‘Individual favorite’: Just 5 ingredients. I’ve made this so often it’s automatic. Georgia Lynn Contributing Writer

If you’ve been cooking as long as I have, you know that recipes like this are more of a starting point than a strict set of rules. For a deeper, less sweet chocolate flavor, use chocolate wafer cookies or even chocolate graham crackers in place of the sandwich cookies. You can also swap the instant chocolate pudding for dark chocolate or even a chocolate fudge variety if you find it at your local store. If you’re cooking for someone who can’t have dairy, try a plant-based milk that’s labeled as suitable for instant pudding and a non-dairy whipped topping—just be sure to read the package, as some milks don’t set well with pudding mixes. For a lighter touch, you can use reduced-fat cookies and light whipped topping; the texture will still be creamy, just a bit less rich. To dress these up for holidays, add a layer of sliced bananas over the crust before you spoon in the chocolate cream for a chocolate-banana twist, or sprinkle the tops with crushed peppermint candies at Christmastime. A spoonful of peanut butter swirled into the pudding before you fold in the topping makes a lovely chocolate-peanut butter version that always reminds me of school bake sales. And if you’re feeding a bigger group, double the recipe and layer everything in a 9×13-inch dish instead of cups—around here, we call that a chocolate cream dessert, and it disappears just as fast.