Make a Trifle

This classic English dessert couldn't be easier to make, but that doesn't mean you can take it lightly. Layered with cake, cream, fruit, and jam, a great trifle is both a work of art and an endlessly customizable dessert, as clever cooks can substitute almost anything for the various ingredients and layers. Get ready to get creative and make a trifle.

Ingredients

Classic English Trifle

  • Ladyfinger sponge cakes, or a plain white cake.
  • Jam or jelly
  • Custard or Crème anglaise
  • Fruit (blueberries, raspberries, and/or strawberries for "classic" recipe)
  • Whipped cream
  • Sherry, or the flavored liqueur of your choice (optional)

Steps

Forming a Classic English Trifle

  1. Know that almost all of the following steps can be substituted with other ingredients to your hearts content. A trifle doesn't need to be cooked and requires little hard-core cooking skill to put together. It can be made well in advance and is particularly adaptable if you feel like new flavors. When considering your trifle, know that you have some options:
    • Fruit: As long as it is bite-sized, anything goes. In general, softer, sweeter fruits that pack a lot of juice do best.
    • Custard: Pick a custard or pudding that matches your fruit, or use a vanilla flavored custard that will go with just about anything.
    • Jelly or Jam: Again, pick something to complement your fruits, but know that jelly isn't the only option. Adventurous cooks might use some honey, or even a chocolate spread like Nutella.[1]
  2. Chop up your fresh fruit -- strawberries, raspberries, and/or blueberries, for the classic -- into bite-sized pieces. You can use any fruit you want, as evidenced in a later section, but for the typical English trifle you'll want to stick to the colors of the Union Jack -- white, red, and blue.[2]
  3. Cut your cake into flat strips or squares. Ladyfingers are the classic choice because they're already in strips and will soak up the liquids for the berries and liquor quickly. That said, a 1/2" thick white cake makes an excellent substitute, so long as it is chopped up to easily placed pieces.
    • Angel food cake and pound cake also make wonderful substitutes, so long as you cut them with a serrated knife to roughly a 1/2" thickness.[3]
  4. Brush your ladyfingers or thin slices of cake with the sherry or flavored liquor of your choice. Of course, you can skip the liquor for a youth-oriented dessert, but you should know it is a mainstay of the classic trifle. The usual choice is a cream sherry, which will go well with just about any filling or fruit, but you can mix it up depending on your toppings. Orange and lemon liquors, in general, go particularly well with most trifles.
  5. Coat the tops of the cake with your jelly or jam. Try out a three-berry jam or raspberry if you're following the "classic" recipe, but remember that this dish is meant for experimentation. Slather the tops of the cake or ladyfingers with a generous helping of jam.
  6. In a large, tall glass bowl, layer the bottom with a third of your cakes. They don't have to interlock like puzzle pieces, but try to keep them close together. Some people even start with a light layer of custard to help keep the cake in place as you're setting up. Cover the entire bottom of the bowl.[4]
  7. Pour and spread a third of your fruit on top of the cakes. Lightly mash the fruit, which unleashes juices that will drip down and soak into the cakes deliciously.
  8. Add a third of the custard and spread evenly over the fruit. Don't worry if some of it drips through or clumps, you just want enough of it so that all the fruit is covered. If you want to impress some party guests, take a look at the side of the bowl and work on getting nice, even, visible layers between the cake, fruit, and custard.
  9. Top the custard with a thin layer of whipped cream. This optional, and is best if you're using a flavored, and not vanilla custard. Still, the difference in textures between a thick, silky custard and light, airy whipped cream is a wonderful surprise, so feel free to use a little of the whipped stuff no matter what your recipe.
  10. Continue layering -- cake, fruit, custard, then cream -- until you reach the top of the bowl. Depending on the size of your trifle dish (or plain glass bowl), you may need to ration out your supplies wisely to make sure you have enough for even layers. That said, a little unevenness is somewhat inevitable, so don't worry about it too much. The final dish should have distinct, colorful layers visible.
  11. Consider topping it with more fruit, crumbled cookies, or a spring of fresh mint. You can crumble op graham crackers for a bit of crunch, layer the top alluringly with fruit, or even dollop another layer of jam on top. Or, simply leave the top covered in whipped cream -- it's up to you!
    • A dash of cinnamon or candied ginger, with the right recipes, is heavenly.[3]

