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Looking for more penny pinched recipes? Here you go!
Don't you just love when penny pinching makes you a wee bit resourceful, and the results turn out fantastic?
(Me too.)
Last week my sweet boy turned sixteen.
Sixteen.
However, over the weekend we'd purchased a new car (finally retiring my 10-year-old-190,000-mile-mini-van ~ eek!), and I've been determined to really be wise with our finances. (We were able to purchase our new-to-us-car using cash which is the coolest feeling ever. But, shelling out that much cash that's been saved hurts just a bit!)
So, I decided I was absolutely not going to buy anything we didn't need for at least a few weeks.
And then I remembered that IÂ needed a cake for my cute kid's birthday.
I went through my pantry, fridge and freezer to try to come up some genius plan, and remembered this E'clair cake a friend of mine made for us years ago.
It usually calls for cool whip, but I only had Kroger Reddi Whip in the fridge, so decided to make that work.
Goodness, that boy of mine was in heaven.
In fact, he asked this weekend if I could make him some e'clair cake again.
The moral of the story?
Get a little creative with what you already have before spending more moo-lah ($40 for a cookie cake? No thanks!) and your family might just enjoy that little penny-pinched-splurge too.
🍴 MENU TIP: This delicious dessert is from Week 1 of our Freezer Menu Planning Made Easy Set!Â
Directions
Mix together cool whip or reddi whip, pudding and milk. Layer graham crackers on bottom of 9×13 baking dish.
Next, spread half pudding mixture over graham crackers, then cover with another layer of graham crackers.
Spread remaining pudding mixture over graham crackers, then top with another layer of graham crackers.
  
Pop frosting in microwave and heat for about 30 seconds. Then spread carefully over graham cracker layer.
Refrigerate for 4-6 hours, then serve.
No Bake Chocolate Eclair Cake
Ingredients:
2 (5.1 oz) packages instant vanilla pudding
2 cans of dairy whipped topping (or one 8 oz tub of non-dairy whipped topping)
3 cups milk
1 package graham crackers
1 container chocolate frosting
Directions:
- In a bowl mix together the pudding mix, whipped topping, and milk until completely combined.
- Place a single layer of graham crackers in the bottom of a 9×13″ dish. Spread half the pudding mixture over the graham crackers. Top the pudding layer with another layer of graham crackers. Add the other half of the pudding mixture and top that with a final layer of graham crackers.
- Spread frosting over the graham cracker layer all the way up to the edges of the pan. Cover and chill for at least 4 hours before serving.
Save this for later!
Looking for more dessert recipes?
- Reese’s Peanut Butter Pudding Cookies
- Cake Mix Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cake
- Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Paula Deen’s Best Ever Carrot Cake
- Paula Deen’s Banana Pudding
Recipe adapted from All Recipes. Â If you need a little more menu inspiration, go HERE.Â
Can you freeze this? And if so how long to defrost? This makes way too much cake for my husband and I LOL
I have never tried freezing it, but I am sure it would work the same way! I would defrost it by taking it our of the freezer and putting it in the fridge for a few hours ahead of time, that way it stays nice and cold but defrosts for when you are ready to enjoy it! I hope that helps!
Are you simply mixing the pudding powder with the cool whip or do you make the pudding according to package directions?
Hi there! All you need to do is add the pudding powder. Super simple and easy! Hope that helps.
I really liked this one because I can now get gluten free graham crackers, so this recipe will make a delightful GF dessert for all of us that suffer celiac.
That’s great to know! I’m so glad you can enjoy this dessert! It’s one of our favorites!
I made this and my husband LOVED it! He said it tasted just like a chocolate eclair.
I have made this with fruit also strawberries blueberries and peaches you make it the same way as with the chocolate . I loved the strawberries and peaches the best give it a try.
Thanks so much for the suggestion, Theresa ~ sounds super yummy! 🙂
What size of pudding mixes do you use and what size tub of cool whip does this call for?
Hi Katherine! You’ll want to use the larger 5.1 oz boxes of pudding mix, and an 8 oz tub of the Cool Whip ~ hope that helps! 🙂
That’s what I came to comments for. Couldn’t you please edit the recipe to include the size information for that and the non dairy topping?
Hi Cathy! The sizes are included in the post. Hope that helps! Let us know if you try it! It’s so yummy!
If I hadn’t seen you pour the microwaved chocolate frosting over the dessert in the making I wouldn’t have believed it. Thanks for sharing . I bought a new to me also , took a loan have car payments & increased car insurance payments . Working into the budget puts a whole new perspective on needs & wants. Enjoy your newer car. I bought a 2001 in 2004 . It was time .
So glad it helped Gaeyl, and thank so much for sharing! 🙂