Handi-Snacks Pudding

One day, I was really craving pudding.  It can be such a comfort food for me, like ice cream, but, uh, not cold.  I wanted something easy and fast though, and thus, packaged pudding, from the grocery store, it was.  I know I don't love Snack Packs, the kinda standard in this product space, so I tried something different, Handi-Snacks, made by Kraft.  I think these have been rebranded to "Grab 'n Snack", as I can't find any references to Handi-Snacks on Kraft's website, and they have puddings branded as "Grab 'n Snack" now.

Anyway, packaged pudding is not something I grew up with.  My school lunches always had mom's homemade cookies, and dinner dessert was always (again, homemade) pie or other goodie, or, perhaps ice cream.  We never had packaged pudding in our house.  When we had pudding, it was homemade.  As an adult, once I started going out to restaurants, I learned all about the joys of more sophisticated "puddings" like creme brulee, panna cotta, and the like.  My love of puddings deepened.  My culinary skills did not.  And thus, packaged pudding it was.

Butterscotch Pudding.

 I <3 butterscotch pudding.  I grew up with amazing homemade butterscotch pudding (usually in pie form), made by my grandmother, using a recipe handed down over the years (*dark* brown sugar, is the magic ingredient), that was made on the stove top over a double boiler and required constant stirring.  It was a labor of love, and, I really loved it.  Thick, rich, just, glorious butterscotch pudding.

I knew this would not be my grandmother's pudding.  I still had hope.

It was, as you may have expected, another fake tasting butterscotch, although unlike the Snack Pack, it at least wasn't plastic flavored.  But it was crazy sweet.  I also did not like the consistency, it was too runny.  I wanted richer, thicker.

I salvaged it with plenty of toppings and whipped cream, but I would not get again.

**+.