T he best instant pudding mix is creamy, comforting, and perfectly sweet. It should have a velvety texture that melts in your mouth, and a flavor that passes for homemade—and if it doesn’t ...

The recipe itself is really short (it does, after all, have to fit on the side of a small Jell-O box). It entails creaming butter and sugar and separately combining flour and baking soda.

1 package fat-free, sugar-free instant chocolate pudding mix. 2 cups fat-free milk. 1¾ cups fat-free whipped topping, divided. 2 sheets chocolate graham crackers, crumbled.

It wasn’t long after I dropped it off that my phone pinged with an incoming text. “My God, Woman. This banana pudding.” I was driving, so I couldn’t answer right away, but the reaction was ...