Make an easy Decadent Chocolate Ice Box Dessert

Recently I have found myself thinking, as I peruse recipes on FaceBook and on line, many of these things are truly not healthy.  Loaded with sugar, fat, and process products, desserts may look delicious, but I would be a tub if I ate them everyday!  So what did I pull together this morning?  A Decadent Chocolate Ice Box Dessert loaded with cream cheese, instant pudding mix and peanut butter, covered with whipped cream.

My version of a ice box dessert

I’m sure I have been influences by all the different recipes I’ve seen on line and on Pinterest.  I knew I didn’t have a lot of graham crackers on hand, but I had some creme cookies.  I knew I had cream cheese, but I didn’t want just a plain cream cheese layer.

I just bought vanilla and chocolate instant pudding mixes last week.  And plenty of cream in the fridge to make whipped cream, which is so much better than the frozen whipped topping…but if that’s what you’ve got, use it!

I used a 7 x 9″  baking pan, which held the amounts of layers I made perfectly.  Double the recipe to make a 9 x 13″ pan.  Spray the pan with baking spray to prevent the layers from sticking.

I didn’t even bother to wash the bowl between creaming the cheese /peanut butter and pudding layers.  Any cream cheese that made it’s way into the pudding is welcome.  If you make your own whip cream, definitely use a clean bowl and beaters, and the cream will whip better if both the bowl and beaters are cold.  The cream should be kept in the fridge until ready to whip.  Cold utensils and cream with whip into lighter and better whipped cream.  No shame in using frozen (thawed) whipped topping if that’s what you prefer.

Decorate the top with your preferences.  I sifted over a bit of cocoa powder, but cocoa nibs, shaved chocolate or mini chocolate chips would be beautiful as well.  If you use lemon pudding, sprinkle with lemon zest.  Just something to indicate the flavor hidden under the whipped cream.

So I will eat healthy the rest of this week, but for today I will indulge with my chocolaty- peanut nutty-creamy ice box confection.

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Fox Pines Decadent Chocolate Ice Box Dessert

An ice box cake made chocolatey with chocolate pudding mix, but vanilla or other flavors would work as well. The crust bakes for 10 minutes, and everything after that is cold.  Chill at least 2 hours prior to cutting.

Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword choclate cream cheese pie, chocolate peanut butter ice box pie, icebox pie
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
cooling time 30 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 1 7 x 10" pan

Ingredients

For the bottom crust

  • 6 sheets graham crackers
  • 6 each cream cookies - chocolate or vanilla/chocolate with creme
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup self rising flour
  • 6 tbsp melted butter

Cream cheese - Peanut butter layer

  • 1 oz block of cream or Neufchatel cheese, softened
  • 1/4 cup confectioners sugar
  • 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2-3 tbsp heavy cream

For pudding layer

  • 1 package instant chocolate pudding or try vanilla, lemon, butterscotch
  • 2 cup cold milk

Whipped cream layer

  • 1 cup heavy cream/ whipping cream
  • 1/4 cup confectioners sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla

Instructions

Crust

  1. Crush graham crackers and cookies together into fine crumbs either by hand or in a food processor. add in the flour and sugar, and mix.  Pour in the melted, slightly cooled butter, and mix well until all the crumbs are moist.

  2. Spray a baking pan with nonstick spray, and press the crumbs into the bottom.

  3. Bake 375F for 10 minutes.  Cool completely.

Cream cheese layer

  1. Using hand mixer, put softened cream cheese, and peanut butter in a medium size bowl.  Add  vanilla and salt.  Mix until creamy.  It will be thick, so add cream, 1 tbsp at a time, until it has a spreadable consistency.

  2. spread over the cooled crust

Pudding layer

  1. prepare the pudding per the package instructions with the milk.  I did it right in the same bowl and using mixer beaters I creamed the cheese with, no washing  in between.  I figure added flavor into this layer.

  2. Once  the pudding mix starts to thicken, but before it sets all the way, pour it over the cream cheese layer.

The whipped topping

  1. to make whipped cream, use a clean bowl and clean beaters (refrigerated if possible to make them cold) and whip the cream on high until soft peaks start to form.  Add the vanilla and sugar and whip another minute or so until thickened and peaks form. 

  2. Spread over the pudding layer.

  3. Sprinkle the top with 1 tsp cocoa powder, mini chocolate chips, or make small shavings of chocolate.

    if using lemon, sprinkle with lemon zest.  Vanilla pudding - chopped white chocolate chips