Proper English Trifle with Layered Vanilla Custard & Raspberries

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

A real spoon dessert, built the old-fashioned way: jam-brushed pound cake, macerated berries, and a thick egg-yolk custard cooked on the stove until it holds its own shape. The custard is the whole point — cornstarch and six yolks give it enough body to sit in clean layers instead of soaking into mush, so every spoonful pulls cake, fruit, custard and cream at once. It needs an overnight chill, which makes it the easiest dinner-party dessert you'll ever make ahead.

Ingredients

• 1 lb store-bought pound cake (or 1 loaf homemade), cut into 1-inch cubes
• 3/4 cup raspberry jam
• 1/4 cup medium-dry sherry, or orange juice for an alcohol-free version
• 1 lb strawberries, hulled and sliced
• 12 oz fresh raspberries (reserve 1/2 cup for garnish)
• 3 tbsp granulated sugar
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

• 2 1/2 cups whole milk
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 vanilla bean, split and scraped (or 2 tsp vanilla extract, added at the end)
• 6 large egg yolks
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 3 tbsp cornstarch
• 1/4 tsp fine salt
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter

• 2 cups cold heavy cream
• 3 tbsp powdered sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted

• 1 3-quart glass trifle bowl or straight-sided glass bowl

Instructions

1. Toss the sliced strawberries and all but 1/2 cup of the raspberries with 3 tablespoons granulated sugar and the lemon juice in a bowl. Let sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, stirring once or twice, until glossy and sitting in their own syrup.
2. Make the custard: combine the milk, 1/2 cup heavy cream, and the scraped vanilla bean seeds and pod in a medium saucepan. Warm over medium heat until steaming and just barely bubbling at the edges, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, cover, and steep 10 minutes, then fish out the pod.
3. In a large bowl, whisk the egg yolks, 2/3 cup sugar, cornstarch and salt until pale, thick and completely smooth with no dry cornstarch streaks, about 1 minute.
4. Whisking the yolks constantly, pour in about 1 cup of the hot milk in a thin stream to temper them, then whisk in the rest. Pour the whole mixture back into the saucepan through a fine-mesh strainer.
5. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly and scraping the corners of the pan, until the custard thickens noticeably and comes to a slow boil, 4 to 6 minutes. Once it bubbles, keep whisking hard for a full 60 to 90 seconds — this cooks out the starchy taste and sets the thickness. It should be thick enough to hold a line drawn with the whisk (about 180–185°F if using a thermometer).
6. Off the heat, whisk in the butter (and the vanilla extract, if using instead of the bean). Scrape into a wide bowl, press plastic wrap directly onto the surface, and refrigerate until cold and set, at least 2 hours. Whisk smooth before using.
7. Assemble: brush or spread the raspberry jam generously over the cut faces of the pound cake cubes. Line the bottom of the trifle bowl with half the jammed cake, pressing the pieces snugly against the glass. Spoon half the sherry (or orange juice) over the cake.
8. Spoon half the macerated berries and about half their syrup over the cake, spreading to the edges so you see a clean fruit band through the glass. Top with half the cold custard, smoothing it to the sides with the back of a spoon.
9. Repeat the layers: remaining cake, remaining sherry, remaining berries and syrup, then the remaining custard, smoothed flat. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 6 hours or, ideally, overnight, so the cake softens and the layers set.
10. Up to 3 hours before serving, whip the 2 cups cold cream with the powdered sugar and vanilla to soft-medium peaks — it should mound but still look glossy, not grainy. Spoon it over the trifle in swoops.
11. Chill until serving, then scatter the reserved raspberries and toasted almonds over the top. Serve with a tall spoon, digging straight down through every layer.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

More from Sprig Originals

Frozen Chocolate–Caramel Peanut Nougat Bars

Blueberry Peach Buckle with Almond Streusel

Creole Cream Cheese Cheesecake with Salted Caramel and Dark Chocolate

Are you this recipe's original author or publisher? Report a problem