Peppermint Brownie Trifle

My mom needed to bring a dessert for a Christmas party at the job she just started.  Since I've had great success using my baking skills to buy friends at work, I volunteered to whip up a Christmas-y concoction.

First, I baked baked two batches of brownies.  I accidentally bought the cheap value mix that is only supposed to make an 8x8 pan, but I just spread it out really thin and made it take up a whole 13x9 pan.  This was only the first of several errors that could have potentially ruined things, but I managed to make them work somehow.  Once they were cool, I cut them up into bite sized pieces.

Then I made some pudding Cool Whip stuff.  It's supposed to be a semi-lite frosting recipe, but it always comes out too goopy to actually frost things with.  However, it makes fantastic trifle filling.  I intended to make this with a box of peppermint instant pudding that I could've sworn that I bought, but apparently I didn't.  I made another trip to Meijer only to discover that they were sold out of the pudding.  What a waste.  Instead, I improvised.  I used vanilla pudding and added red food coloring and peppermint extract.  It ended up working out quite nicely.

Then I whipped up another batch of the pudding Cool Whip stuff, but I only added green food coloring to this one.  I was afraid that too much peppermint would make it crazy since I'd also added some to the brownie batter.

Then I chopped up some Oreos.  The red ones are just regular winter ones.  The green ones are mint flavored.

My mom picked out a pretty glass bowl and I started layering things.  First I put a layer of brownies on the bottom.  Next, I spread some of the green pudding.  I added some more brownies and some red peppermint pudding.  In the middle, I added a layer of mint Oreo bits.  I kept layering until I ran out of stuff.

On the top, I sprinkled the rest of the chopped Oreos for a pretty red and green topping.

A side view.  It was so tasty.  I know I say that about everything I make, but this was crazy good.  Some of my mom's co-workers demanded the recipe.  I made a similar trifle in the fall using pumpkin spice pudding and spice cake, so you can use whatever flavor combinations make you happy.  Here's the peppermint brownie recipe:


2 packages brownie mix, cooked according to the directions on the box (or you can use any kind of cake mix)
2 4-serving packages of instant vanilla pudding (or whatever flavor you want the frosting to be)
1/4 cup peppermint flavored creamer
1/2 tsp peppermint extract
1 3/4 cup milk, divided
16 oz. Cool Whip, divided
8 oz. cream cheese, softened and divided
2/3 cup powdered sugar, divided
red food coloring
green food coloring
12 mint Oreos
4 red Winter Oreos
1.  Cut the brownies up into small squares.
2.  In a large mixing bowl, blend 4 oz. cream cheese and 1/3 cup powdered sugar together.  Add one package of pudding mix.  Stir in the peppermint creamer, peppermint extract, and 3/4 cup milk until the pudding mix is dissolved.  Add red food coloring and blend with the mixer on low until it starts to thicken.  Fold in 8 oz. of the Cool Whip.  Set aside.
3.  Mix remaining cream cheese and powdered sugar.  Add the second package of pudding mix.  Stir in one cup of milk until the pudding mix is dissolved.  Add green food coloring and blend with the mixer on low until it starts to thicken.  Fold in remaining 8 oz. Cool Whip.
4.  Chop Oreos and place into separate bowls.
5.  Place a layer of brownie pieces on the bottom of a large bowl.  Cover with a thin layer of the green pudding mixture.
6.  Place another layer of brownie pieces on top of the pudding and cover with a layer of the red pudding mixture.  Sprinkle some of the mint Oreo pieces on top.
7.  Continue layering until all of the brownies have been used.  Make sure there is enough pudding to completely cover the top of the trifle.  Sprinkle with red Oreo pieces and remaining mint ones.
8.  Chill for at least 2 hours before serving.

Peppermint Poke Cake

We all know that I love Pinterest recipes, and for good reason.  Now that it's December, it's time for me to switch from pumpkin to peppermint as my baking obsession.  I needed to make a dessert for a meeting at our house tonight, and I turned to this recipe I'd found for Better Than Christmas Cake.  It was super easy and super delicious.  The only problem was that it had to refrigerate for 4-6 hours before it was served, so I had to make it yesterday and then wait more than 24 hours to taste its peperminty goodness.  It was pure torture, but so very worth it.

I started by baking a plain old Devil's Food cake mix.  I doctored it up by adding a bit of peppermint extract to the batter, because let's face it: you can never have too much peppermint.  Once it had cooled, I used a wooden meat masher handle (does that thing have a technical name?) to poke a bunch of holes all over the cake.  I may have also sampled some of the crumbs that got stuck to said handle.  They were tasty.

Then I whisked together some sweetened condensed milk (ew) and York peppermint patty creamer and poured it over the cake.  York peppermint patty creamer is almost enough to make me wish I liked coffee.  I'm strongly considering adding it to my hot chocolate next time I make it.  We have a gigantic bottle now and nobody in our house drinks flavored cream.  Or I could just make another batch of this.

The next layer was made up of a jar of hot fudge sundae topping mixed with a bit more of the peppermint creamer and poured on top of the cake again.  This picture looks much tastier than the one above which sort of looks like the cake was eaten by mold.  I assure you that it was not.

I was actually supposed to mix a cup of chopped Oreos in with the chocolate, but I forgot.  Instead, I chopped them and sprinkled them on top.  This made it a lot harder to spread the Cool Whip top layer without picking up a bunch of crumbs, but I persevered.

Then I chopped another cup full of Oreos (the red winter double stuffed kind) and sprinkled them on top of the Cool Whip.  Perfection.  All I had to do was while away the hours waiting until it could be served.

The wait was so worth it.  It was gooey and pepperminty and sweet and chocolatey and everything you could ever want in a dessert.  Well, almost.  I also enjoy peanut butter, caramel, and pumpkin pie spices, among many other things, but you get the idea.

Here was my version of the recipe:

1 box Duncan Hines Devil's Food cake mix, prepared
1/4 tsp peppermint extract
1 1/4 cup York Peppermint Patty dairy creamer, divided
14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1 jar Kroger hot fudge sundae topping
2 cups (12 cookies) chopped double stuffed holiday Oreos, divided
8 oz. fat free Cool Whip

1.  Make the cake mix according to the directions on the box and add the peppermint extract to the batter.  Bake according to the directions and allow to cool completely.
2.  Get a straight, round kitchen utensil (ideally a wooden spoon) and poke a bunch of holes all over the cake.  Have some fun.  This is the best step.
3.  Mix 1 cup of the creamer with the can of condensed milk and pour over the cake as evenly as possible.
4.  Warm the hot fudge topping in the microwave for 30 seconds and then mix together with the remaining 1/4 cup of the creamer.  Stir in 1 cup of the chopped Oreos.  Pour this on top of the cake too.
5.  Spread the Cool Whip over the cake in a smooth, even layer.
6.  Sprinkle the remaining Oreos over the top so that they look pretty.
7.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours so that the delicious ingredients have time to soak into the cake.

Makes 24 servings, 301 calories each according to my MyFitnessPal recipe calculator.