Caramel Cream Browine Trifle

Over Christmas, I found this wonderful dessert recipe and decided to make it for Christmas dinner. And boy was it good!!! (Maybe not for your waistline, but it's the holidays so who's counting!?!?!) Anyhow, I wanted to share the recipe for anyone who might be interested! I did make a few changes, which I'll include.

Caramel Cream Brownie Trifle  

recipe from www.bettycrocker.com

1 box fudge brownie mix (I used a low-fat one and you certainly couldn't tell a difference!)

   water, vegetable oil, and eggs needed for brownie mix

1 box (4 serving size) instant chocolate fudge pudding/pie filling (I used the low-fat box)

2 cups milk

1/4 cup caramel topping

1 container (8 oz) frozen whipped topping, thawed (again, I used low-fat)

1 cup chopped walnuts (Aaron doesn't care for nuts and it didn't sound just right for this recipe. Instead, I got 2 regular sized Snickers bars and chopped them into pieces. I think something like Butterfingers or Reese's would also taste wonderful!)

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake brownie mix as directed on box in a 13x9 inch pan. Cool completely, about 1-2 hours. (I actually made mine the night before and covered the pan with foil overnight.)

2. Make pudding as directed, using milk. Refrigerate and let set-up. Meanwhile, cut brownies into 1 inch pieces. Additionally, mix caramel topping completely into thawed whipped topping.

3. In a 3 quart round glass dish (I used a 2.5 quart round casserole dish and it was full to the top, but everything still fit) layer in this order: brownies, pudding, walnuts or candy pieces, whipped topping mixture. Repeat. (It was recommended to only do 2 total layers rather than 3 smaller layers.) Drizzle additional caramel topping over the top and garnish with chocolate curls, raspberries, or other items as you desire. I used the bits and pieces left over from cutting up the Snickers bars.

4. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving but no longer than 24 hours. The longer it sits, the softer the brownies become. Store covered in the refrigerator. (We had a small amount of left overs and they tasted great the next day!)

Depending on the size of your glass bowl, you can easily get anywhere from 10-20 servings. Although it tastes so good, little servings will be hard to stick to!

I hope you enjoy this dessert as much as we did. Everyone at our Christmas gave it 5 stars!!!