This samoas chocolate pudding dessert is rich and delicious! The coconut crust, caramel, chocolate pudding and cream (plus more toasted coconut!) make for one tasty dessert!

Hold on to your hats, because this elegant, over-the-top recipe is going to blow you away.

A combination of so many to-die for flavors: coconut, chocolate, cream cheese and caramel, it is an absolute showstopper.

Pan of samoas chocolate pudding dessert with one square of dessert removed.

Classic Samoas Flavors

If you are familiar with the old-school Girl Scout samoas cookie (or Caramel deLites), these flavors should look familiar.

Coconut + chocolate + caramel come together in this layered dessert that also gets a boost from a graham cracker-toasted coconut crust and a no-bake cheesecake layer.

If you’re wondering if this dessert is rich? Yes, yes it is. Is it sweet? Yes, yes it is.

Don’t go into this expecting the caloric equivalent of kale salad. This is meant to be an all-out, in-your-face dessert. And it makes no apologies for being just that.

Square of chocolate pudding dessert with toasted coconut on white circle plate.

The Samoas Chocolate Pudding Dessert Layers

While this finished dessert definitely gives off some intense vibes, it comes together more quickly than you might think.

Layer 1: a buttery graham cracker toasted coconut crust that bakes for about 10 minutes so it sets up perfectly crust-like.

Layer 2: caramel sauce. Storebought or homemade is totally appropriate here. You’ll want about 1 cup (or a 10-ounce jar).

Layer 3: chocolate pudding. Again, you can go the homemade route or mix it up from a box. This recipe calls for 4 cups of pudding. I use this homemade recipe, adapting it just slightly by increasing the cocoa powder to 1/4 cup and using semisweet chocolate chips.

Layer 4: a simple no-bake cheesecake layer which consists of cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla and heavy cream.

Assembling samoas chocolate pudding dessert with coconut crust, caramel sauce, chocolate pudding and sweetened whipped cream in glass 9X13-inch dish.

The Final Layer

And don’t forget the final most important layer(s).

More toasted coconut.

More caramel sauce.

And a beautiful drizzle of hot fudge sauce. Why? Because it’s absolutely the right thing to do.

Top down view of toasted coconut and drizzled caramel and hot fudge sauce on top of whipped cream.

An Epic Dessert

Once assembled, the layered samoas chocolate pudding dessert needs to chill so the pudding and cream cheese layers can set up just a bit.

To serve, you can scoop this dessert out with a spoon, casserole-style. Or, cut it into squares and plate nicely.

Small servings are just fine. Remember: it is rich. It is decadent. It is sweet. It is crazy delicious. It is epic.

Fork scooping bite of dessert with coconut crust, chocolate pudding, whipped cream and toasted coconut.

Make-Ahead Dessert

This dessert can be made several hours (or up to a day ahead of time). Just keep in mind that the crust and also the toasted coconut topping will soften over time.

If you want or need to assemble and refrigerate the dessert overnight, top it with coconut, caramel and hot fudge or chocolate sauce right before serving.

I’m dedicating this recipe to all of you who have followed my blog for years and who have begged for more coconut (or toasted coconut recipes). This one is for you! And it also checks all the boxes for my chocolate lovers and cheesecake lovers.

Basically, there is a lot to love about this dessert.

Bite taken out of square of chocolate pudding dessert on white plate.

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piece of samoas chocolate pudding dessert on white plate with bite taken out

Samoas Chocolate Pudding Dessert {Coconut + Caramel}

5 stars (7 ratings)

Ingredients

Coconut Crust:

  • 1 ½ cups (150 g) graham cracker crumbs (about 10-11 rectangle crackers)
  • ½ cup (43 g) toasted, shredded coconut (I use sweetened coconut)
  • 6 tablespoons (85 g) butter, melted (I use salted butter)

Caramel + Pudding Layers:

  • 1 cup caramel sauce (about a 10-ounce jar)
  • 4 cups chocolate pudding (homemade or prepared from a box – see note)

Cream Cheese Layer:

  • 8-ounce package (227 g) cream cheese, softened to room temperature
  • ½ cup (57 g) powdered sugar
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 cups heavy cream

Toppings:

  • Toasted, shredded coconut (I use sweetened coconut)
  • Caramel sauce, for drizzling
  • Hot fudge or chocolate sauce, for drizzling

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs, coconut and melted butter until well combined. Press into an even layer in the bottom of a 9X13-inch pan. Bake for 8-10 minutes until lightly golden and fragrant. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
  • Spread the caramel sauce evenly over the cooled crust.
  • Spoon the pudding in large spoonfuls over the caramel sauce and spread into an even layer all the way to the edges of the baking pan. If the pudding is really soft, refrigerate for 30-45 minutes before adding the cream cheese layer.
  • For the cream cheese layer, in a medium bowl with an electric handheld mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the cream cheese and powdered sugar together until well-combined and smooth, 1-2 minutes. With the mixer on medium-low, add the vanilla. Gradually add the heavy cream while mixing, and whip until the mixture is thickened to soft peaks, 1-2 minutes.
  • Spoon the cream cheese mixture in large spoonfuls over the pudding layer, and spread into an even layer all the way to the edges of the baking pan. Refrigerate for 2-3 hours so the layers can set up.
  • Before serving, sprinkle the top with toasted coconut. Drizzle with caramel sauce and hot fudge sauce. (This can be done up to an hour ahead of time; the coconut will start to soften if it's added too far in advance.)

Notes

Chocolate Pudding: I use this homemade pudding recipe for this recipe with the following changes – increase the cocoa to 1/4 cup and use semisweet chocolate chips.
Coconut: I use sweetened, shredded coconut and toast it by spreading the coconut in an even layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet and baking in an oven preheated to 350 degrees F for 8-12 minutes, checking and stirring often. This microwave method for toasting nuts also works well for toasting coconut.
Hot Fudge Sauce: if the hot fudge sauce you are using needs to be warmed to be pourable, warm it very lightly so it’s drizzle-able but not so hot that it melts the cream cheese layer. 
Serving: 1 serving, Calories: 313kcal, Carbohydrates: 29g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 21g, Saturated Fat: 13g, Cholesterol: 64mg, Sodium: 327mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 12g

Recipe Source: inspired by this recipe (I changed up some of the layers to use homemade recipes, different ingredients, etc)