Double Chocolate Strawberry Shortcake

I am such a fan of chocolate and strawberries. I think about 60% of my dessert recipes entail chocolate and fruit of some sort. The other 40% probably still have at least one or the other! I made this for a auction to benefit the scouts and since I know I'm not one for fancy cake decorating, I knew I needed something to look tempting enough for people to put money on, and still be tasty enough that they didn't regret it! I'm proud to say it sold for $22! So please don't tell the people who put a quarter-hundred on it that the recipe is now available for free- and actually pretty darn simple!

1 pkg chocolate cake mix {I used devil's food cake}
3/4 C milk
1 large pkg instant chocolate pudding
1 1/2 C Cool Whip, thawed
3-5 tbsp strawberry jam
2 C sliced strawberries, divided

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare cake mix as directed on package for two 9" round baking pans. {This can be done in a 9x13" if you are looking to feed more- it just won't look quite as pretty.} Cool in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes. Loosen cakes from sides of pan. Invert onto racks; gently remove pans. Cool completely. Pour milk into large bowl. Add dry pudding mix. Beat with wire whisk for 2 minutes (mixture will be thick). Gently stir in whipped topping. Place one cake layer on serving plate; spread with jam.{I warm up the jam a bit in the microwave so it will spread easier} Top with layers of half each of the pudding mix and strawberries. Prepare second layer of cake with the remaining pudding mix and place on top of the first cake layer. Add remaining strawberries. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
I was short on time so it didn't get the full hour refrigeration. That, combined with the fact I'd followed the original recipe and placed the second cake layer on the first layer and THEN spread the last layer of pudding, caused the bit of filling seepage seen in this picture. Hopefully yours will look a little better contained....

To make it extra enticing, I put a dollop of cool whip on top, drizzled some chocolate {chocolate chips melted with some cool whip} then gave a dusting of powdered sugar. The recipe only really calls for the powdered sugar, but it was all in the name of the scouts!

Tip: Use skewers to keep the cake layers from sliding during refrigeration. Remove them just before adding the top layer of strawberries and serving.