A beautiful, tri-colored trifle that requires no baking! Use whatever berries you have on hand or are in season!
My brother is a lucky guy. His wife is an amazing cook and a phenomenal baker. They are constantly trying new recipes and even have their own unofficial pub at their house. Every time I visit them, there is a new beer or wine fermenting in the basement or garage.
When we visited them over the 4th of July weekend, I brought over my chocolate cheesecake. My sister-in-law had a trifle in mind, and I thought it was a perfect complement to the cheesecake since it was fruity and not quite as rich.
She had all the ingredients prepped by the time I arrived. And since she had her hands full with being the hostess, I happily stepped in to help assemble the trifle.
I loved how easy this was to put together, since it just requires a bunch of layers and involves no baking. The ladyfingers didn’t get as soft as we wanted, so I’d recommend that you add a layer of simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water, boiled and cooled).
You can easily customize this to include whatever fruits make you happy or whatever is in season. Since it was the 4th of July, my sister-in-law used red and blue fruits to celebrate the holiday.
Enjoy!
Red, white and blue trifle
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/2 pounds raspberries or strawberries hulled, cleaned and quartered
- 1/4 cup orange juice
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar divided
- 10 ounces (about 1 and 1/3 cups) mascarpone cheese
- 1 and 1/4 cups cold heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- 20-24 ladyfingers from a 7 ounce package broken into 1-inch pieces
- 3/4 pound (about 2 and 1/2 cups) fresh blueberries
Instructions
- Line the bottom of an 8-inch springform pan with parchment paper. Cut two additional sheets of parchment paper so that it is about 4 inches taller than the pan. Use these sheets to line the inside perimeter of the pan.
- In a medium sized bowl, toss the raspberries or strawberries with the orange juice and 1/4 cup of powdered sugar. Using the back of a spoon, lightly mash them to release their juices. Set aside for about 10 minutes.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl if using a handheld mixer, mix together the mascarpone with the remaining 1/2 cup of powdered sugar on medium speed until well blended. Whisk in the cream, vanilla, and salt until soft peaks form, about 4-5 minutes.
- Place the ladyfingers on the bottom of the pan in one even layer. Add half of the berry mixture and top with half of the whipped cream. Make sure the whipped cream is even. Repeat with the remaining ladyfingers, berries and whipped cream.
- Top with the blueberries and chill in the refrigerator for about 3 hours.
- To serve the trifle, unhinge the springform pan and remove the parchment paper from the side. Slice and serve.