I hate cliches.
Years of college writing classes beat them out of me. But forgive me for this, past writing professors. This rings true for this particular dessert:
A death by chocolate trifle: you can make it the easy way, or the hard way.
The hard way would involve making every element from scratch. Which is what I had prepared to do.
Chocolate cake, chocolate pudding; a topping of chocolate mousse. Topped with a lovely smothering of whipped cream. I could have easily made each one of the elements from scratch– and about three quarts of heavy whipping cream.
But I did this the easy way.
It was bad enough that I was going to be turning on the oven. Did I really have to torture myself by making from-scratch chocolate pudding on a hot July day, too?
This chocolate dessert recipe is more about assembly than ingredients. While I’m sure that it could inspire Romantic poetry if made from full-fat and full-sugar ingredients, it merely inspires smiles and speechlessness when made from instant mixes. Which is enough for me.
My mom used to make this dessert for EXTRA special occasions. It inspires all sorts of fabulous childhood memories for me.
Death By Chocolate Trifle
- 1 box devil’s food cake mix (plus eggs & oil required)
- 1 box chocolate pudding (plus skim milk required)
- 1 box chocolate mousse mix (plus skim milk required)
- 1 Heath bar
- Cool Whip (not pictured, because it was defrosting in the fridge…)
- Prep the cake, pudding, and mousse according to package directions.
- Smash the Heath bar to smithereens by opening it, putting it in a ziploc bag, and then whacking it with a rolling pin.
- Let the Cool Whip defrost in the fridge. (Does anyone else remember how they used to make chocolate Cool Whip? That was the. shit.)
- Once the cake is cool enough to handle and the pudding/mousse is all set, it’s time for assembly. Keep in mind: the cake should be a wee bit warm. You’ll see why in a second.
- Jigsaw the cake into the bottom of your vessel. I used a footed trifle bowl that I got at Ross for about $10.
You’re going to want to make sure the cake is still warm. Because… - Next, pour your pudding on top of the warm cake. Add another layer of cake, then the mousse. It’ll look something like this:
- Now, here’s the hardest part: let the trifle sit in your fridge for at least 4 hours. All the pudding will soak into the warm cake layers, making a delightfully gloopy and heavenly chocolately cake. When you just can’t stand it anymore, top the trifle with Cool Whip and then sprinkle on your toffee chunks.
Enjoy.
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{ 41 comments… read them below or add one }
I love the easy way. Simple and delicious.
one day, i’ll make it from scratch. but for right now? this was PERFECT!
This looks delicious! I’m bookmarking this to make next time I’m on dessert duty.
I found your link via Tip Junkie.
Jessica Hayes recently posted..Banana No More
thanks for stopping by! it’s way easier than it looks– great secret recipe to have in your back pocket!
Divinely decadent!
i say, because the pudding has skim milk, this is all good for me.
This sounds heavenly! I love anything with toffee in it! You should come and enter my cookbook giveaway (if you like cookbooks)? http://eatcakefordinner.blogspot.com/2011/07/30-minute-rolls-and-giveaway.html
thanks! i’m up to my eyeballs in cookbooks, but i’m stopping by!
Sounds yummy… I miss being able to eat chocolate!
Stef recently posted..I’m Backing, Why Don’t You?
gaaaaasp… not being able to eat chocolate! how do you LIVE?
I LOVE chocolate, but the caffeine upsets my tummy. I went mostly caffeine free/decaf in 1987! I do make Pioneer Woman’s Best Chocolate Sheet Cake because I know how much cocoa is in it and if I cut the pieces then I get less than 2mg caffeine which is less than my decaf tea! :D When I made it for Hubby it was the first “real” amount of chocolate I’d had since 1987! I was in HEAVEN!
Have you made her cake?
Stef recently posted..They’re back!
oh, my gosh. that’s frightening!
YUM. HOLY CRAP that looks/sounds delicious.
liz @ btb recently posted..Remember that ugly mirror from a few months back?
seriously. for the fact that hands-on prep takes about 20 minutes, it cannot be beat.
Chocolate heaven! :) I like how it sorta goes from dark chocolate at the bottom up to lighter shades of chocolate, then the white topping. Super cute!
If you’d like, I wanted to invite you to share your best recipes over at my new party, Recipe Sharing Monday at Jam Hands. I’m going to be featuring my favorite submissions during the week and I’d love it if you’d join in the fun. :O)
Ali recently posted..Puppy Chow
popping over now! thanks!
Oh my, I need some of this! Looks awesome :)
it’s FAB. and so easy to make! the hardest part is waiting for it!
Yum!!! As a dedicated chocolate lover, this recipe jumped out at me on Wow Us Wednesdays! I’ll have to remember this one. :)
thanks! it’s going to be my go-to party dessert all football season, for sure!
This looks so incredible. Chocolate heaven.
next time, i think i’m going to put individual servings in little mason jars… portable heaven!
Chocolate is my favorite food group–this looks soooo yummy–I gained 5 pounds just looking at this. Gotta go make one!
i wouldn’t be able to survive if i couldn’t eat chocolate… i’m not really exaggerating, either!
Nothing wrong with taking the “easy way” in August. Looks truly divine!
Ada recently posted..The Dog Days
thanks! maybe in winter i’ll make it from scratch… with hot fudge?
YUMMY!!! We make something similar and to be honest, I had never even thought of making things from scratch. Love the way you make it. It looks delicious!
M recently posted..Pillowcase
thank you! that top, fluffy layer of mousse and cool whip is my favorite part!
I love this recipe and the funny but apt name. I made this when my kiddo was small, she is twenty now. I was just telling my friend about it yesterday so I will bookmark your site for both of us. Thanks bunches. Olive
yes! i’m 25 and my mom made this when i was a kid, too. i think the irony of the name “death by chocolate” took some explaining to kids so little– but we were instantly hooked!
one word ‘ Yummy’
MmmMmMmMmm! This is terrible for a diet :( but looks soo good!
Oh my! This is going to the top of the “Must Make” list.
Yum!
Kimberly :-)
Sounds like death by delight to me! Mangoes and Chutney’s Fat Camp Friday is now open Friday at midnight (EST)! I would love if you stopped by and linked up this recipe!
http://mangoesandchutney.com/2011/08/fat-camp-friday-39-brown-sugar-bacon-jalapenos.html
Ooooh delightful! I would happily take my death by way of chocolate overdose lol. I hope you will come share this at my VIP party today. http://designergarden.blogspot.com/2011/08/vip-party-22.html
I’m so glad to see that you linked up this week. Thank you so much for sharing this at Recipe Sharing Monday. I hope to see you back next week!
Hello Emily, I’ve found your gorgeous king of trifles in my Google+ sparks (following the stream for “trifle”), what a beauty! Will go and grab your RSS feed, thank you for the inspiration,
Cheers from good old Germany :)
Ily
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this is one of my favorite desserts! thanks for sharing!
Simple and delicious. that’s frightening! I found your link via Tip Junkie. Chocolate heaven!
Rebekah Reeves recently posted..Arthritis Tips
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