Easy Cottage Cheese Pudding recipe with 3 ingredients, 24 grams of protein per serving, and ready to enjoy in just 5 minutes!
We also love this cottage cheese chocolate pudding a lot!
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Once I made cottage cheese bark, I realized its base makes an excellent pudding, and even more amazing cottage cheese tiramisu.
Who knew this protein-packed ingredient could steal the healthy dessert spotlight?!
Cottage cheese pudding is a winner! You won’t taste the saltiness of cottage cheese at all thanks to the magic of maple syrup and vanilla masking it. It’s sort of like chia pudding but made with creamy cottage cheese.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Just 3 ingredients: Made with just cottage cheese, vanilla and sweetener of choice.
- High in protein: This recipe makes 2 servings and each serving contains 24 grams of protein. It’s also gluten free and low carb.
- Tastes amazing: I don’t know any kid that likes cottage cheese and my boys eat this pudding as healthy breakfast or healthy snack with no problem!
- Lasts well for days: Refrigerate this pudding made with cottage cheese and it will taste like fresh even on day 5. Perfect for meal prep.
Ingredients for Cottage Cheese Pudding
Short and sweet, you only need 3 simple ingredients to make this cottage cheese pudding recipe.
- Cottage cheese: Use full fat cottage cheese for a richer, creamier pudding, I typically choose 2% fat or higher. If you’re using 0% or 1% fat cottage cheese, it will work but might be slightly less creamy.
- Maple syrup: Sweeten naturally with maple syrup or honey, I went with maple syrup this time.
- Vanilla: Pure vanilla extract enhances the overall flavor and helps hide the salty taste of cottage cheese.
How to Make Cottage Cheese Pudding
Here’s a quick overview how to make cottage cheese protein pudding using just your blender.
You’ll find a full recipe card below.
- Combine ingredients: To a high speed blender, add cottage cheese, maple syrup and vanilla.
- Mix: Blend for 2-3 minutes until smooth, occasionally pausing to scrape the blender’s walls with a spatula.
- Serve: Divide into bowls or storage containers and enjoy it plain or with your favorite toppings.
Tips for Best Results
Here are some valuable tips for making a delicious cottage cheese pudding that will win over non-fans.
- Don’t blend in a food processor: Using a food processor will yield a gritty texture and won’t maintain the pudding’s creaminess. Stick with a high speed blender, or if needed, try an immersion blender.
- Blend thoroughly: Avoid a clumpy pudding by ensuring everything breaks down smoothly.
- Don’t cut recipe in half: Your blender will have a tough time processing such a small amount of ingredients. Follow the recipe and store any leftovers in the fridge.
- Adjust the sweetness: Feel free to switch between maple syrup and honey, adding a little less or more based on your personal taste.
- Buy lower sodium cottage cheese: Look for around 250 mg per serving if you can, this makes it easier to mask the salty taste. Keep in mind all brands vary. Good brand is Good Culture but use what you can find.
Variations and Toppings Ideas
I sprinkled raspberries on top, but honestly, the possibilities to tweak the flavor are endless, here’s a few ideas:
- Sugar free: Use sugar free maple syrup or an allulose or monk fruit sweetener such as Lakanto or Swerve.
- Fresh fruit: Top with fresh seasonal fruit like raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, sliced strawberries or bananas, mango, kiwi, peaches, or cherries.
- Up the protein: Enhance your protein pudding with cottage cheese by adding up to 1 scoop of plain or flavored protein powder. I like grass fed whey protein powder, you can try a plant-based protein powder but will need to add a bit more of liquid like milk.
- Add crunch: Top with chopped almonds, walnuts, pecans, peanuts, or granola.
- Spices: Add a pinch of cinnamon or nutmeg for warm and comforting flavors.
- Chocolate: Toss in up to 2 tablespoons of cacao powder or cocoa powder to the blender, or top with chocolate chips or chocolate shavings.
- Sauces: Drizzle with caramel sauce, chocolate sauce, honey, melted peanut butter or nut butter.
- Delicious dessert: Mix or top with strawberries and crushed graham crackers, crushed Oreo cookies, or shredded coconut and pineapple.
How to Store
Store: Transfer cottage cheese pudding leftovers to an airtight container and let it chill in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Meal prep: Portion it into single servings in Mason jars or small airtight glass containers, keeping any toppings separate, and enjoy a healthy grab-and-go breakfast.
Freeze: I typically do not recommend to freeze cottage cheese because the water content can cause it to become icy. You will not enjoy its texture upon thawing. It is fine to enjoy it while frozen in a form of cottage cheese ice cream though.
FAQs
Almost not. The maple syrup and vanilla do wonders in masking that salty flavor. Even if you’re not a fan of cottage cheese, you’ll find this pudding enjoyable.
Feel free to use any fat variation you prefer, whether it be full-fat, low fat, or fat free cottage cheese. If you’re able to find a lower in sodium cottage cheese, I recommend it for less salt content and taste. Also organic cottage cheese will contain less additives like carrageenan, if you can find one.
There is lactose free cottage cheese you can buy like Good Culture, PC and Gay Lea brands.
I don’t recommend halving the recipe, those few ingredients will give your blender a workout and it won’t be able to blend them into desired creamy consistency. An immersion blender could do the trick. I would follow the recipe, toss it in the fridge, and enjoy more tomorrow!
More Cottage Cheese Recipes to Try
- Cottage cheese bagels
- Cottage cheese ice cream
- Cottage cheese egg bites
- Cottage cheese egg bake
- Cottage cheese scrambled eggs
More Healthy Pudding Recipes
- Chocolate chia pudding
- Brown rice pudding
- Coconut milk chia pudding
- Banana chia pudding
- Matcha chia pudding
Cottage Cheese Pudding
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups cottage cheese
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a high speed blender, add cottage cheese, maple syrup and vanilla extract.
- Process until smooth, about 2-3 minutes, pausing and scraping the walls of a blender with a spatula a few times.
- Transfer to a bowl or storage containers, and enjoy on its own or top with your favorite toppings.
