Trifle is traditionally a fruit and cream dessert with soaked sponge cake and layered with pudding. My seasonal creation is a little more modern, and prepared with my Preserved Lemon Loaf Cake, lemon curd cream and a little limoncello. Fresh summer berries are the secret to making this trifle so refreshingly special, and if you haven’t sampled the strawberries this season, they are super sweet.
Layering the trifle in a deep glass dish, so you can peak at the lovely contents inside the bowl is what sparks your sweet-tooth interests. However, the flavors of creamy citrus and summer berries is what keeps you coming back for another spoonful.
You can make this trifle a day ahead and store it in the refrigerator for a party or gathering. I just love it served after dinner on a warm evening, or for a bridal, or baby shower instead of cake.
Ingredients
Preserved Lemon Loaf Cake
4 eggs
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup good olive oil
3/4 preserved lemon, minced or zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 2/3 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup Greek yogurt
Lemon Curd Cream
1/2 cup lemon juice
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1/2 cup sugar
3 eggs
5 tablespoons butter, diced
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
2 pints strawberries
1 pint blueberries
4 1/2 ounces limoncello
(Serves 12)
To Prepare:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 9 x 9 inch loaf pan. To prepare loaf cake – in a stand mixer, add eggs and sugar, beat on high for 3 minutes. Add olive oil and continue to beat for 1 minute.
2. Add preserved lemon and mix on medium speed for 1 minute. Add flour, baking powder and salt and mix on low speed for 30 seconds. Spoon in yogurt and continue to mix on low for 30 more seconds. Do not over mix.
3. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 40-50 minutes or until a toothpick comes clean. Remove cake from oven and let cool in pan for 30 minutes. Using a knife, loosen around edges and invert onto a board to cool completely.
4. To make lemon curd cream – In a saucepan, add lemon juice and heat until simmering. In a small bowl, whisk together eggs, sugar and lemon zest. Using a tablespoon, drizzle in warm lemon juice into egg mixture, while continuing to whisk. Slowly pour warmed egg mixture back into simmering lemon juice, while continuing to whisk. The mixture will start to thicken as you continue to whisk, about 2 minutes. When curd is thickened, turn off heat.
5. Whisk in butter into curd until smooth. Pour into a small bowl and place a piece of plastic wrap on surface of curd. Chill for at least 2 hours. Remove wrap and stir, when ready to build trifle.
6. Whip heavy cream into soft peaks. In a larger bowl, gently fold lemon curd with 3/4 of whipped cream, you can leave streaks in cream – I tend to love the look. Save remaining 1/4 of whipped cream for top of trifle.
7. Slice loaf cake into 1/2 inch thick pieces. Wash, hull and slice strawberries in half and wash blueberries. In a 4-quart glass dish, begin layering trifle starting with slices of cake. You may need to trim each piece to fit your dish. Drizzle cake layer with 3 tablespoons of limoncello.
8. Dollop a layer of lemon curd cream on top of cake layer, followed by a layer of fresh strawberries and blueberries. Continue layering until you have three full layers of cake, cream and berries. Dollop remaining whipped cream on top of trifle and refrigerate until ready to serve. Enjoy!
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