Gingerbread Trifle

A delicious dessert to celebrate the season! Gingerbread trifle is layered with butterscotch, pudding, cake, gingersnaps and fluffy whipped cream.

After I made our apple butterscotch trifle this fall, I wanted to bring that butterscotch flavor into Christmas too. Today I introduce to you the Gingerbread Trifle, with gingerbread cake, gingersnaps, butterscotch pudding, pumpkin puree and Cool Whip.

This refreshing dessert is special because it serves a crowd and makes an impressive presentation for Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday parties.

Why you’ll love this recipe:

• Delicious flavor combination of gingerbread & butterscotch.
• Unique texture combinations of smooth pudding, moist cake and crispy gingersnaps.
• Make ahead dessert for family and friend gatherings.
• Gorgeous presentation in a glass trifle dish.

What are the layers of a trifle?

Trifles are traditionally made up of layers of fruit, cake, pudding and whipped cream. For this dessert, we switched up the flavors and instead used gingerbread cake and gingersnaps in the layers with butterscotch pudding, pumpkin purée and whipped cream. You’ll love the different textures of the firmer cake and soft cream with the crunchy gingersnaps.

How to Make a Gingerbread Trifle

There are step you should think about beforehand is the gingerbread cake. You’ll need the cake mix and the ingredients on the back of the box. Mix this cake up and bake it beforehand so it has time to cool before building the trifle.

• Prepare the butterscotch pudding as instructed by the box. Store the pudding covered in the fridge until you are ready to make the trifle.
• Mix the pudding, pumpkin puree and vanilla together in a medium sized mixing bowl until well combined.
• In the bottom of a trifle dish, crumble up ⅓ of the gingerbread cake and break up some gingerbread cookies.
• Add a layer of the pudding mixture, then a layer of the whipped topping.
• Repeat those layers until you are at the top. The final layer should be whipped topping.
• Crumble some gingersnap cookies and sprinkle on the top for decoration.

Recipe Variations

• The gingerbread box mix could be swapped out for entirely ginger snap cookies or spice cake.
• Butterscotch pudding could be swapped out for vanilla or cheesecake
• Add a layer of chopped pecans or walnuts if you’d like.
• Use low fat Cool Whip, sugar free pudding and skim milk for lower calories.

That’s the great thing about trifle, it’s so flexible you could really use your imagination here… and it always looks spectacular in the trifle dish!

Storage Instructions

This trifle should be stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. An easy way to allow cling wrap to cover the top without ruining the ‘look’ is take some toothpicks and stick both ends into a small chunk of gingersnap cookie. This will allow it to sit on top of the cream and lift the plastic wrap too without spoiling the decoration.

Can I freeze this recipe?

I wouldn’t recommend it. One of the joys of trifle is that the different layers/textures are perfect fresh. After being frozen together for so long like that … I don’t think you’d have the same texture after freezing.

Gingerbread Trifle

4.86 from 14 votes

A delicious dessert to celebrate the season! Gingerbread trifle is layered with butterscotch, pudding, cake, gingersnaps and fluffy whipped cream.

Servings 20

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

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Ingredients

 

For the layers:

• 1 box gingerbread cake mix (14.5 ounces, plus ingredients on the back of the box)
• 7 ounces instant butterscotch pudding mix (two 3.5 ounce boxes)
• 4 cups milk
• 16 ounces gingersnap cookies
• 15 ounces solid pack pumpkin puree
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 24 ounces frozen whipped topping thawed

Instructions

 

• *Prepare ahead: Prepare the gingerbread cake mix as instructed by the box. Bake in advance so the cake has time to cool.
• *Prepare ahead: Prepare the butterscotch pudding as instructed by the box. Store the pudding covered in the fridge until you are ready to make the trifle.
• Mix the pudding, pumpkin puree and vanilla together in a medium sized mixing bowl until well combined.
• In the bottom of a trifle dish, crumble up ⅓ of the gingerbread cake and break up some gingerbread cookies.
• Add a layer of the pudding mixture, then a layer of the whipped topping.
• Repeat those layers until you are at the top. The final layer should be whipped topping.
• Crumble some gingersnap cookies and sprinkle on the top for decoration.
• Store in the refrigerator until serving.

Notes

I used Betty Crocker brand of gingerbread cake mix.

Refer to the article above for more recipe variations, tips and tricks.

The calories shown are based on the cake being cut into 9 pieces, with 1 serving being 1 slice of cake. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the calories shown are just an estimate. **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information. The information in the nutrition box are calculated through a program and there is room for error. If you need an accurate count, I recommend running the ingredients through your favorite nutrition calculator.**

Nutrition

Calories: 359kcal | Carbohydrates: 58g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 6mg | Sodium: 393mg | Potassium: 311mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 36g | Vitamin A: 3414IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 127mg | Iron: 3mg

Author Julie Clark

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Calories 359

Keyword christmas dessert, trifle recipe

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