Instant Pudding Makes These 4-Ingredient Triple Chocolate Brownies Irresistibly Fudgy

Photo byJust So Tasty

These brownies are the ultimate decadent dessert for chocoholics. Instant pudding makes them irresistibly rich and fudgy, while chocolate chips and boxed cake mix add even more flavor.

Best of all, this recipe is quick and easy to make. Because it has just four ingredients--instant pudding mix, milk, chocolate cake mix and chocolate chips-- it only takes about 5 minutes to prepare. Half an hour later, remove your brownies from the oven and enjoy. This is a great recipe to make after school with kids or to bring to fall events.

While the recipe calls for instant pudding mix, the original version dates to 1968 and used pudding heated on top of the stove. Pudding mixes surged in popularity during the 1960s and the recipe soon appeared on the back of Jell-O pudding boxes across the country. While I don't remember my grandmother making pudding brownies, she did bake a warm chocolate pudding cake that was out of this world.

Top these brownies with a dusting of powdered sugar or serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Or add a dollop of whipped cream and drizzle with chocolate sauce.

Triple Chocolate Brownies

Ingredients

1 (3.9 ounce) package instant chocolate pudding mix

2 cups whole milk

1 (15.25 ounce) box of chocolate cake mix

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 x 13-inch pan.

2. Pour the dry pudding mix into a large bowl, add the whole milk and prepare according to the directions on the package.

3. Whisk in the dry cake mix, then stir in the chocolate chips.

4. Pour the batter into the pan and smooth it out with a spatula (it will be thick). Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the top springs back when touched.

5. Let brownies cool about 10 minutes on a wire rack, then serve with a dusting of powdered sugar or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Notes

Be sure to use instant pudding mix, not the regular kind.

To make these quadruple chocolate brownies, add some crushed Oreos.

Sprinkle a few extra chocolate chips on top of the batter for a prettier brownie.

I use Duncan Hines Dark Chocolate Fudge cake mix to up the chocolate taste even more, but any standard-size chocolate boxed mix should work fine.

Add 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts if you want more texture.

You can experiment with different types of instant pudding and cake mixes. For blondies, try vanilla cake mix, milk and vanilla instant pudding mix with white chocolate chips. Or make strawberry brownies with strawberry cake mix, white chocolate chips, milk and strawberrry instant pudding mix.

These brownies will keep in the refrigerator for up to four days or for up to 3 months in the freezer. Because the brownies are so moist, they will stick together if you stack them so you might want to wrap each one separately.