Death by Chocolate 

By Dan Pelosi

Updated July 1, 2026

  • Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Maggie Ruggiero.
Media 1 of 2
Total Time
3 hours (includes at least 2 hours’ cooling and chilling)
Prep Time
15 minutes
Cook Time
45 minutes, plus cooling and chilling
Rating
5(470)
Comments
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Death by Chocolate, which by name suggests that it’s so rich and decadent that it may cause one to simply expire, commonly takes the shape of a trifle dessert. It consists of layers of crumbled brownies or chocolate cake, chocolate pudding and whipped cream, plus a  fourth layer that  is either crumbled chocolate sandwich cookies or chopped up chocolate toffee bars. The assembled trifle is  placed in the fridge to rest in peace until served cold. While often made with boxed cake, pudding mixes and Cool Whip, this recipe contains easy homemade versions of all three.

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Ingredients

Yield:8 to 10 servings

FOR THE CAKE

  • Softened butter or nonstick baking spray for the pan

  • 2 cups/256 grams all-purpose flour

  • 2 cups/402 grams granulated sugar

  • ¾ cup/71 grams unsweetened cocoa powder

  • 2 teaspoons baking soda

  • 1 teaspoon baking powder

  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt

  • 1 cup/240 milliliters hot coffee

  • 1 cup/240 milliliters buttermilk

  • 1 cup/240 milliliters vegetable oil

  • 2 large or medium eggs, lightly beaten

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

FOR THE PUDDING

  • ½ cup/100 grams granulated sugar

  • ¾ cup/71 grams unsweetened cocoa powder

  • ¼ cup/32 grams cornstarch

  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt

  • 4 cups/960 milliliters whole milk

  • 4 tablespoons/57 grams unsalted butter, cut into pieces

  • 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

FOR THE WHIPPED CREAM

  • 1 pint/475 milliliters heavy whipping cream

  • 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

FOR THE CRUNCH LAYER

  • 1 cup chopped chocolate toffee bars (such as Skor or Heath) or 1 cup crumbled chocolate sandwich cookies (such as Oreo)

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 to 10 servings)

91 grams carbs; 119 milligrams cholesterol; 868 calories; 25 grams monosaturated fat; 6 grams polyunsaturated fat; 21 grams saturated fat; 55 grams fat; 1 gram trans fat; 6 grams fiber; 686 milligrams sodium; 12 grams protein; 60 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Prepare the cake: Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with softened butter or spray with baking spray. Line the pan with parchment paper, and then grease the paper with softened butter or spray with baking spray.

  2. Step 2

    In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Stir in coffee, followed by buttermilk and vegetable oil. Add the eggs and vanilla extract and mix well. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, 35 to 45 minutes. Set the pan on a wire rack and let cool completely, about 2 hours.

  3. Step 3

    Meanwhile, make the pudding: In a medium saucepan, whisk to combine the sugar, cocoa powder, cornstarch, and salt. Add the milk and whisk until combined. Set the saucepan over medium heat. Whisk constantly as the mixture heats up and thickens. When thick and bubbling all over, about 12 minutes, remove from the heat. Immediately add the butter and vanilla and whisk until butter is fully melted. Pour pudding into a heat-proof bowl and cover the top of the pudding with plastic wrap, gently pressing it directly onto the surface so that it does not form a skin. Refrigerate until ready to use. (Pudding can be refrigerated up to 2 days.)

  4. Step 4

    Make the whipped cream: Add heavy whipping cream, sugar and vanilla to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat at medium speed for 3 to 4 minutes, scraping the bowl with a spatula a few times and stopping when stiff peaks form. Refrigerate until ready to use.

  5. Step 5

    Assemble the trifle: Cut the cake into 2-inch squares. Arrange half of the pieces in a pile at the bottom of a 4-quart trifle dish or a large bowl, avoiding large gaps between pieces. Don’t worry if they crumble. Spread half of the chocolate pudding on top of the cake, gently pushing down as you go. Next, add half of the whipped cream on top of the pudding, then sprinkle half of the crunch layer pieces evenly on top. Repeat layering once more, until you have filled the trifle dish. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, up to overnight. Serve chilled, directly from the fridge.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
470 user ratings
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Comments

Megan Elizabeth

Don’t wimp out!! Fold in melted chocolate to the whipped cream ! If I’m gonna die by chocolate, let me die properly by chocolate.

Jeff

Oh, there is no such thing as homemade Cool Whip my friend. That's like homemade McDonald's french fries. I've sent mixers to the grave making real whipped cream. But Cool Whip is its own thing. It's a unique food product. There is no substitute. To be clear, I am encouraging no one to actually eat Cool Whip...

LaurelMomof2

My mother would drizzle Kahlua liqueur over each layer of cake in her version of this trifle. It was always a hit!

Pallen

Shortcut for busy parents/lazy cooks - I used Trader Joe's gluten free double chocolate muffins (which are terribly decadent and you can't tell are gluten free). I cut each muffin into eighths and proportions worked perfectly with the pudding and whipped cream in this recipe .

ama

This made a humongous amount — we haven’t eaten it yet but I made it for 8 and it looks like way more than we will ever eat. I think it would serve 16.

Dindi

I put orange zest in the whipped cream. The dessert, with or without the zest, was spectacular, rich, so decadent!!

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