US help needed - Cookie recipe translation

[SoupDragon]

Just looking at a recipe for chewy cookies here . Does anyone know what "1 package vanilla instant pudding " is?? What is instant pudding?

It is American.

The Brand who make it is JELL-O and it is "a no cook, quick setting dessert that offers reduced labor time. You just add cold milk, beat, pour out and chill".

Could it be a bit like Angel Delight?

sounds exactly like angel delight to me!

I thought it might be something like that. Or maybe blancmange but I guess it's pretty much the same. I wonder if they sell it in Waitrose...

Here's a recipe for how to make it: here . Can you get nonfat dried milk here?

I'm not sure how big as packet would be, but not very big. 100g?

Blimey! Who could be ar**d to to that to save 15 cents?

Eh, not me! But it's probably easier then finding the stuff here.

10 cents actually, homemade costs 15 cents and shop bought 25 cents so even mor epointless!!!

suppose one plus point is removing E numbers colours ect

Well, I never thought you could make instant pudding mix at home .

My chewy cookies weren't chewy though. I think I over cooked them. And my SuzyWong brownies were too gooey again. I'll just have to practise some more

i'm just wondering if they mean instant custard in that recipe

Which - the cookies or the instant pudding recipe?

sorry, i meant the cookie recipe

Instant pudding and instant custard should be relatively interchangeable in a cookie recipe. What we call pudding is basically custard, maybe not quite as firm.

I don't think so. Custard isn't really a pudding. I thought angel delight or some other instant whip dessert was most likely. I hope it's not custard anyway since I have 2 packets of angel delight left...

So instant pudding is less firm than custard...? Now I'm really confused because custard it pourable and /angel delight is like a soft mousse.

Do we speak the same language??

Must say the recipe for instant pudding definitely sounds more custardy than angel delighty. I love angel delight, especially butterscotch flavour.

Pudding isn't pourable, but it is wobbly. In fact, one of DD1's exercises at speech therapy to strengthen her mouth muscles is to suck chocolate pudding through a straw. (No wonder she likes going to speech.)

So imagine, if you will, a substance that is pretty thick, but not so thick that you can't suck it up through a straw with some effort.

SD, I could mail you some instant pudding mix if you like. Email me.

By the way, I was feeling pretty sick myself reading this thread. I can't stand anything vaguely puddingy, custardy, blancmangey or angel delighty. Bleugh.

Right now, the thought of making anything cookie like again makes me feel queasy.

If you change your mind, let me know.

Will do.

Oh. I have no idea what angel delight is. In the US, custard is firm stuff. Creme caramel shows up on some menus as "burnt custard" because it is. Pudding is more along the mousse line, but not as nice. The stuf you can pour just doesn't exist.

My father, who's spent more time living in England than I have, says that he'd use Bird's Custard Cream mix or some nicer version of it, but made faces at the idea of either Bird's Custard Cream or Jell-o vanilla instant pudding. Can't say as I disagree with him. If you were really planning to eat it as is, I don't think substituting custard mix would work, but it ought to be close enough for cookies. But faced with a recipe that called for instant pudding, rather than walk the block to the nearest grocery store to buy it, I'd find a new recipe, because vanilla instant pudding is dodgy stuff.

SD, just to be clear, 1 package of vanilla instant pudding - is just the powder. It comes in a small box - as helsi said Jello brand makes it, but so do lots of other brands. The recipe is not calling for actualy pudding, but just the powder. HTH.