Taking on the English Trifle Dessert

I had purchased a trifle bowl many years ago thinking I would learn to make an English trifle. While I love having the trifle bowl on my pantry shelf filled with silver baby cups collected over many years, including my own and my grandmother’s, it occurred to me it would be fun to attempt a trifle for our family Thanksgiving gathering at my brother-in-law’s family home.

The word trifle derives from the Old French ‘trufle’ which means a thing of little import (saucydressings.com). As it happens, making the trifle was of great import, a fascinating process taking place over part of two days!

Prior to beginning we searched online for recipes. The English trifle typically includes pound cake or sponge cake, berries, berry preserves, whipped cream, and crème anglaise (something like melted ice cream) or custard. There are many, many variations and this allowed me to customize a recipe derived from 3 recipes. (foodnetwork.com for the crème anglaise; thatskinnychickcanbake.com, amandascookin.com, and marthastewart.com for the English trifle; grandbaby-cakes.com for the cream cheese pound cake)

I decided to make the trifle with raspberries in honor of one of my nieces who adores raspberries. When she was a little girl she could eat a pint at a time. Now that she is grown up we have created a cocktail named after her to serve when she’s here for dinner; ginger ale and a teaspoon of raspberry liquor over ice.

We made the pound cake just as described in the recipe for cream cheese pound cake and it is the best I have ever eaten. We made it the day ahead and refrigerated it overnight.

The next day I began with the liquids that would need to cool before using; the crème anglaise and the lemon syrup.

You need 4 egg yolks for the crème anglaise. Stir 3 tablespoons of sugar and 1 and ½ tablespoons of sour cream into 2 cups heavy cream. Add 1 vanilla bean and heat to boiling. I used a Bain-marie (double boiler) as I happen to have one. This was a gift to me many years ago and until recently, something I treasured, but didn’t know what to do with! Turns out it is a terrific partner in almost every dessert I make.

I keep my vanilla beans soaking in dark rum in an old decanter. I have a pair of kitchen tweezers to take them out. Rather than cutting the bean in half and scraping out the seeds, you simply hold the vanilla bean over the bowl and run your fingers down it, squeezing as you go. When the cream comes to a boil, turn the heat down and add the egg yolks; continue stirring until the mix coats the back of a wooden spoon.

The lemon syrup is made with ¼ cup water, ¼ cup fresh lemon juice, and ½ cup sugar; bring to a boil, then lower the heat and cook for 2 minutes while stirring.

Stirring two pans at the same time is a feat in and of itself…a small kind of accomplishment!

I then poured both the cream anglaise and the lemon syrup into separate bowls and put each bowl in a larger bowl filled with ice to hasten the cooling process.

Next, I washed and drained 3 pints of raspberries. I have an old baker’s jar I bought online from Chairish.com on the counter next to the sink. It is solid and sturdy and won’t tip over no matter how much action is going on around it. Inside is a candlestick I bought years ago at the New Orleans Silversmith on Royal Street; they specialize in vintage silver and it’s a great place to go for a special gift with a history. I like the glow of an unscented candle while I am in the kitchen.

I added a cup and a half of raspberry preserves without seeds to the fresh raspberries, macerating some of the berries, but leaving most of them whole so we could see them around the edges of the trifle when assembled.

I sliced the pound cake and then cut each slice in quarters. I used a silicone basting brush to paint the lemon syrup on top of each side of the pound cake. I didn’t paint it on the reverse side of the pound cake because I felt the cream cheese pound cake was nicely moist and I didn’t want to make it much more moist. I tasted the cake both with and without the syrup and the syrup really added a nice zest.

Now – into the bowl! First, a layer of the lemon syrup infused pound cake…

Next, a layer of the raspberry and preserve mixture followed by a careful spooning of the crème anglaise. We opted not to drizzle the crème anglaise near the edge of the trifle bowl in an attempt to keep it tidy looking.

Then a layer of whipped cream (2 cups heavy cream whipped with 2 tablespoons granulated sugar). I whipped the cream ahead of time and kept it chilling in the refrigerator until needed.

Continue laying until you are near the top of the trifle bowl and then, spoon in the remainder of your whipped cream.

I love placing the raspberries on top of the trifle. Shake out each one as you lift it from the colander so you don’t get water from the washing up onto the trifle.

I can’t wait to bring this English trifle to our Thanksgiving celebration! I am going to bring the long handled silver rice spoon our friends gave us to serve the trifle. As I have read, you want to gently spoon down to the bottom of the trifle when serving so each serving contains multiple layers.

Until the next day – into the refrigerator!

English Trifle in the bag; dishes done and ready to dry! Making this trifle together while listening to Celtic Harp Christmas on Amazon Music will be another grand holiday memory for us!