Variations

  1. Think about the astonishing number of fruit mixtures you have on hand. There are so many ways to put together a great trifle, all most cooks usually think about is -- what is the very best fruit I can grab at the supermarket. If you start with a wonderful, ripe fruit, you'll be making delicious trifles in no time. Try out:
    • Strawberry + Kiwi
    • Orange + Cranberry
    • Orange + Pineapple + Peach
    • Peaches (with cream)
    • Banana + Nuts
    • Blackberries + Raspberries + Blueberries[5]
  2. Add a little chocolate to the mixture with cookies, syrup, or candy. Who doesn't love chocolate? You can create any layer you want with chocolate, or you can simply add another layer of delicious chocolate spreads or a sprinkling of chips on top. Try out:
    • Using Nutella or chocolate sauce in place of jam
    • Making a chocolate chip layer
    • Soaking the cake in chocolate liquor
    • Drizzling chocolate sauce over the fruit, tossing to coat.
    • Chocolate cake or brownies, instead of white cake, as the base[6]
  3. Get creative with your "cake" base. Anything that is mostly firm, holds its shape, and tastes great is a wonderful substitute for ladyfingers. Try, out these cookies, for example:
    • Nilla Wafers or ginger snaps (wonderful with banana)
    • Oreos, Thin Mints, or other chocolate, crunchy cookies
    • Pound or angel food cake
    • Flavored breads, like pumpkin, banana, or cranberry breads
    • Peppermint flavored candies, cookies, or cakes
    • Toffee
    • Other cakes, like carrot cake[7]
  4. Get a little creative with the cream filling, mixing in new flavors and ideas. This is perhaps the most frequently improvised part of the trifle, as you can use puddings, custard, or creams to get the same "point" across. For example, you could try:
    • Cheesecake filling, made by sweetening cream cheese and adding milk, whipping until a smooth consistency
    • Mix your whipped cream with Bourbon or Irish Cream for a little kick
    • Use caramel or Dulce de lech (usually in combination with cream).
  5. Expand your definition of "fruit" for a more filling filling. Ready to get real crazy? Chefs across the internet have truly expanded a trifle to include just about anything, including:
    • Fun-sized candy bars and peanut butter cups[8]
    • Gummy worms or beats
    • Shredded Coconut and pineapple -- go tropical!
    • Candy canes + chocolate chunks

Making Easy Vanilla Custard

  1. Place ice and water in a large bowl and set to the side. Your ice bath is meant to instantly stop the custard from cooking, removing the heat much faster than if you just let the pot sit and cool.[9]
  2. Lightly scramble the egg yolks in a small bowl and set aside. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites and then rough them up with a fork, as if you were scrambling them.
  3. Whisk the milk, sugar, and cornstarch. Use a tall, heavy-bottomed saucepot to prevent burning. Keep stirring until you've completely dissolved the sugar and cornstarch.[10]
    • If you want to use a fresh vanilla bean, cut the pod lengthwise and scoop out the seeds, adding them to the mixture now along with the vanilla husk.
  4. Heat everything until the edges start to bubble, using medium heat. Stir occasionally, letting the milk scald. You'll see bubbles around the edges of the pot. Once it happens, keep stirring for another 20-30 seconds before removing from the heat.
  5. Pour a few tablespoons of the milk into the whipped eggs and stir immediately. This "tempers" the eggs, which is the process of getting them slowly up to heat so that they don't accidentally cook.[11]
  6. Pour the eggs into the remaining milk and return to heat, stirring until thickened. This should only take 2-3 minutes, and the custard should coat the back of your stirring spoon, not drip right off, when it is ready.
    • If you want to use a flavored extract, like vanilla, add it in now![12]
  7. Pour the hot custard into a bowl and place that bowl in your ice bath to cool. Make sure, of course, that water cannot get into the custard. Then simply cover it with a towel or cheesecloth and let it cool down to room temperature.
    • For an even smoother custard, run it through a fine-mesh strainer before pouring into the chilling bowl.[10]
  8. Mix in flavorings, if desired, to customize your custard. If you want something a bit more flavorful for your trifle, consider mixing in the following ingredients to mix things up:
    • Chocolate syrup or cocoa powder.
    • 4-5 tablespoons of lemon curd
    • Orange zest and orange extract
    • 1-2 teaspoons instant coffee
    • Flavored liquor, such as raspberry or chocolate
  9. Cool the custard for at least 2-3 hours. This allows the custard to set and cool off, which is far more preferable in a trifle. It will keep for about a week in the fridge..[13]


{{Video:Make a Trifle|}

Tips

  • Be creative -- trifles are hard to mess up!

Warnings

  • Always let your party guests know if there is alcohol in the trifle, as courtesy to everyone involved.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://food52.com/blog/11890-how-to-make-a-trifle-without-a-recipe
  2. ↑ http://allrecipes.com/recipe/8445/english-trifle/?internalSource=hub%20recipe&referringId=371&referringContentType=recipe%20hub
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 http://amandascookin.com/traditional-english-trifle/
  4. ↑ http://amandascookin.com/traditional-english-trifle/
  5. ↑ http://www.countryliving.com/food-drinks/recipes/g2721/trifle-recipes-for-parties/?
  6. ↑ http://allrecipes.com/recipe/19008/chocolate-delight/?internalSource=hub%20recipe&referringId=371&referringContentType=recipe%20hub
  7. ↑ http://allrecipes.com/recipes/371/desserts/specialty-desserts/trifles/?page=2
  8. ↑ http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/peanut-butter-brownie-trifle
  9. ↑ http://www.incredibleegg.org/recipe/pastry-cream-vanilla-custard-filling/
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 http://www.food.com/recipe/basic-vanilla-custard-344870
  11. ↑ http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/vanilla-custard-pie
  12. ↑ http://www.marthastewart.com/340405/vanilla-custard-sauce
  13. ↑ http://joepastry.com/2011/simple-vanilla-custard-pudding/

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