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piece of samoas chocolate pudding dessert on white plate with bite taken out

Samoas Chocolate Pudding Dessert {Coconut + Caramel}

Yield: 15 servings
Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
2 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 50 minutes

Ingredients

Coconut Crust:

  • 1 ½ cups (150 g) graham cracker crumbs (about 10-11 rectangle crackers)
  • ½ cup (43 g) toasted, shredded coconut (I use sweetened coconut)
  • 6 tablespoons (85 g) butter, melted (I use salted butter)

Caramel + Pudding Layers:

  • 1 cup caramel sauce (about a 10-ounce jar)
  • 4 cups chocolate pudding (homemade or prepared from a box - see note)

Cream Cheese Layer:

  • 8-ounce package (227 g) cream cheese, softened to room temperature
  • ½ cup (57 g) powdered sugar
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 cups heavy cream

Toppings:

  • Toasted, shredded coconut (I use sweetened coconut)
  • Caramel sauce, for drizzling
  • Hot fudge or chocolate sauce, for drizzling

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs, coconut and melted butter until well combined. Press into an even layer in the bottom of a 9X13-inch pan. Bake for 8-10 minutes until lightly golden and fragrant. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
  • Spread the caramel sauce evenly over the cooled crust.
  • Spoon the pudding in large spoonfuls over the caramel sauce and spread into an even layer all the way to the edges of the baking pan. If the pudding is really soft, refrigerate for 30-45 minutes before adding the cream cheese layer.
  • For the cream cheese layer, in a medium bowl with an electric handheld mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the cream cheese and powdered sugar together until well-combined and smooth, 1-2 minutes. With the mixer on medium-low, add the vanilla. Gradually add the heavy cream while mixing, and whip until the mixture is thickened to soft peaks, 1-2 minutes.
  • Spoon the cream cheese mixture in large spoonfuls over the pudding layer, and spread into an even layer all the way to the edges of the baking pan. Refrigerate for 2-3 hours so the layers can set up.
  • Before serving, sprinkle the top with toasted coconut. Drizzle with caramel sauce and hot fudge sauce. (This can be done up to an hour ahead of time; the coconut will start to soften if it's added too far in advance.)

Notes

Chocolate Pudding: I use this homemade pudding recipe for this recipe with the following changes - increase the cocoa to 1/4 cup and use semisweet chocolate chips.
Coconut: I use sweetened, shredded coconut and toast it by spreading the coconut in an even layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet and baking in an oven preheated to 350 degrees F for 8-12 minutes, checking and stirring often. This microwave method for toasting nuts also works well for toasting coconut.
Hot Fudge Sauce: if the hot fudge sauce you are using needs to be warmed to be pourable, warm it very lightly so it's drizzle-able but not so hot that it melts the cream cheese layer.