I have a confession to make. I am not a big fan of desserts. I sometimes feel like this makes me odd, in a country that loves dessert and food.

But even I need an occasional food to dampen a sweet tooth. Admittedly, my weakness is more of chewy candy, such as licorice and Swedish fish. When it comes to cake, my favorite is angel food cake. I love the light, fluffy sweet food. My grandma used to bake me a homemade angel food cake with a light frosting frizzled over it and served with strawberries. It was delicious!

A few years ago, I worked at a company that held monthly birthday celebrations for employees. They usually purchased cakes and pies that were favorites of the birthday employees. Since I wasn’t a big fan of dessert, I let my other coworker choose her favorite cake (double chocolate). However my boss also decided she would make my birthday dessert as she had the perfect option for me (I don’t know that I made new friends having the boss make ME a dessert when others got store bought but once everyone tasted it, I think they forgot about being jealous. Lol). This dessert has become a favorite at family gatherings and dinner parties. The great thing about it is you can make it healthy by using fat free and/or no sugar pudding, milk and whipped topping. It’s a good, light dessert.

What you need:

Angel food cake*

1.5 oz package vanilla pudding **

1 lb strawberries, sliced

8 oz Cool Whip, thawed

Directions:

If you don’t use store bought/ bakery angel food cake, bake following cake directions. Pull apart cake into small pieces (I find it easier to pull apart with my fingers than cut into pieces) and place throughout 9×13 pan.

Mix pudding contents according to directions. Once pudding mixture is completely whisked, pour over angel food cake, ensuring the mixture evenly coats the cake. Add 3/4 of sliced strawberries. You can add additional fruit, such as blueberries and raspberries. Or skip the fruit altogether. Place pan in refrigerator so pudding can set.

Once pudding is completely set, spread Cool Whip over top of cake/pudding/fruit. Sprinkle remaining fruit over top. Keep chilled until ready to serve. You can use a large serving spoon to scoop out and enjoy. Chill any remaining.

*You can use homemade or store bought.

**Any flavor pudding can be used.