Summer Fruit Trifle to Go
This multi-step desert is greater than the sum of its parts: Lemony pound cake uses Clover Sonoma Organic Unsalted Butter for richness and luxurious vanilla bean paste for intense and complex vanilla flavor, while the silky sweetness of pastry cream amplifies the natural sweetness of fruit. Starring peak season summer fruit (we used berries but you can substitute ripe peaches and plums or any other fruit you love!) and Clover Sonoma Organic butter, milk, and cream, this is sure to please a crowd, especially when layered into miniature 8 oz. mason jars!
How to Make It
Make the pound cake: Heat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-by 5-inch loaf pan with 1 tablespoon softened butter; dust with 1 tablespoon cake flour.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk melted butter thoroughly to reincorporate any separated milk solids.
In a food processor, process sugar and zest until combined. Add lemon juice, eggs, and vanilla; process until combined, about 5 seconds. With the machine running, add melted butter through the feed tube in a steady stream (about 15-20 seconds).
Transfer wet mixture to a large bowl. Sift flour mixture over eggs in three parts, whisking gently until just combined.
Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 325°F and continue to bake until deep golden brown and a skewer inserted in center comes out clean, about 35-40 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking time. Cool in pan for 15 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.
Make the Pastry Cream: In a medium saucepan, combine milk, half of the sugar, and all the salt. Bring to a boil, stir until sugar is dissolved, then lower heat.
In a medium bowl, stir together remaining sugar and yolks and cornstarch.
Temper egg mixture by pouring in a ladle full of warm milk to egg mixture and whisk until combined. Pour tempered egg mixture into saucepan with milk, constantly whisking until mixture comes to a boil, then lower heat to a simmer.
Once the mixture begins to thicken, remove from heat and whisk in vanilla bean paste and butter. Transfer to a shallow pan, cover, and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
Make the Whipped Cream: Add cream to a large mixing bowl. Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat the cream until it thickens and forms soft peaks. Be careful not to overbeat the cream, as it can turn into butter if beaten for too long. Once the whipped cream has reached your desired consistency, use it immediately or store it in the refrigerator until ready to use.
Since the other components of your trifle are already sweet we suggest simply whipping the cream without sugar and letting the wonderful Clover organic cream flavor shine through.
Macerate the Summer Fruit: Hull and quarter strawberries. Add strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries to a medium mixing bowl. Add ¼ cup of sugar per 3 pints of berries and gently fold together and set aside.
Put It All Together: When you are ready to layer your trifle, gently fold a third of the pastry cream at a time into the whipped cream until both are fully combined.
Cut your pound cake into ½ inch-thick slices. Use the mason jar’s special canning lid with the separate seal and ring to make perfectly-sized cake pieces. Place the lid ring over a ½ slice of pound cake. Take a paring knife and run it along the inner edge of the jar lid ring to cut out a circle in the pound cake. Alternately you can cube or crumble your pound cake pieces.
Once you have your pound cake piece cut and ready, your berries/fruit macerated in sugar, and your whipped and pastry cream folded together, you are ready to build your portable trifles in the mason jar.
Start by adding a generous tablespoon of cream to the bottom of the jar. Add a pound cake round or a few pieces of pound cake on top of the cream. Add another layer of cream on top of the cake. Then add a spoonful of fruit. Add another layer of cake and repeat until you fill your jar. (Between 2 and 3 layers of cake per 8 oz. glass jar depending on how generous you are with your spoonfuls!) Optional: Top with a spring of mint from your garden or windowsill.
Ingredients
Directions
Make the pound cake: Heat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-by 5-inch loaf pan with 1 tablespoon softened butter; dust with 1 tablespoon cake flour.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk melted butter thoroughly to reincorporate any separated milk solids.
In a food processor, process sugar and zest until combined. Add lemon juice, eggs, and vanilla; process until combined, about 5 seconds. With the machine running, add melted butter through the feed tube in a steady stream (about 15-20 seconds).
Transfer wet mixture to a large bowl. Sift flour mixture over eggs in three parts, whisking gently until just combined.
Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 325°F and continue to bake until deep golden brown and a skewer inserted in center comes out clean, about 35-40 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking time. Cool in pan for 15 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.
Make the Pastry Cream: In a medium saucepan, combine milk, half of the sugar, and all the salt. Bring to a boil, stir until sugar is dissolved, then lower heat.
In a medium bowl, stir together remaining sugar and yolks and cornstarch.
Temper egg mixture by pouring in a ladle full of warm milk to egg mixture and whisk until combined. Pour tempered egg mixture into saucepan with milk, constantly whisking until mixture comes to a boil, then lower heat to a simmer.
Once the mixture begins to thicken, remove from heat and whisk in vanilla bean paste and butter. Transfer to a shallow pan, cover, and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
Make the Whipped Cream: Add cream to a large mixing bowl. Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat the cream until it thickens and forms soft peaks. Be careful not to overbeat the cream, as it can turn into butter if beaten for too long. Once the whipped cream has reached your desired consistency, use it immediately or store it in the refrigerator until ready to use.
Since the other components of your trifle are already sweet we suggest simply whipping the cream without sugar and letting the wonderful Clover organic cream flavor shine through.
Macerate the Summer Fruit: Hull and quarter strawberries. Add strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries to a medium mixing bowl. Add ¼ cup of sugar per 3 pints of berries and gently fold together and set aside.
Put It All Together: When you are ready to layer your trifle, gently fold a third of the pastry cream at a time into the whipped cream until both are fully combined.
Cut your pound cake into ½ inch-thick slices. Use the mason jar’s special canning lid with the separate seal and ring to make perfectly-sized cake pieces. Place the lid ring over a ½ slice of pound cake. Take a paring knife and run it along the inner edge of the jar lid ring to cut out a circle in the pound cake. Alternately you can cube or crumble your pound cake pieces.
Once you have your pound cake piece cut and ready, your berries/fruit macerated in sugar, and your whipped and pastry cream folded together, you are ready to build your portable trifles in the mason jar.
Start by adding a generous tablespoon of cream to the bottom of the jar. Add a pound cake round or a few pieces of pound cake on top of the cream. Add another layer of cream on top of the cake. Then add a spoonful of fruit. Add another layer of cake and repeat until you fill your jar. (Between 2 and 3 layers of cake per 8 oz. glass jar depending on how generous you are with your spoonfuls!) Optional: Top with a spring of mint from your garden or windowsill.