The Death by Chocolate Trifle: What a Way to Go

Trifles are wonderfully easy summer desserts and ridiculously flexible.

National Chocolate Pudding Day is June 26. One way to celebrate: with this Death by Chocolate trifle. Easy to make, even if you actually make everything in it yourself! Amy Drew Thompson/Orlando Sentinel/TNS

By Amy Drew Thompson Orlando Sentinel

Newspaper readers, generally speaking, seek the truth.

This week’s dose comes courtesy of my decision to take two days off, which in the life of a newspaper columnist comes with a caveat: front-load the things you have to do before you leave or spend some fleet-footed time in The Great Hamster Wheel of Catch-Up on the flipside.

I split the diff between Columns A and B … and in my haste landed on something that timed out nicely: National Chocolate Pudding Day (June 26). A from-scratch chocolate pudding, I surmised, would be pretty easy to whip up—and likely widely appreciated.

For there is almost no acceptable reason for not liking chocolate pudding.

It’s smooth and creamy and cool and chocolaty. It’s great out of those little lunchbox cups. (Remember the cans? The filter of my Gen X memory bank has me convinced it tasted better than today’s plastic containers.) It’s great out of the Kozy Shack tub. It’s great plain or with whipped cream or swirled into cake batter where it imparts its lusciousness into the final product.

Chocolate pudding is glorious. And, indeed, I found it simple to execute.

My friend, Tony, called as I was making this chocolate pudding recipe from The Pioneer Woman, who credited its inclusion of egg yolks as a thickener (along with the more commonly employed cornstarch) with bringing ” … a little bit of that French custard feel to the pudding.”

“I’m making chocolate pudding,” I told him. “First time.”

“You never made chocolate pudding before?!” he asked.

The reaction seemed outsized. I don’t know Tony to be a particularly avid cook.

“I mean, I’ve made it from the box.”

“Wait. There’s another way to make it?”

That comment made more sense.

And as I whisked, I wondered if there weren’t more people out there who simply considered Jell-O and My*T*Fine “homemade,” as well. They’re not. Nor were the Duncan Hines salted caramel brownies I “made” to include in what became a “what to do with your from-scratch chocolate pudding once you’ve made it” column.

I chose the pudding recipe because it was a simple one in a week when I had no time to spare. But the Type A in me couldn’t sit with just the chocolate pudding recipe, and so this semihomemade Death By Chocolate trifle recipe. The original of which is ENTIRELY semihomemade. I had a laugh about that.

The author, Allrecipes contributor LaNita, says that this trifle is “a true favorite. Every time we have a church supper, I have to make this!”

I don’t doubt it.

Most people are just thrilled you show up with food. They don’t care if the pudding or brownies are from a box. The box stuff tastes good. This is why some folks don’t realize there’s another way to make pudding! There’s some more truth for you, along with the fact that they’ll also appreciate the extra work (and seriously, it’s not much) that goes into whipping up this truly silky pudding—for real from scratch.

Trifles themselves are wonderfully easy summer desserts and ridiculously flexible. This one is hellaciously chocolaty, but you could offset that by omitting the brownies in favor of cheesecake, pound cake, coconut cake, shortbread cookies or just about anything else. Instead of toffee bars, toasted nuts would make for a wonderfully crunchy texture (and an actual smidge of nutrition). You could also use this for divine inspiration and make a trifle with vanilla pudding. Or butterscotch. Or banana.

I made a more traditional Fourth of July version a few years back that would be ideal for any upcoming BBQ plans you might have.

Pudding is a universal good. No matter where it comes from.

Amy Drew Thompson's very first batch of actual, from-scratch chocolate pudding. Amy Drew Thompson/Orlando Sentinel/TNS

How to Make Chocolate Pudding

Recipe courtesy The Pioneer Woman (thepioneerwoman.com/food-cooking/recipes/a85701/how-to-make-chocolate-pudding)

• 2 large egg yolks
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 cups whole milk, divided
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons chocolate extract (or vanilla extract)

* I used vanilla

In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks for about 60 seconds until light yellow and increased in volume, then whisk in the cornstarch and about 1/4 cup of the milk. Once smooth and incorporated, set aside.

Place the sugar, cocoa, salt, and remaining milk in a saucepan and bring to a scald over medium-high heat, which is when the liquid is about 180-190 degrees F. This is before the mixture comes to a boil, and in this stage you will see little bubbles start forming on the sides of the pan. Remove the pan from the heat and, while whisking constantly, dribble the hot cocoa into the egg cornstarch mixture very gradually. We are tempering, so we don’t scramble the eggs. Pour everything back into the saucepan and cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until the pudding comes to a full boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and continue whisking for a couple of minutes until the pudding is thickened.

Remove the pudding from the heat and stir in the chocolate or vanilla extract. Pour the pudding into a bowl and press plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pudding so a skin doesn’t form. Refrigerate for an hour or two until chilled. Serve and enjoy!

Fudgy brownies are Amy Drew Thompson's preference to "cakier" ones, and wonderfully easy to dice for these single-serve trifles. Amy Drew Thompson/Orlando Sentinel/TNS

Death by Chocolate Trifle

Recipe courtesy Allrecipes (allrecipes.com/recipe/8308/death-by-chocolate-iii)

Brownies

• 1 (16.3 ounce) package brownie mix (such as Betty Crocker)
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons water

Other

• 3 (1.4 ounces) bars of chocolate-covered
• English toffee
• 1 (16-ounce) package frozen whipped topping, thawed

Follow box instructions for both brownies and chocolate pudding (if using scratch-made pudding, use provided recipe). Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking pan.

To assemble, crumble or chunk-chop brownies in the bottom of one large or four small trifle bowls. Spoon pudding over top. Layer on whipped topping then sprinkle crushed toffee bars over the top. Repeat layers in same order, ending with whipped topping.

Refrigerate until ready to serve, adding the final layer of chopped toffee bar before doing so.

You could accent this chocolate trifle any number of ways, including those that exclude toffee bars and include something that increases its nutritional properties, if marginally. Chopped nuts, for example. Amy Drew Thompson/Orlando Sentinel/TNS

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