Food: Lemon & Passionfruit Trifle

A few weeks ago, one of my lovely uncles was coming to town and for some reason, I, the sugar free daughter, was roped in to make dessert for the family dinner {being Dutch we don’t need very many excuses to get together for dinner!}. My mum gave me some Savoiardi biscuits and asked if I would make a trifle out of them. Of course, I said yes.

So I put together a ‘Lemon & Passionfruit Trifle’.

Now, I have some rules for trifle. This is a highly constested topic, but these are MY rules and this is MY blog and MY recipe so if you don’t agree, TOO BAD!

1) If you use jelly, use ONE flavour

2) Do not use store bought custard {unless you make it MY way, see below}. I know that this is going to get me in trouble, but really, trifle should be eaten only occasionally, don’t ruin it with runny yellow goo… {Remember MY blog, MY recipe, MY opinions.}

2) No tinned fruit salad or two fruits. Really, there are not many times when these ingredients should be used at all.

3) Trifle should NOT make you drunk, use alcohol sparingly.

4) If you use cake, please soak it in either jelly or fruit and a SMALL amount of sherry.

5) Layers, it is all about layers people. It is not about a bowl of mystery goop.

Now, when you read the recipe, you will see that I use store bought custard. I would love to have had the time to make proper egg custard for this, but, really, I just didn’t. But, I only used a bit and I mixed it in with whipped cream and mascarpone cheese. The end result was that the ‘custard’ component of the trifle tasted eerily similar to a proper egg custard, without the cooking and cooling time {I bet it is cheaper too!}.

Cooking Time: No cooking – haha!

Prep Time:

‘Custard’ – 15 minutes

Jelly Layers – allow an hour setting time for each layer

Serves: LOADS! At least 12

Ingredients

1 packet of Savoiardi biscuits (aka Sponge Fingers}

1 packet of lemon jelly

1 tin of passionfruit pulp {or 4 fresh ones if you are blessed enough to have them}

600ml cream

250g mascarpone cheese

300ml store bought custard

Method

1) Prepare the jelly and allow it to cool for about half an hour {don’t put it into the fridge, you don’t want it to set}

2) To make the ‘custard’: Whip the cream. When it is quite firm, whip in half of the mascarpone cheese, whip until it is blended through, then whip the rest through. Then, in three lots, whip in the custard.

3) To begin layering the trifle, start with a layer of the ‘custard’, then layer sponge finger biscuits soaked in jelly on top. Pop into the fridge to 20-30 minutes.

4) For the next layer, spread a good lot of ‘custard’ over the jelly soaked biscuits, spoon some passionfruit over the custard and then layer more biscuits soaked in jelly again. Pop into the fridge. Repeat again until all ingredients are finished.

5) Keep the trifle in the fridge until you are ready for it. Serve out and see how much everyone enjoys it!

Variations…

- Mango & Passionfruit – Use Mango as well as the passionfruit

- Raspberry & Lemon – Instead of passionfruit, use frozen raspberries

- Raspberry & White Chocolate – Use raspberry jelly, frozen raspberries, layer shaved white chocolate through each layer

- Instead of Savoiardi biscuits, you can use sponge rolls

The funny thing about this family dinner was that my mum had asked two of her daughters to make dessert. My big sister had mascarpone and cream and some boozy berries ready to put with the savoiardi biscuits, not realising that I already HAD the biscuits and l had them IN my trifle! The look on mum’s face was priceless! We ate a lot of mascarpone that night! YUM!

Today I am linking in with the lovely Veggie Mama for Meatless Monday - no meat in trifle {rule number 6}