Have you ever noticed that trifles are so often made with vanilla pudding and vanilla wafers or shortbread or angel food cake? Where’s the chocolate? I’m here today to change that. This Chocolate Berry Trifle involves Oreos and chocolate pudding, which means you can’t possibly go wrong. Unless you don’t like chocolate–then you’re just plum out of luck. It’s quick and easy to whip up, can be made in individual dishes or one large one, and makes a great dessert for the 4th of July due to the red, white, and blue berries and cream.

Ingredient Notes

Cool Whip – Not a fan of Cool Whip? That’s ok! Whip 16 ounces of heavy cream with 1/2 cup powdered sugar to use in its place.
Cream Cheese – Full fat or low fat will both work here. Avoid fat free.
Oreos – We all know and love this name brand, but any sandwich cookie will do here. Feel free to switch things up according to your personal taste!
Pudding and Berries – Yes, this is a recipe for Chocolate Berry Trifle, but this same method works for other flavor combinations. You could switch out the chocolate pudding for vanilla and/or change the berries for a different flavor profile. Banana pudding, Nutter Butters, and bananas would be a yummy combo, especially if you snuck a spoonful of peanut butter into the topping!

How to Make Chocolate Berry Trifle

For the chocolate pudding layer, blend together a package of instant chocolate pudding, some water, and a can of sweetened condensed milk. Then whip some cream and fold it all together into a rich mousse.
Next, whip together some softened cream cheese and 2 containers of thawed Cool Whip (or whipped cream, if you prefer).
Lastly, chop up some Oreo cookies, wash and slice a pint of strawberries and wash our blue(ish) berries (blueberries or blackberries work great).
Finally, layer it all up! You can do this however you please. For these pictures, in individual serving dishes, I did a layer of pudding, followed by Oreos, berries, the whipped cream cheese mixture, and topped with more berries and Oreos. If you’re making this is one large trifle dish, simply repeat the layers until you use up all of your ingredients. I do recommend finishing the top off with a layer of the whipped cream cheese mixture and garnishing with berries and cookie pieces.

Serving Suggestions

This a seriously delicious red, white, and blue (plus chocolate) dessert for Memorial Day or the 4th of July, but really, when berries are cheap and awesome, it’s perfect all summer.

Looking for other patriotic desserts? Check out our Independence Day archives for a list of yummy red, white, and blue treats!

FAQs

Can I make these ahead of time? The best way to prep this Chocolate Berry Trifle ahead of time is to prepare the pudding and whipped cream cheese mixture up to 24 hours in advance and store in airtight containers in the fridge. You can also prep all of your fruit and chop your Oreos. Layer everything together within a couple of hours of serving. You can, of course, put it all together earlier, just remember that the longer it sits, the softer the cookies become.
What if I don’t have a trifle bowl? Trifle is a beautiful dessert that looks best in a clear bowl. If you don’t have clear dessert dishes, try mason jars or drinking glasses! Don’t own any suitable clear serving dishes? No worries; this trifle is just as delicious when you can’t see the layers.

Did You Make This?

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