Chocolate Pudding Sundae Cake

This recipe comes from my late stepmother, who made it frequently to bring to Holidays and parties because it's so easy and so good!  Brought back lots of good memories making this and thinking about her.  

The crust is buttery, oh so buttery - I mean, after all, it's just flour and butter mixed together with your choice of nuts (optional) and then baked.  Topped with a cream cheese, confectioner's sugar and cool whip mixture followed by chocolate pudding, then more cool whip.  Add more nuts and Maraschino cherries (again, both optional) to really make it like a sundae!  I opted to use pecans in the crust, but didn't use any on top.  The original recipe calls for walnuts, but I didn't have any nor do I like them!    

Certainly not the prettiest dessert to take pictures of.  Usually it doesn't come out of the pan this nice and neat, but I really worked at it.  The best part is, it doesn't matter because you want to taste all the layers together in one bite and if it gets all mixed up as you serve it, then all the better!

Serves 18-20

Chocolate Pudding Sundae Cake

Crust
1 1/2 sticks butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup chopped pecans

First layer
1 (8 oz) package of neufchatel cheese
2 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 (8 oz) tub light cool whip

Second layer
2 (3.4 oz) boxes instant chocolate pudding
3 cups milk

Third layer
1 (8 oz) tub light cool whip
Maraschino cherries
1/2 cups chopped pecans (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Make the crust by mixing the flour, butter and pecans, with a spatula or fork, until everything is combined and smooth.  Press into a 9 x 13-inch cake pan.  Bake for 15 minutes.  Let cool.

Make the first layer by beating the cream cheese and butter with a hand held mixer until smooth.  Add remaining ingredients, beat well.  Spread on cooled crust.

Second layer - combine the pudding mix and milk, mix well with a whisk.  Layer over cream cheese mixture.

For the third layer, spread the tub of cool whip over the pudding mixture.  Top with more pecans and Maraschino cherries (optional).

Allow cake to sit in fridge for at least an hour to firm up.  Serve cold and store in fridge.

Cherry Cheesecake Squares

A truly heavenly dessert.  Talk about easy too!  I loved the way the bars turned out, but this could easily be made in a spring form pan, like a typical cheesecake.   

The crust is so buttery, the cheesecake mixture creamy, then topped with tart cherries - it's a perfect combination all around!  Neufchatel cheese is just a fancy word for 1/3 less fat cream cheese (it's what I always buy and use in any recipe).   

Doesn't it just look pretty?  I had fun taking these pictures.  I love the brightness of the red!  

I almost doubled the cheesecake part of this because I was afraid it wasn't going to be enough filling.  I'm glad I didn't because I wouldn't change a thing now!  Because I made this in bar form, I didn't spread the graham crackers up the side, I just pressed them down into the bottom of the pan.  So you get this nice thick graham cracker crust.  SO, So good!!  

9 large bars

Cherry Cheesecake Squares

For the crust

1 stick butter, melted

1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs

1/4 cup sugar

For the filling and topping

1 (8 oz) package of neufchatel cheese, room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 (21 oz) can cherry pie filling 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Make the crust by combining the butter, graham cracker crumbs and sugar and mixing well.  Spread evenly over the bottom a 9 x 9-inch baking pan and press firmly.  Bake for 8 minutes and allow to cool while preparing the filling. 

With a hand mixer, blend neufchatel cheese and sugar.  Beat in eggs.  Pour over graham cracker crust and bake for 25 minutes. 

Cool and pour cherry pie filling over the top.  Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving. 

Chocolate Cherry Cupcakes

I am so glad these cupcakes turned out as cute as I envisioned them!  The cake part is the exact recipe for my Chocolate Cherry Cake, but I had to use a different type of icing because I couldn't pour the icing over these cupcakes like the original cake recipe calls for.  I remembered that I saw Ina Garten do a ganache icing that she just dipped the top of the cupcakes in.  And how easy, right?  No taking the time to spread icing on each cupcake.  Although I'm quite certain that Ina didn't use store brand semi-sweet chocolate chips for her icing, these turned out so good.  

How cute are they??  How perfect for a birthday party.  Our Chocolate Cherry Cake is an absolute must for any birthday in our family and I know that these would be such a fun surprise for anyone expecting a regular cake.  

Makes 18 cupcakes

Chocolate Cherry Cupcakes

1 box chocolate fudge cake mix

1 can cherry pie filling 

1 teaspoon almond extract

2 eggs, slightly beaten 

Icing

1/2 cup half & half

1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

18 maraschino cherries 

Make the cupcakes:  Preheat oven to 350 degrees and fill a 12-cup and 6-cup muffin pan with cupcake liners.  Combine the cake mix, pie filling, almond extract and eggs by hand and fill each cupcake liner about 3/4 of the way full.  Bake for 20-25 minutes until the cupcakes are puffed and a toothpick inserted into the center of one comes out clean.  Let cool before icing. 

Make the icing:  cook the half & half and chocolate chips in the top of a double boiler or heat safe bowl over simmering water.  Stir until smooth.  Dip the tops of the cooled cupcakes into the ganache and top with a maraschino cherry. 

(Source:  icing adapted from Ina Garten)

Chocolate Cherry Cake

Ahhh...Chocolate Cherry Cake...the easiest, most delicious cake you will ever eat! You are basically jazzing up a cake mix from a box, although it will taste like it took you hours. This past birthday (because it's a staple on birthdays!), my sister was visiting and we made this cake. We devoured it in a weekend's time...ate it for breakfast, lunch and dinner! This cake is very moist and will stay for days in the fridge. A tip about the milk for the icing...I've used everything from skim milk to heavy cream depending on what I had in my fridge. They all work just fine, it will just depend on how thick you want your icing. Obviously, the thicker the milk or cream, the denser your icing!

Chocolate Cherry Cake

1 box of Chocolate Fudge cake mix
1 can cherry pie filling
1 tsp. almond extract
2 eggs, beaten

Combine the ingredients by hand and pour into a greased 13x9 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. Cool before adding icing.

Icing

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk or cream
5 tablepoons butter
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Mix first 3 ingredients together in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add chocolate chips, stir until melted. Pour over cooled cake.