Layered Chocolate Pudding Cake

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This Layered Chocolate Pudding Cake was often requested for any birthday or celebration. It takes very little cooking time and can easily feed a crowd. It's a no-fail recipe!

chhcolate pudding cake in pan with layers exposed

Want to impress your friends and family? Make them this amazing dessert! Layered cakes are very easy to make everyone will rave about it!

This Layered Chocolate Pudding Cake is always requested for birthdays and family parties – you will definitely want to try it!

How To Make Chocolate Pudding Cake

The crust is so easy to make. In a medium sized mixing bowl combine the butter, flour, and walnuts. Then press the dough lightly into a prepared 9 x 13 inch pan.

Bake for 20 minutes and then let the crust cool completely.

 

Crust pushed into baking dish for pudding cake

In a large mixing bowl combine half of the Cool Whip, softened cream cheese, and powdered sugar. Cream together until smooth.

Carefully spread this mixture over the cooled crust. Set back into the fridge to set up for about 10 minutes.

The next layer is a smooth, chocolate pudding that goes perfectly with the crust and cream cheese layer. You will want to mix the 2 pudding mixes, milk and vanilla.

Beat with a hand mixer on low speed until it starts to thicken up. Carefully spread over the cream cheese layer.

cream cheese layer in chocolate pudding cake

 

Let that set up in the fridge for about 10 minutes.

Cover the pudding layer with the remaining Cool Whip.

How To Make Perfect Chocolate Curls

Want to make your cake look fancy? Add these easy chocolate curls. The secret: use a vegetable peeler to shave off the edge of the candy bar!

Sprinkle the curls over the top of the entire cake. We used the whole chocolate bar because we love extra chocolate curls.

Cut into squares and serve! Your friends, family or party guests will LOVE it.

Chocolate layer in pudding cake

Quick Tips

  • Place the candy bar in the freezer at the beginning of your recipe prep, and by the time you make the chocolate curls it will be frozen for the perfect curls. It melts quickly in your warm hand.
  • This layered chocolate pudding cake can be made ahead of time and refrigerated until ready to serve.
  • Use a vegetable peeler for easy and perfect curls, running it along the edge.
  • Cool Whip works better than real whipping cream in this recipe.

Chocolate shavings on top of pudding cake

what are the best nuts to use in the crust?

We are often asked if peanuts or other nuts can be used when making the crust of this chocolate pudding cake. Walnuts or pecans work best in this dessert.

Pecans can sometimes be bitter, which makes them ideal for desserts. They are often found in brownies, cookies, and cakes. If you store them in the freezer, you can extend their shelf life.

Walnuts are always best when combined with anything sweet. That makes them a perfect candidate for chocolate pudding cake. They are often baked, which brings out their hidden sweetness.

Topping chocolate pudding cake with whipped cream and chocolate shavings

Easy pudding Substitutions

If you are not a big chocolate lover, you could easily substitute chocolate pudding for other flavors.

We have seen this recipe made with pistachio pudding and lemon pudding.  Y

ou can replace the chocolate curls on top with white chocolate, or a cookies and cream bar. So many options to make this dessert to your liking.

Pan of chocolate pudding cake with layers shown

how to store the leftovers

This layered chocolate pudding cake doesn’t last long at our house. It is popular at most family parties.

If for some reason you have leftovers, no worries. You can easily save the leftovers for the next day. Just cover will with aluminum foil or plastic wrap and keep in the refrigerator.

piece of pudding cake on plate garnished with chocolate shavings

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More tasty treat ideas

We love a good layered dessert! For similarly layered treats, check out our other favorite recipes:

Serves: 20

Pudding Cake

This Chocolate Pudding Cake is the ultimate dessert. With a nutty crust, creamy chocolate pudding, whipped topping and chocolate curls it is sure to be a crowd pleaser.

3 hrPrep Time

20 minCook Time

3 hr, 20 Total Time

Save RecipeSave Recipe

Ingredients

  • 10 Tablespoons butter (softened)
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1 (8 ounce) container Cool Whip divided)
  • 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese (softened)
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 (3.4 ounce) package instant chocolate pudding
  • 1 (3.4 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding
  • 3 cups milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 (1.45 ounce) chocolate Hershey's bar

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
  2. For the crust combine the softened butter, flour and chopped walnuts. Mix and then press into a lightly greased 9x13-inch baking pan.
  3. Bake crust for 20 minutes. Cool completely.
  4. In a large mixing bowl, cream together half the container of Cool Whip, cream cheese and powdered sugar.
  5. Spread carefully over the cooled crust and refrigerate.
  6. In another bowl combine chocolate pudding, vanilla pudding, milk and vanilla.
  7. Using a hand mixer, beat on low speed until thickened and spread over the cream cheese layer.
  8. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.
  9. Spread remaining Cool Whip.
  10. Use a vegetable peeler or grater to sprinkle chocolate bar pieces over top.
  11. Keep in refrigerator until served.
Recipe Type: Dessert
7.8.0.1
610
https://www.sixsistersstuff.com/recipe/pudding-cake/

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Comment on this Recipe

24 Responses to “Layered Chocolate Pudding Cake”

  4. Renee Rogers
    This recipe is a family heirloom in my family !!! My hubby's aunt made this every family holiday gathering during the 70's, 80's , 90's. and on up until very recently (she is elderly now) and she gave me the recipe in her own handwriting when I first got married in 1977. I just tried to pin this recipe and got a pop-up window saying it is a copyrighted recipe...and would not let me pin it. Not sure why it is copyrighted because I have had it for going on 4 decades now. . Still delicious, and a classic!
    April 4, 2015 at 10:37 pm
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  5. Kylie
    How cool to see this recipe! We have one that is pretty similar in my family and we call it Chocolate Yummy, it was a staple at our house on birthdays. Your picture brought on all sorts of nostalgia, thank you so much for sharing this, I'll have to try your version out soon!
    April 5, 2015 at 7:21 am
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  8. Soraya Cornick
    I've, also, had this recipe for approximately 35 years. Although, it was called Pistachio Dessert, because of using pistachio pudding rather than chocolate. So delicious!!! No topping sprinkled on it in my recipe. Although, ground pistachios would be yummy!!!
    August 9, 2015 at 8:46 pm
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    • Cyd
      Hi Celeste, a lot of people don't like cool whip. Here is a recipe that you can use in place of cool whip. This Stabilized Whipped Cream uses cream cheese and powdered sugar for thickening so you can use it as a replacement for Cool Whip! Ingredients 4 ounces cream cheese, softened at room temperature 1/3 powdered sugar 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla 1 cup heavy whipping cream Instructions In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla until soft and creamy. In another mixing bowl beat the heavy whipping cream just until soft peaks form. Add the cream cheese and beat until stiff peaks are formed.
      June 21, 2018 at 2:22 pm
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  15. Kennaanna
    I tried making this and my cream cheese layer kept taking the crust up. I had a big mess of mixed cream cheese and crust. Do you think my cream cheese was still too cold or what did I do wrong? It still tasted amazing but not beautiful layers.
    August 25, 2018 at 6:32 pm
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    • Cyd
      This recipe is one of our most popular dessert cakes. The crust needs to be completely cooled before adding the cream cheese layer. We like to put spoonfuls of the cream cheese layer all over the whole crust, then gently and carefully spread it around to cover the crust.
      August 27, 2018 at 1:48 pm
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