In a medium saucepan, whisk together the cornstarch, sugar and salt. Slowly whisk in the milk, in a thin steam at first so that lumps don’t form, then more quickly once the cornstarch mixture is smoothly incorporated. Place over medium-low heat and stir occasionally, scraping the bottom and sides. If any lumps begin to form, use a whisk to break them up. After 15 to 20 minutes (slower over lower heat is better, to give the cornstarch time to cook), before the pudding starts to simmer, the mixture will thicken, enough that it will coat the back of a wooden spoon. Add the chocolate, and continue stirring for another 2 to 4 minutes, until chocolate is fully incorporated and mixture is quite thick.

Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.

Divide warm pudding among 6 individual pudding cups or one large serving bowl, and chill until it is cool and set, about 2 to 3 hours. If you dislike pudding skin (I happen to like it!), place plastic wrap on top of the pudding and smooth it gently against the surface before refrigerating. This recipe can easily be prepared a day prior to serving.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, whip cream until stiff. Add powdered sugar and whip until combined and very stiff. Remove whipped cream to a separate bowl and set aside. Add cream cheese to mixer bowl (no need to wash the bowl or whip attachment) and whip until very smooth, with no lumps. Add creme de menthe syrup and whip to thoroughly combine. If you really like mint (like we do!), add up to 2 teaspoons of pure mint extract. And if you want the mint grasshopper cream to be a deeper green color (we did!), add a bit of green food paste until the desired color is reached. Mix to incorporate.

With a spatula, gently fold in 1-1/2 cups of the reserved whipped cream (you will have some left over). Place mint grasshopper cream in refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes.

Fold the cooled mint grasshopper cream a couple times, and then spoon it into a pastry bag fit with a large star tip (I used Wilton 1M). Pipe swirls of the grasshopper cream onto the tops of each chilled pudding cup. You could also skip the pastry bag and just spoon a good sized dollop of the grasshopper cream onto each pudding cup.

Sprinkle with chocolate shavings and serve immediately, or place in refrigerator to serve within one day.