Thursday, July 5, 2012

Easy Summer Dessert - Fruit and cream and pound cake trifle


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Don't you just love summer desserts?
I do...especially those that don't require me to turn on my oven in this blazing heat.
This light and fresh dessert looks like I slaved over it for hours, but it really was quite easy.
I have to mention, you can make this even easier by using cool whip or even canned whipped cream and leaving out the pudding.  I just happen to love fresh whipped cream..and thought the cake would taste good soaked in the pudding.


this is what you will need for this recipe:

Heavy Cream
Powdered Sugar
Vanilla Extract
Instant Pudding
Milk
zip lock bag
fresh fruit of your choice
pound cake or angel food cake

Fresh Whipped Cream

first, put your mixing bowl and whisk attachment in the freezer
to make sure it is really cold.  
the recipe that I use for whipped cream is simple.

1cup heavy whipping cream
1 Tablespoon powdered sugar
1 table spoon of vanilla extract


Measure your cream
I multiplied this by 4 and it was just enough for my trifle bowl.
maybe I would have had a little left over if I had some self control and didn't help myself to a few heaping spoonfuls while making this!

Mix the cream until peaks form.
I start off slower and then gradually move to full speed when the cream starts to thicken.  Otherwise it tends to splash.
This is what "peaks" look like with a stand mixer.
add your powdered sugar and mix
add your vanilla and mix.

Be sure not to over mix the cream...otherwise it will get lumpy...which isn't good!
Stick the whipped cream in the fridge while you get your other ingredients prepared.
I used strawberries and blueberries to make a red white and blue 4th of July themed dessert - but I am sure this would be tasty with all different kinds of fruit!
Wash and slice your fruit.
I soak berries and grapes in this fruit wash for awhile.
Lots of times you can find it in the produce department...otherwise, look in the laundry detergent - dish soap area of your grocery store.
this is what the bottle looks like of the brand that I use.
(I probably should have taken a picture of the bowl in the background.
You know those things that you never knew you needed until you get it?
this is one of those things!
It is a bowl with a handle on one side, and then you can see the gary part is a strainer.  I soak my fruit in there, and then just pour the water out.
I bought it on sale when the company was featured on 
Zulily.  
I absolutely love it.

Wanna see something gross?
this is a little sample of the water I poured out after letting the strawberries soak for awhile.
EEEEWWWWW.

Okay - moving on.

Grab your pound cake or angel food cake.
I love angel food cake, and it is dreamy with this.
I chose to use pound cake because I was cutting stars to go with my 4th of July
motif..and it looked better.
Use whatever you like best.

I cut the pound cake lengthwise to get the most stars out of each piece.
I cut it about this thick.
then i used a small star cookie cutter
to make my shapes.
the leftover pieces I cut into cubes
to use in the layers of the trifle.
1 pound cake was all I needed.

Get your cream out of the fridge and scoop some of it into a ziplock bag.
Cut off the tip to use as a piping bag.  You can use a pastry piping bag if you like...but you have to clean it.  This one you can just throw away!

I piped a layer of cream into the bottom of the dish to give the strawberries something to stick to.
slide in your sliced strawberries (or whatever fruit you choose)
add in your cubed cake
get your pudding mix out and 2.5ish cups of cold milk
I used sugar free fat free instant pudding.
Yes, this in my mind justified the mounds of real whipped cream..lol.
I pour the milk into the bowl and slowly sprinkle in the mix with one hand while constantly stirring the whisk in the other to avoid lumps.
I used the recommended amount of milk at first, but then added more after it set while putting together the second layer.
top with a layer of fruit 

and then pipe a layer of whipped cream.
I forgot to take a picture of adding in the pound cake stars.  Sorry about that.
I just put them on after the cream.
Repeat the layers until you fill your bowl
and do your final layer of whipped cream.

Since it was the 4th - I wanted to make a star on the top.
You can wing it of you like.. I used my large star cookie cutter to give me an outline to follow.
(you can buy them online HERE - but I think I got mine at Wal-Mart.  that or JoAnn's)

place your berries on top


and enjoy your delicious summer treat!

~Jacki~















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