Easter Trifle Recipe

Easter is just a few weeks away, and in honor of the holiday, I am bringing you a fun recipe that looks impressive enough to prepare for any Easter gathering, but easy enough to whip together for a weekday family dessert. This fun recipe is for an Easter trifle. Trifles are great because they give you layers of deliciousness in every bite. The trifle originated in the 18^th century in Britain as a way to use up leftover sweets and stale pieces of cake. The English would soak their dry, leftover cake bits in alcohol and then layer them in a large round glass bowl with fruit, custard, and jelly. (This family-friendly trifle does not contain any booze-soaked stale cakes- but no judgement if that is the route you would like to go, especially after the long, hard winter we have endured). An interesting side note- the word trifle is actually of French origin. It comes from the word trufe which means something that is easy or of little importance. That definition can pertain to this recipe because without a lot of effort, you can prepare a dessert that appears to be impressive. 

Ingredients:

• 10 ounce package of angel food cake or pound cake, cubed.
• 1/2 cup cookie or graham cracker crumbs
• Assorted Easter candies

Strawberry Sauce:

• 16 ounces of chopped strawberries, fresh or frozen and thawed.
• 1/3 – 1/2 cup sugar (to taste)
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• A pinch of salt

Trifle Cream:

• 8 ounces of cream cheese at room temperature
• 7 ounce jar of marshmallow fluff
• 16 ounce container of whipped topping
• 2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions:

1. *Make strawberry sauce.

• Place the strawberries, sugar, lemon juice and salt in a small saucepan.
• Bring to a low simmer over medium heat.
• Allow it to simmer for 10-20 minutes, until the mixture thickens slightly.
• Pour strawberry mixture into a bowl and place in the fridge to cool.

2. Prepare the trifle cream.

• In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until light and fluffy and then scrape down the bowl.
• Add in the marshmallow fluff and beat until light and creamy.
• Next, add in the vanilla and the whipped topping and combine until smooth.

3. Assemble the trifle.

• In a trifle dish or large glass bowl, place one third of the trifle cream in the bottom of the dish.
• Next, add a layer of strawberry sauce.
• Place half of the cubed cake on top of the strawberry sauce.
• Follow those steps again and then top the cubed cake with the final one – third of the trifle cream.
• Add the crushed graham cracker or cookie crumbs on top to look like dirt.
• Decorate with very top with different Easter candies.

4. Eat.

• Scoop into a bowl or plate and enjoy. Store the remainder in the fridge. This will stay good for up to a week in the fridge.

*You can substitute a different fruit for the sauce layer, but I think strawberries taste especially good with chocolate and cream, so in my opinion they are the best choice.