Dirt Cake Brownie Trifle

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Dirt Cake Brownie Trifle – A combination of a dirt cake and a brownie trifle, this fun dessert is always a crowd pleaser.

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This past weekend we were attending a BBQ with my son’s Cub Scout Den.  My husband signed me up for making an appetizer, so I planned accordingly and bought my ingredients for skewers.  The day before the BBQ he says to me “I also signed you up for a dessert”.

Say, what now?

You guys know how I feel about making desserts, right?  I have zero patience.  I am an appetizer girl.  Maybe even a main course girl.  What I am not is a dessert girl.  I mean, yes, I make a mean Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cheesecake, but that isn’t exactly 8 year old boy type of dessert, ya know?

Whatever, I was going to roll with it.  I thought maybe I would make a good, old fashioned chocolate cake trifle.  I love trifles because it doesn’t matter how neatly you decorate, it all just gets dumped into a bowl and somehow looks pretty.

Anyway, I ran to the store so quickly that in my wicked rush, I must have grabbed a box of brownie mix instead of cake mix. 

Doh.

Since I was not heading back to the store, I decided to just go with it.

As a side note, if you don’t want to bake brownies or a cake, just buy a package of brownies or brownie bites etc.  No judgement here.  I’m all about what makes life easier.

Much to my surprise, it was a total hit.  So much so that my son came up to me at the BBQ and said “Mom, that dessert, is so good.  I’m so glad YOU made it and I want you to make it all the time”.

I did realize I made an epic mistake with this Dirt Cake Brownie Trifle.  I only put worms on the top layer for a decoration.  Apparently when catering to a huge group of 8 year old boys, there should be enough worms for everyone.  Lesson learned.

This Dirt Cake Brownie Trifle is so easy to put together.  My barely awake daughter (yes, in boy pajamas because she’s so cool she can pull it off), insisted on helping.  Pounding the Oreos and mixing up pudding are super easy steps the kids can help with.

Place layer of brownies on bottom of trifle bowl.

Mix up pudding according to package directions

Give the cookies a few good whacks to crumble

Spread pudding over brownies.

Sprinkle crumbled cookies over pudding layer.

Add a layer of whipped topping.

Repeat with another layer

Finish layers with a top coat of finely crushed cookies and arrange gummy worms around top.

5 from 1 vote

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Dirt Cake Brownie Trifle

A classic trifle gets a new spin by using brownies instead of cake and jazzing it up with crushed Oreos to create a dirt cake look.  Fun and festive, this is a crowd pleaser every time!

Ingredients

• 1 box brownie mix +ingredients called for on box (13x9 pan size)
• 2 3.9 oz boxes instant pudding mix + milk called for on boxes
• 8 oz container whipped topping (Cool Whip or similar)
• 32 oreo cookies , divided
• Gummy worms

Instructions

1. Prepare brownie mix for 13x9 pan. Allow brownies to cool completely. Chop brownies into small squares.
2. Place 1/3 of brownies on bottom of a trifle bowl (glass bowl).
3. Prepare pudding.
4. Spoon 1/3 of pudding over brownies.
5. Place 20 Oreos in a large plastic bag and whack with a mallet or rolling pin or roughly chop.
6. Place half of the chopped cookie mixture over pudding.
7. Spread 1/3 of the whipped topping on top of cookies.
8. Repeat layer.
9. For the third layer, add brownies, then pudding. Top the pudding with the whipped topping. Finely chop or whack the remaining cookies to create a finer crumb (to resemble dirt). Place crushed cookies over whipped topping.
10. Arrange gummy worms over or around the top of trifle.
11. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

This Dirt Cake Brownie Trifle can be made more adult-friendly by omitting the gummy worms, but in my opinion, even grown-ups enjoy a gummy worm every now and then.

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