Burnt Pudding?

Generally...when I've burnt a pastry cream, pudding, lemon curd, custard, etc....I just pitch it and start over. But as sdebrango put it...the only way to know for sure is to taste it.

Very likely, it is NOT ruined. A bit of burnt as you describe it, might even add a smoky note to your pudding.

The only way to really know is to taste it. If you acted quickly you could possibly save the pudding but burnt flavor permeates pretty fast. I have had pudding stick before and it's been usable, I guess it depends just how badly burnt it is.