Donna's Delight

We have a favorite dessert in our family. A special treat we make every once in a while that never lasts as long as we wish it would. The story behind the recipe for this dessert is pretty different than most recipes I have in my cookbooks. It actually got passed down from my grandma to my mom to the rest of us. And, my grandma got the recipe from a lady on a bus... No joke.

On the way home from work one day, my Grandma Cail saw a lady holding a 13x9 dish that was completely empty and looked like people had used their fingers to get as much off the dish as they could. My grandma knew that any dessert good enough that it makes people practically lick the serving plate clean, must be a dessert worth making. So, just like that, she got the recipe from the sweet lady on the bus, who thankfully wasn't one of those "it's a family secret" kind of person. No offense to people that are that way, but unless you are seriously trying to make a living off that one recipe, I believe in recipe sharing.

When my Grandma asked for the name of the dessert, the lady actually couldn't remember the exact name (Either that, or my grandma liked the name she came up with better. Lol.) so my grandma named it Donna's Delight after the lady that gave her the recipe. And just like that, this heavenly dessert recipe became a loving and cherished member of our famil... err, cookbooks. Haha!

Here's how to make this wonderful dessert...

First, combine 1/2 cup melted butter with 1/4 cup sugar, 1 cup flour, and 1 cup finely chopped nuts (the nuts are optional and I usually just leave them out). Pat this mixture down into the bottom of a 13x9 baking dish.

Poke this first layer with a fork a few times and bake it at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 minutes or until cooked and not quite browning yet.

Let the bottom layer cool while you make the next two layers.

For the cream cheese layer, combine 1 cup Cool Whip, 8 ounces cream cheese, and 1 cup powdered sugar in a mixing bowl. Mix with an electric mixer until just blended. Once the crust is cooled, spread the cream cheese layer over the top of it.

Next, make the chocolate layer by mixing together 2 small packages of chocolate instant pudding mix with 3 cups of milk. When it is thick and set, spread it over the top of the cream cheese layer.

To finish it off, spread 1 medium package of Cool Whip on top of the chocolate layer. I usually just get the larger tub of whipped topping and use whatever is left for the topping after combining a cup of it with the cream cheese layer above.

At this point, you can add mini chocolate chips (like I did below) or sprinkles to the top to make it a little more festive, but that part's totally optional.

As a side note, the Donna's Delight that is in the pictures is one that I made for an extended family dinner on John's side. I knew it would probably be gone by the time everyone was done, so I made sure I had a piece just big enough to take a picture of for when we got home. Unfortunately (although, not unfortunate for David. Haha!) I put the piece on the table when I got home and my little boy came into the room and swiped his fingers across the top before I even saw it coming. So, at that point, what could we do but share the last piece. Really, though, I wasn't even mad.