The discovery of a new dish does more for the happiness of mankind than the discovery of a star. -- Anthelme Brillat-Savarin --

Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Faithy’s Favorite Layered Dessert




HOWDY friends…praying you are well and happy on this wonderful day that our Lord has made for us!  I seriously can’t believe how long it’s been since I posted something here.  How does life get so busy?!

Anyway, I’ve recently had several requests for this recipe, so I figured the easiest way to share it would be to post it here.  I have no idea where it originated.  It’s one of those recipes that have been around church potlucks pretty much forever, and there are about a million variations floating around in cyber-space as well.  One of the things I love most about it, is that you can make so many variations of it.  It is very easy to put together, and always a hit!

 
Faithy’s Favorite Layered Dessert 
Ingredients:
Layer #1:   1 cup flour
                  1 cup finely ground nuts (I prefer pecans, but use whatever you like)
                  1 stick of butter or margarine, melted

Layer #2:   8 oz. cream cheese, softened (fat free or low fat work as well as regular)
                  1 cup whipped topping (I’ve used regular, fat free & sugar free - all good)
                  1 cup powdered sugar (regular or Whey Low)

Layer #3:   2 small packages instant pudding (Chocolate, coconut & pistachio are my favorites, but feel free to experiment with whatever flavor you like!  I’ve seen a pumpkin variation that sounds yummy, and a lemon one too.  As with the other ingredients, sugar free pudding works fine too.)
                  3 cups milk (I generally use fat free, but use your favorite)

Layer #4:   Additional whipped topping and topping of your choice (use your imagination!)
                  --For chocolate pudding try chopped roasted pecans or almonds, chocolate sprinkles or chocolate curls for a nice touch
                  --For coconut pudding I use toasted coconut
                  --For pistachio pudding use chopped pistachios

Directions:
Mix layer #1 ingredients and press into a 9x13” pan.  Bake at 350° for 15 minutes (or until lightly golden).  Let cool.  Mix layer #2 ingredients and pour onto 1st layer.  Mix layer #3 ingredients and pour onto other layers.  Top with additional whipped topping and sprinkle with topping of your choice.  (You'll need to work carefully when spreading each layer if you don't want them to mix together.  I've found that if I plop spoonfuls of each layer around the pan, it's easier to connect them together, rather than starting from one big blob in the middle.)

It’s really easy to make the different layers the day before and refrigerate them in separate containers.  Then you can put it all together just before serving.  If you layer everything too early, sometimes the colors from the pudding start to run a bit.  (The chocolate pudding will make your other layers a bit pink.)  It will still taste great, but may not be as good to look at.

I apologize for the poor photo…as many times as I’ve made this, you’d think I’d have a better one.  LOL!  Maybe I’ll remember to take a better one next time I make it.

If you haven’t already, you definitely need to give this recipe a try.  It’s been a favorite in our family for years, and I hope it will become one in yours as well.  Please leave a comment to let me know if you’ve made it before and what variations you’ve used.

I hope it won’t be quite as long before I check in with you again!
Blessings,
--Faithy

7 comments:

  1. I see this in my families future...say Sunday dinner? :)

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  2. Let me know how it goes. Which one do you think you'll try? You made a similar version with pumpkin a while back. I still need to try that one.

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  3. Made the coconut version for Sunday Family Dinner tonight. It was a hit! Love the bottom crust layer...I may increase it slightly, as I had a hard time getting it to cover bottom of my 9x13, and everybody said it was the best part. And because it was so thin, it kept coming up when I was trying to spread out the cream cheese layer. That was aggravating to me, but in the end didn't matter a bit. Yummy!

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    1. Oh, and I totally forgot to take a photo!

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    2. So glad they liked it. It does take some practice to get the crust to spread out to the thickness you want. I always dollop the cream cheese layer all around in spoonfuls, then basically just mash them out more than spreading them. I do that with the upper layers too. :-)

      I never can remember to get a good picture either, and I've literally made this dessert a hundred times. LOL!

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  4. I make this with pistachio pudding, and chocolate curls on top. It's a favourite, for sure!

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    1. I just made the pistachio version for our big family Easter BBQ last Saturday. So yummy!

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