Death by Chocolate

Last month, my husband and I got some bad news.

Then about 10 days later, we got some really, really good news.

The woman who is leaving the Herald, thus saving Tim's job, had her last day on Thursday. Tim and I figured the least we could do was bake something for her going away. I wanted to make something more complex and special than my usual bars or cookies. I suggested a dessert I haven't made in years, and Tim checked with Donna to make sure she likes chocolate. Turns out, she very much likes chocolate, so my suggested dessert - Death by Chocolate - would be perfect.

My mom used to make this dessert. I remember watching her make it and seeing the end product and just thinking how it was so complex, so time-consuming. That was in the early- to mid-1990's. Looking back at the recipe the other night, I realized that while it has several steps (and layers!), it's really not all that complex - only five ingredients, one of which I don't even use. But you'd never know that from tasting it. And it LOOKS like it takes forever to make. If there's one thing I like, it's saving time and making it look like I didn't :-)

Tim texted me with "death is a huge hit!" after he took it in to work. Which disturbed me on a literal level, but I understood. His favorite part of the dessert? The "marshmallow." And since there is no marshmallow, I deduced that he meant the whipped cream. He later told me the word most used by his coworkers to describe the dessert was "decadent." I'm pleased with that.

Ingredients:
1 (19.8 oz.) box fudge brownie mix
1/4 to 1/2 c. Coffee Liqueur
3 (3.5 oz.) pkgs. instant chocolate mousse
8 (1.4 oz.) chocolate covered toffee candy bars (like Skor or Heath bars)
1 (12 oz.) container frozen whipped topping, thawed

Directions:
Preheat oven according to brownie package directions. Bake brownies according to package directions; let cool. Prick holes in the top of the brownies with a fork and pour the coffee liqueur over brownies; set aside.

Prepare chocolate mousse according to package directions. Break candy bars into small pieces in food processor or by gently tapping the wrapped bars with a hammer (or cheat and buy the Heath bits that can be found near the chocolate chips in your grocery store!). Break up 1/2 the brownies into small pieces and place in the bottom of a large glass bowl. Cover with 1/2 the mousse, then 1/2 the candy, and then 1/2 the whipped topping. Repeat layers with remaining ingredients.

Note: Instead of the coffee liqueur, substitute a mixture of 1 teaspoon sugar and 4 tablespoons black coffee. Or just leave out the coffee flavoring entirely.

Dream Whip is ready ...

... to be combined with chocolate pudding to form chocolate mousse!

Aerial shot of the layered ingredients.

Source: The Mr. Food Cookbook