Red, White & Blue Trifle
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Trifle is an English concoction whose roots go back two or three hundred years, not quite to the time of King Arthur, but long enough to make it a venerable presentation. It is a wonderful foil for strawberries, blueberries, any berries that are emerging into our fertile summer landscape. A trifle is an elegant way to capture the flavors of summer and, in this particular one, the colors of the Fourth of July.
The quantities given are approximate. Use whatever you have on hand and what you think will taste good.
1 recipe Sponge Cake (see below), slightly stale (or fresh if you can't wait)
1 recipe Custard (see below), already made up and cooled
1/2 cup sherry or rum
1 to 1 1/2 cups strawberries, cut in pieces and sprinkled with 1/4 cup sugar (save out some perfect berries to decorate the top)
1 to 1 1/2 cups wild blueberries, cooked gently in a saucepan with 1/4 cup sugar until the sugar has melted and the juices have begun to run (save out some perfect berries for decoration)
1 cup sliced almonds
Cut the sponge cake into two-inch squares and use it to line the bottom of a trifle or other medium-sized glass bowl. Sprinkle 3 or 4 tablespoons of sherry or rum over the cake and spoon on the strawberries. Spread half the custard over the berries, and half the sliced almonds over the custard.
Add another layer of cake and repeat the process with the sherry, blueberries and custard.
To decorate the top, first sprinkle on the remainder of the almonds. Then pipe some whipped cream around the outside edge of the trifle; slice the strawberries you saved out in half and lay them in a ring inside the whipped cream. Sprinkle the blueberries in the center. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for several hours or overnight. Sponge Cake for Trifle
Preheat your oven to 350°F and line a 13 x 18-inch sheet pan (sometimes called a half-sheet or jelly roll pan) with baking parchment. Do not use a clean grocery bag, as is sometimes suggested, as there may be chemicals in the paper that you don't want in your cake.
6 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water or milk
1 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
Separate the eggs into two mixing bowls. Beat the egg whites with the salt until they have peaked. Gradually beat in half the sugar, and then set this mixture aside.
In the other bowl, beat the egg yolks with the remaining sugar until the mixture is thick and yellow. Blend in the water or milk, vanilla and almond extract.
Mix the baking powder into the flour. With a wire whisk, if you have one, or a large spoon, blend these dry ingredients into the egg yolk mixture. Then gently fold in the egg whites.
Pour the batter directly on the baking parchment without greasing it and spread it into all corners gently. Bake for about 20 minutes.
Let it cool completely after you take it out of the oven. Then loosen the edges with a knife and turn it out onto waxed paper or foil that has been liberally sprinkled with confectioners' sugar. Peel the parchment off.
You'll want enough of this cake to line the bottom of a trifle bowl twice; the rest you can eat with a cup of tea while you put the trifle together. Custard for Trifle
Beat the whole egg, the 4 egg yolks, sugar and salt together until they are light and lemon colored.
1 whole egg
4 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
pinch of salt
1 cup milk
2 cups heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 tablespoon sherry or rum
In a double boiler (or very carefully in a saucepan), heat the milk and half of the cream until they are just warm. Add the egg mixture, slowly stirring with a wire whisk as it begins to cook. Do not let it come to a boil or the eggs will curdle. (If they do, don't despair; just whirl it all in a blender and it will come out smooth enough to fool almost everyone.) When the mixture has thickened, remove it from the heat and allow it to cool. Give it a stir occasionally.
While the custard cools, beat the remaining cup of cream until it is stiff. When the custard has cooled almost to room temperature, add the flavorings and fold in the whipped cream.
This recipe reprinted from The Baking Sheet Newsletter, Vol. II, No. 7, July 1991 issue.
