# For Baking Cakes: Cook & Serve pudding=Instant?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-baking-cakes-cook-serve-pudding-instant/666355>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [August 15, 2013, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-baking-cakes-cook-serve-pudding-instant/666355 "2013-08-15T21:53:28Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\
**Post date:** [August 15, 2013, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-baking-cakes-cook-serve-pudding-instant/666355/1 "2013-08-15T21:53:28Z")

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I have a few recipes which call for a packet of instant pudding to be added to it. Of course, when I went to the store, I grabbed the wrong one, and got Cook & Serve style pudding. Will this work just as well in my cake recipe as instant?

Thanks,  
hh

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**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\
**Post date:** [August 15, 2013, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-baking-cakes-cook-serve-pudding-instant/666355/2 "2013-08-15T22:58:28Z")

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I would be hesitant since they obviously get thickened through different mechanisms. And cakes are more touchy than lots of other baking. In looking at the ingredients, the cook and serve thickens via cornstarch and the instant via “disodium phosphate and tetrasodium pyrophosphate.”

Ingredients for cook and serve: Ingredients: Sugar, Dextrose, Cornstarch, Modified Cornstarch, Contains Less than 2% of Natural and Artificial Flavor, Salt, Calcium Carrageenan (Thickener), Polysorbate 60 (Prevents Scorching), Yellow 5, Yellow 6.

Ingredients for instant: Ingredients: Sugar, Dextrose (from Corn), Modified Food Starch, Contains Less than 2% of Natural and Artificial Flavor, Salt, Disodium Phosphate and Tetrasodium Pyrophosphate (for Thickening), Mono- and Diglycerides (Prevent Foaming), Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Artificial Color, BHA (Preservative).

I’ve looked at recipes that specify adding a box of pudding and they really do specify between the two types. That could be that they didn’t experiment with the other, or it could be that they knew what they were doing.

I did find [this recipe](http://www.browneyedbaker.com/2012/04/17/diy-homemade-instant-vanilla-pudding-mix/) for homemade instant pudding though. That might be worth something for you.

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**Author:** ![amaguri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/49beb7/32.png) [@amaguri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amaguri)\
**Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-baking-cakes-cook-serve-pudding-instant/666355/3 "2013-08-16T00:12:58Z")

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I’ve used both in the past and they both seemed to produce perfectly fine results.

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**Author:** ![boozilu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4da419/32.png) [@boozilu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boozilu)\
**Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-baking-cakes-cook-serve-pudding-instant/666355/4 "2013-08-16T01:11:46Z")

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Most recipes I’ve used that ask for instant pudding state that cook n serve will not work.

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**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\
**Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-baking-cakes-cook-serve-pudding-instant/666355/5 "2013-08-16T01:17:06Z")

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Thanks for the help, all!