Ingredients:
- 1 box of vanilla wafers, crushed
- 1 cup pistachios, ground
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 1/2 cups milk
- 3 egg yolks
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon of almond extract
- a few drops green food coloring
- 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
- 1 small container of marshmallow fluff
- 1 regular container of cool whip
- 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 tsp vanilla
- Zest of 1 lemon
Pudding Procedure:
- For the pudding start by using a food processor, grind the pistachios as fine as you can get them. Then add the powdered sugar and process a few times to combine. Add water to pistachios to create a paste.
- In the 1.5qt sauce pan, combine the milk and pistachio paste, heat over medium low until it begins to simmer (do not let it boil), stirring occasionally. Once milk mixture begins to simmer, remove from heat and cool for 5-10 minutes.
- In a separate bowl, slightly beat egg yolks.
- In a small cup or bowl, combine the cornstarch and 2 tablespoons of water to create a paste.
- Once the milk mixture is cooled slightly, add a few tablespoons at a time of milk to egg yolks while whisking to avoid cooking eggs, repeat this process two more times. You don’t need to add the entire mixture just enough to warm up the eggs without cooking them.
- Pour the entire egg mixture back into the milk mixture and warm it back up over medium low heat. Add the cornstarch & water paste. Stir constantly.
- Once the pudding thickens and coats the back of your spoon, remove from heat and stir in almond extract and green food coloring.
- Once pudding has cooled slightly (about 15 minutes) cover with plastic wrap (placing wrap directly on pudding to avoid pudding skin) and chill for 4+ hours.
Whipped Topping Procedure:
In the bowl of a stand mixer combine the cream cheese and marshmallow fluff and beat until creamy and smooth. Add the cool whip and the heavy whipping cream and mix until incorporated. Fold in the lemon zest.
Assemble the Parfaits:
The easiest way to make the layers look “professional” is to put the pudding and whipped topping in separate pastry bags; then pipe them into the dishes. If you don’t have a pastry bag don’t worry you can use a large baggie, just snip off one of the corners. Then layer start with crushed up vanilla wafers on bottom then the pistachio pudding and finally the whipped topping. To add a pretty finished look, add some crushed pistachios on top.