Baileys Chocolate Pudding Shots (Two-Layer Recipe)

Pudding shots are the dessert nobody says no to at a party. They’re small, they’re cold, they’re creamy, and you can eat one before you’ve committed to having a real dessert. These Baileys ones are the version I keep coming back to — two flavors, layered in the same cup, vanilla on bottom and chocolate on top, topped with whipped cream and a mini Hershey bar. They look like a project. They only take about 10 minutes of actual effort.

The Baileys replaces most of the liquid in the instant pudding, so the chocolate flavor is deeper and the vanilla has that Irish cream warmth underneath. You make two separate batches and layer them — which sounds like extra work but is literally just two bowls and a spoon. Make them the night before, pull them out of the fridge when people arrive, and take the compliments.

Perfect for St. Patrick’s Day, obviously. Also New Year’s, birthday parties, girls’ nights, or any occasion where a regular dessert would feel slightly too serious.

Ingredients:

Chocolate Layer

• 1 box (3.4 oz) chocolate instant pudding mix
• ½ cup Baileys Irish Cream
• 2 tablespoons whole milk
• 4 oz (half an 8 oz tub) Cool Whip, thawed

Vanilla Layer

• 1 box (3.4 oz) vanilla instant pudding mix
• ½ cup Baileys Irish Cream
• 2 tablespoons whole milk
• 4 oz (half an 8 oz tub) Cool Whip, thawed

Garnish

• Whipped cream
• 10 mini Hershey bars

Equipment

10 condiment cups with lids (2 oz size)

How Do You Make It?

You’re making two separate pudding batches, then layering them. Start with the chocolate.

In a mixing bowl, combine ½ cup Baileys, 2 tablespoons milk, and the full contents of one 3.4 oz box of chocolate instant pudding mix. Beat with a hand mixer on low 1–2 minutes until smooth and thick — it will look noticeably thicker than regular prepared pudding. Gently fold in 4 oz (half the tub) of Cool Whip using a rubber spatula. Fold, don’t stir — stirring deflates the whipped topping and makes the pudding dense rather than fluffy. Set aside.

Repeat with the vanilla: ½ cup Baileys, 2 tablespoons milk, one 3.4 oz box vanilla instant pudding mix. Beat 1–2 minutes. Fold in the remaining 4 oz Cool Whip.

Spoon the vanilla mixture into the bottom of each condiment cup, filling about halfway — roughly 2–3 tablespoons per cup for a yield of 10 shots. Refrigerate the cups for 20–30 minutes until the vanilla layer is slightly set. Then spoon the chocolate mixture on top of each cup, filling to about ¾ full. Cover loosely and refrigerate at least 2 hours, or overnight.

Before serving, top each shot with a small swirl of whipped cream and press a mini Hershey bar in at an angle. Serve cold.

FAQs

Why the Liquid Ratio Is Different From Regular Pudding

Standard instant pudding calls for 2 cups of cold milk per 3.4 oz box. This recipe uses ½ cup Baileys + 2 tablespoons milk per pudding flavor — about ⅔ cup total liquid instead of 2 cups. That’s intentional.

The drastically reduced liquid makes the pudding set extremely thick — much denser than you’d eat with a spoon. That thickness is what makes pudding shots work: they’re firm enough to hold in a small condiment cup, eaten with a small spoon, and don’t slosh around or collapse when you take the lid off. If you’re used to making regular pudding and the mixture looks too thick when you’re mixing it, that’s correct. Don’t add more liquid.

The electric mixer tip in the original is worth keeping — at this liquid ratio, the pudding mix takes a bit more effort to fully dissolve into the Baileys. A hand mixer on low for 1–2 minutes gives you the smoothest result. Whisking by hand works but takes more elbow grease.

Storage and Make-Ahead

Refrigerator: Covered pudding shots keep up to 5 days in the fridge. The texture stays consistent and the flavors actually improve after day 1 as the Baileys fully incorporates. Make up to 4 days ahead for a party — they’re genuinely better made ahead.

Freezer: Pudding shots can be frozen and this is the secret party-prep move. Freeze in the covered condiment cups up to 1 month. Pull from the freezer 20–30 minutes before serving. They thaw to the right semi-frozen, creamy consistency — colder than refrigerated shots and with a slightly different texture that some people prefer. Do not add whipped cream before freezing.

Topping Options

1. Whipped Cream: A classic go-to.
2. Chocolate Shavings: Shave some chocolate bars for a fancier touch.
3. Oreo Cookies: Crushed Oreos add a delightful crunch.

Tips For The Best Bailey’s Shots

Fold, don’t stir the Cool Whip. Every pudding shot recipe says “stir in” and it’s wrong. Stirring collapses the air in the whipped topping and you end up with dense, heavy pudding shots. Fold gently with a rubber spatula using a bottom-to-top motion. 8–10 folds is plenty — stop while you still see some whipped topping streaks, then give one final fold. They’ll be noticeably lighter.

Use a hand mixer for the initial pudding mix. At the reduced liquid ratio, instant pudding mix doesn’t dissolve as easily as it would in a full 2 cups of milk. A hand mixer on low for 1–2 minutes before adding the Cool Whip saves you from lumps. Whisk by hand if that’s all you have — just be thorough.

Pre-set the vanilla layer before adding chocolate. Spoon vanilla into cups first, refrigerate 20–30 minutes, then add the chocolate on top. This gives you cleaner layer separation rather than the colors bleeding into each other.

Use condiment cups with lids. 2 oz condiment cups with snap-on lids are the correct vessel — they’re what you see in party photos, they’re single-serving sized, and the lid keeps the shots fresh in the fridge until serving. Available in bulk at restaurant supply stores or online. The snap-on lid doubles as a surface to flip and serve upside-down if you want the vanilla layer on top instead.

Make these the night before. These are better after a full overnight chill than they are after 2 hours. The flavors meld and the texture is firmer and cleaner. If you’re making them day-of, give them at least 3 hours.

Don’t add the garnish until serving. Whipped cream deflates over several hours in the fridge and a Hershey bar left sitting in whipped cream gets soft and white from condensation. Add both garnishes right before you set them out.

If you make these — especially for St. Patrick’s Day — drop a comment and let me know if you did the two-layer version or went single flavor. And if you discovered the frozen pudding shot thing, that’s a life upgrade worth sharing. More Baileys in your life: the Boozy Chocolate Baileys Milkshake is the move when you want a full glass of this energy instead of a shot of it.

Here are some more fun recipes to try!