Lemon Pudding Recipe – 3 Ingredients!

At a glance

What stands out: Make creamy lemon pudding with only three ingredients: lemon, heavy cream, and sugar. It’s creamy and rich but so straightforward to mix!

How long it takes: 15 minutes to make, 3 hours to chill
Equipment you’ll need: saucepan
Servings: 2 (it’s straightforward to double the recipe)

A Friend’s Recipe

We're so excited to be sharing this recipe for lemon pudding which comes from our dear friend Mary’s newest cookbook. This is her third cookbook (hello, wonder woman!) and it’s all DESSERTS! It’s titled The Weeknight Dessert Cookbook: 80 Irresistible Recipes with Only 5 to 15 Minutes of Prep and it’s packed with memorable recipes.

We're a huge fan of Mary’s recipes! We've reviewed her first two cookbooks as well. We made blueberry crisp with coconut from her second book, The Weekday Lunches and Breakfasts Cookbook, and chocolate chip blondies from The Weeknight Dinner Cookbook, her first book. Both of those recipes are favorites with our family and we make them often.

3 Ingredient Lemon Pudding

It’s straightforward to mix! This pudding couldn’t be any easier! It is made without eggs, without cornstarch, and without stress! Pudding can be finicky, and this lemon pudding recipe is definitely not. (Three ingredient lemon pudding is also known as lemon posset.)

A creamy texture. The pudding is smooth, with a rich creamy feel in your mouth. It’s different from lemon curd or our lemon cake filling which are made with eggs. Since this pudding is eggless, you don’t have to worry about accidentally scrambling your eggs or ending up with clumps that have to be strained out.

Alchemy or just basic science? We're not a magician or a scientist but “something” basically happens with the cream and lemon so that the pudding thickens up to a beautifully smooth, thick consistency.

Carolyn Said:

“This pudding is so light and smooth and rich. And it is straightforward to prepare!”

See More Reader Reviews

Three Ingredients!

• Heavy Cream: Look for heavy cream or heavy whipping cream with at least 36% to 40% milkfat. A light whipping cream has lower milkfat content which means the pudding won’t set up as well. Half & half definitely won’t work.
• Sugar: Regular white granulated sugar sweetens the pudding.
• Lemon: You’ll be using the both the zest and the juice from one lemon (we usually buy two just in case!) Be sure to zest the lemon before you juice it. It’s much easier.

How it comes together

Zest the lemon. First wash the lemon well. Lemons are usually coated with wax to preserve them so use hot water and a scrub brush to remove the wax. Zest the lemon using a fine grater or microplane zester. You’ll need about a half teaspoon which doesn’t sound like much but it will add plenty of flavor.

Juice the lemon. Make sure to remove any seeds that slip in, or strain the juice. There should be enough juice in one lemon for this recipe (3 tablespoons) unless you have an exceptionally small lemon. Set both the zest and the juice aside for now.

Cook sugar and cream. Add the sugar and cream to a medium-sized saucepan and whisk together until well-blended. Over high heat, bring this mixture to a boil, stirring pretty frequently. Once it comes to a boil, let it boil for 2 minutes. You’ll want to stir it constantly while it’s boiling.

Add lemon. After the cream mixture has boiled two minutes, turn the heat down to medium. Add the lemon zest and juice, and continue stirring and cooking the mixture until it begins to thicken slightly, about two more minutes. It will still look pretty thin but it will thicken as it chills.

Chill. Pour the pudding into two serving dishes. This is a pretty generous portion of pudding. If you prefer, divide it into three or four dishes to make more servings. Refrigerate the pudding for two to three hours.

Serve. Lemon pudding is just reliable as is, or with a dollop of whipped cream. Garnish it with additional lemon zest or add a pretty lemon twist. We love to eat lemon pudding with graham cracker or vanilla wafer dippers, or if we're feeling more ambitious, lemon sugar cookies, honey lemon shortbread cookies, or lemon bread.

Keeping leftovers

Refrigerate: This pudding will keep in the refrigerator for up to five days. Let it come to room temperature, cover it with plastic wrap, and refrigerate promptly.

• Yield: 2
• Prep: 5 minutes
• Cook: 10 minutes
• Total: 3 hours 15 minutes

Ingredients

• ½ teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from 1 lemon)
• 1 cup heavy cream (at least 40% milkfat)
• ⅓ cup white granulated sugar

Method

1. Wash lemon well to remove protective wax. Using a microplane zester or fine grater, zest the lemon (it's much easier to zest the lemon before you juice it!). Juice the lemon, straining out any stray seeds. Set aside until ready to use.
2. Whisk together the cream and sugar in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, while stirring frequently. Allow the creamy mixture to boil over medium heat for about 2 minutes while stirring constantly.
3. Add the lemon juice and zest. Reduce the heat and continue stirring over a low boil until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. The mixture should still be quite thin and pourable.
4. Pour into serving bowls and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours or until ready to serve. The pudding will set as it chills.

Notes

Heavy cream: Be sure to use heavy cream or heavy whipping cream which has at least 36 to 40% milkfat. Light whipping cream or half & half won’t do the trick.

Lemon twist garnish: It’s straightforward to do and looks pretty. Refer to how to make a lemon twist. (You’ll need to buy extra lemons.) we like to add lemon twists to cocktails, too!

Storage: Once the pudding is cold, cover it with plastic wrap and keep it in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Yield: The recipe is written for two generous servings. You could easily divide it to make 3 to 4 smaller servings. If you want more servings, double the ingredients, or even triple them, as long as you have a large enough saucepan.