Trifle Cake

During the summer when fresh berries are in abundance is the time I make trifle cake. Actually it’s my version of a trifle recipe I have been making for years. The trifle is basically made up of lady fingers or sponge cake layered with fruit and custard and topped with whipping cream. My trifle cake is made of layers of sponge cake (same recipe as a jelly roll cake), layered with vanilla pastry cream blended with whipping and seasonal fruit (my favourite fruits are strawberries and blueberries).

Below are the recipes for the jelly roll cake and pastry cream. I sliced the cake in three horizontal sections and used a rectangular glass dish to assemble the trifle cake. You can also use a trifle bowl and cut the cake in pieces to fit the bowl.

3 large eggs 1 cup sugar
5 tbsp water 1 tsp vanilla
1 cup sifter all purpose flour 1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt

HEAT oven to 375 degrees. Line a 15 x 10 x 1-inch with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray.

BEAT eggs in a small bowl with electric mixer until very thick and fluffy. This will take about 5 minutes at high speed. Add sugar gradually and beat very well after each addition. Turn mixer speed to low and beat in water and vanilla.

SIFT the flour before measuring, then spoon it lightly into a dry measuring cup and level it off with the back of a knife. Sift measured flour, baking powder and add to egg mixture. Beat on low spead until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl often.
Pour into prepared pan and spread evenly with a rubber scraper.

BAKE 12 to 15 minutes or until top springs back when touched lightly in the centre. Loosen cake around the edges.

PUT a clean tea towel over a large cake rack and invert the rack and towel on top of the cake. Turn the cake, towel and rack back over and carefully lift the pan off the cake. Strip the paper off the cake. Let cool.

POSITION cake horizontally and cut into three equal parts.

Pastry Cream
Crema Pasticciera
Adapted from “Sweet Sicily”

Crema Pasticciera found its way into Sicilian pastry kitchens by way of the French chefs called monzu (a corruption of the word monsieur), who were brought to Sicily in the early nineteenth century to cater to the Continental tastes of the king and queen. Queen Maria Carolina was a sister of France’s Marie Antoinette, and she was responsible for opening the fi rst royal dairy in Sicily during her reign. The purely Sicilian touches of lemon and cinnamon distinguish crema pasticciera from its French cousin.

2 cups milk, divided
1 strip lemon zest
1 3-inch cinnamon stick, broken
3 tablespoons cornstarch
5 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla

In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring 1 3/4 cups of the milk, the lemon zest and cinnamon stick to a boil.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the remaining 1/4 cup milk and the cornstarch, stirring to
dissolve the cornstarch. Set aside.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the yolks and the sugar. When-milk mixture has come to a boil, pour it through a strainer onto the beaten yolks-sugar mixture, whisking constantly. Return this mixture to the saucepan and whisk in the milk-cornstarch mixture. Over medium heat, bring to a boil again, whisking all the while, and continue to whisk until the mixture thickens. Add the vanilla, remove from the heat, and scrape into a bowl.

Cover the surface of the cream with plastic wrap to prevent it from forming a skin.
(The cream keeps for up to 3 days, tightly and refrigerated.)
Chill before serving.

Assemble the Trifle Cake

1. Whip the 35% with whipping attachment of electric mixture until peaks form.
2. Fold into the pastry cream.
3. Place one third of the jelly roll cake on plate.
4. Drizzle with juice or amaretto.
5. Spread generously with pastry/whipping cream mixture
6. Top with chopped fruit.
7. Place the second layer of jelly roll cake on top. Repeat # 5 & #6.
8. Place third layer of jelly roll on top. Shake icing sugar generously on top and
top with fruit.
9. Refrigerate until ready to serve.