very slowly whisk in cornmeal briskly to prevent clumping. Cook for 20 minutes, adjusting heat to maintain a gentle simmer, until mixture has thickened and coats the back of a spoon well. Remove from heat. Stir in the butter, molasses, maple syrup, salt and spices until well blended. Temper the eggs (meaning slowly whisk in about ¼ cup of the hot pudding mixture to the beaten eggs), then return tempered mixture to the pot. This prevents the eggs from scrambling. Pour mixture into a buttered casserole dish and bake about 1½ hours, until center is set (the center will still be soft, but you don’t want it to look liquidy). Let the pudding sit for at least 20 minutes. Then serve warm topped with vanilla bean ice cream. ~ Chef ~
