Layered Chocolate Pudding Dessert (for two)

 

It must have been in the mid 1980's when I was having coffee with my friend from across the road and she said to me, "You need to try this dessert I made! It's delicious!"

She cut me a piece and I enjoyed it with my coffee and agreed that it was one of the most delicious desserts I had ever eaten.  "What's it called?" I wanted to know! 

 

"Sex in a pan!" She piped up. Cue in nervous laughter here.  "That's a racy name!" I said.  "That's a racy dessert!" she replied. 

I don't think I ever really got quite comfortable with the name, but I know that my family surely loved the dessert. It was a firm favorite at my table for many, many years.

 

Now that I am a singleton, I thought that I would never taste it again, not unless I was having loads of people over for dessert.  If you think it's hard having a full-sized main course hang around your refrigerator for a few days, try it being dessert!

There is nothing worse than having a full-sized dessert in the refrigerator and there only being you to eat it!  And I'm not joking when I say that.  Too much of anything is well, just TOO much!  And, to be honest, I just don't need to be eating that much dessert!

 

I picked up this Taste Of Home Magazine/book at the grocery store the other week, entitled Cooking for Two, 124 recipes sized just right.  This is the second or third recipe I have been tempted to cook from it.

I flagged it as soon as I saw it!  It was a smaller, two serving sized recipe, for my old favorite!  Layered Chocolate Pudding Dessert! I set my mind towards making it as soon as I could get in all the ingredients.

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE LAYERED CHOCOLATE PUDDING DESSERT

Nothing too extraordinary really. Some ingredients might be a bit more difficult to find in the UK. Wherever possible I have made a suitable suggestion for substitutions! 

• 1/3 cup (41g) all purpose, plain flour
• 3 TBS finely chopped toasted pecans
• 3 TBS butter, melted
• 3 ounces (85g) cream cheese, softened
• 1/3 cup (43g) icing sugar
• 1 cup whipped topping, divided (120ml/1/2 cup cream whipped until stiff)
• 2/3 cup (156ml) cold milk
• 3 TBS dry instant chocolate pudding powder (In the UK use chocolate angel dessert mix powder)

 

 

I always like to toast my nuts for baking and cooking with. I usually do them a whole bag at a time and keep them tightly covered in a container in my freezer.

To toast nuts, spread them out into a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet.  Toast in a preheated moderate oven (375*F/190*C/ gas mark 5) for 8 to 10 minutes. You will know they are done when you can smell them.  Nice and toasty!

 

Toasting really enhances the flavor of nuts.  And it's not really a difficult thing to do.  For this recipe you will want to chop your nuts fairly fine. I use one of these Zyliss food choppers.  

I had a Pampered Chef one in the UK.  I would never want to be without one of these. They are great for chopping small amounts of nuts, onions, celery, etc. As Martha would say, it's a good thing!

 

You can use low fat pudding mix and cream cheese. Both will work fine. I know that you can't get pudding mix in the UK, or at least you couldn't when I was living there, but Angel Delight is pretty close to the same thing and will work beautifully in this recipe.

Icing sugar is powdered sugar, or confectioner's sugar as it is also called.

 

HOW TO MAKE LAYERED CHOCOLATE PUDDING DESSERT 

There are three basic components to the dessert.  The crust, which must be baked, and then a cream cheese, plus a chocolate pudding layer. Whipped cream sits on top.

None of it is very difficult to make.

 

Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*F/ gas mark 4. Have ready two 8-ounce dessert cups.

Whisk the toasted pecans and flour together. Add the melted butter and mix well to combine. Press this mixture down into the bottom of each dessert cup, pressing it in firmly and dividing it up equally.

Bake in the preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely on a wire rack.

Whip your cream until stiff. Divide it in half.

Whip the cream cheese together with the icing sugar until smooth. Fold in half of the whipped cream. Divide this mixture equally between the two dessert cups, placing it on top of the crust and smoothing it out.

Whip the chocolate pudding mix and the milk together until smooth and soft set. Spoon half of the mixture into each dessert cup, covering the cream cheese mixture and smoothing it out. Divide the remaining whipped cream between both cups and smooth it out over top of the chocolate pudding.

Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

 

This was every bit as delicious as I remember it being. Incredibly moreish.  So good that I am secretly relieved that there are only two servings. One for me to enjoy, and then one to share with a neighbor.  She never complains.

I do have a similar full sized dessert recipe here on the blog for those of you who have larger families.  Refrigerator Fudge Cake. It is not in layers like this, and is a bit more complicated to make, but I can promise you it's delicious. Nobody will complain!

If you are a smaller sized family and appreciate smaller sized desserts, you might enjoy the following:

DARK CHOCOLATE LAYER CAKE FOR TWO - A moist and delicious six-inch layer cake.  Filled and topped with a lush vanilla buttercream. I added a layer of cherry jam in the middle as well. Cuts into 4 perfect pieces.

RICE PUDDING FOR TWO - Almost nursery food  . . . warm hug food.  Little kernels of rice encircled by rich milky custard.  I love the skin on top.  It's my favorite bit.  This is perfect food for the winter blues. I like mine with a dab of jam. How do you enjoy yours?

Yield: 2

Author: Marie Rayner

Layered Chocolate Pudding Dessert

Cook time: 30 MinTotal time: 30 Min

A cool, creamy and chocolatey indulgence for two people. You can make it as low fat as you like, depending on what you use to make it.

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup (41g) all purpose, plain flour
• 3 TBS finely chopped toasted pecans
• 3 TBS butter, melted
• 3 ounces (85g) cream cheese, softened
• 1/3 cup (43g) icing sugar
• 1 cup whipped topping, divided (120ml/1/2 cup cream whipped until stiff)
• 2/3 cup (156ml) cold milk
• 3 TBS dry instant chocolate pudding powder (In the UK use chocolate angel dessert mix powder)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*F/ gas mark 4. Have ready two 8-ounce dessert cups.
2. Whisk the toasted pecans and flour together. Add the melted butter and mix well to combine. Press this mixture down into the bottom of each dessert cup, pressing it in firmly and dividing it up equally.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely on a wire rack.
4. Whip your cream until stiff. Divide it in half.
5. Whip the cream cheese together with the icing sugar until smooth. Fold in half of the whipped cream. Divide this mixture equally between the two dessert cups, placing it on top of the crust and smoothing it out.
6. Whip the chocolate pudding mix and the milk together until smooth and soft set. Spoon half of the mixture into each dessert cup, covering the cream cheese mixture and smoothing it out. Divide the remaining whipped cream between both cups and smooth it out over top of the chocolate pudding.
7. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Did you make this recipe?

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I ate it all, yes I did, and I enjoyed it too! It was lush and delicious, just like I remembered it being!

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