This delicious trifle is a combination of moist pound cake, sweet summer fruit, and whipped cream. Can easily substitute the listed fruit for fruit you may already have on hand. Vegan friendly with a gluten free option as well!

Hey, friends! I know it’s been a while since my last post. I didn’t mean to be away so long, but sometimes life has a way of keeping you busy. We bought and sold a house in May, then had the daunting task of moving during a global pandemic, which I would never recommend doing, btw. We quickly tried to make our new house feel more like home with family coming to visit just a few weeks later.

You know how moving is. You meticulously pack up everything, just to unpack it a few days later. Then you have to find new places to put things and figure out where to rehang all of the pictures and art again. Not only that, but we also had to buy and reinstall all new blinds, hardware, and curtains on every window of the house. I understand leaving blinds, but here in Oklahoma you also have to leave all of the curtain rods as well as your curtains when you sell a home.

It’d be kind of odd if the new owners of a home had exactly the same taste and color decor as the old owners. Most of the time it probably just gets thrown away, as the new owners customize the space to fit their own style. It kind of seems like a waste and ends up being more of a nuisance having to re-buy everything again. Oh well, rant over.

We got settled in quickly so we’d be ready to welcome guests during our son Caleb’s high school graduation ceremony, which took place in June. We had family set to fly in for the occasion and we would be hosting many of the meals in our home for our out of town guests, especially with all of the dining restrictions in place at restaurants these days. I’m thinking a group of 15 would probably max out many of the local restaurant’s patio capacity!

It was nice having family over to visit though. And in lieu of the party we would’ve done in different circumstances, we celebrated Caleb’s accomplishment all weekend long, with lots of family time, special dinners, and gifts. It was kind of like he got a second birthday this year! 🎉

I mentioned on Instagram that we were supposed to be in Hawaii this week to celebrate Caleb’s big milestone and my birthday, which happens to be tomorrow. However, our trip was cancelled due to travel restrictions. It was a major bummer, but we opted to make the most out of it by having a staycation at home, since everyone had already taken time off of work.

We looked into traveling to different states nearby, like Colorado or Arizona, but with many places still closed down and with COVID-19 surging all across the U.S. we figured it might be safer to stay at home for now.

At least we can make all the yummy things during our staycation, like this summer trifle, which combines homemade pound cake, loads of fresh fruit, and fluffy whipped cream. It’s truly the yummiest combo and the perfect way to enjoy all the sweet fruit that’s in season right now.

And when we’re able to gather with all of our friends and family again, this makes such a great dessert to share and/or take to picnics and bbqs! I hope you’re able give it a try soon! Enjoy!

Summer Fruit Trifle

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Author: Joscelyn Abreu
Yield: 10–12 servings 1x

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Description

Ingredients

Scale

Trifle:

6–8 cups homemade or store-bought pound cake, cut into 1″ cubes (homemade egg-free recipe below)
6–8 cups mixed fresh fruit of choice, about 1-2 cups reserved for decorating the top (I used 1 lb. hulled and sliced strawberries, 6 oz. blueberries, 2 pitted and thinly sliced peaches)
1/4–1/2 cup sugar, maple syrup, honey, or other sweetener of choice
2 (8–9oz) containers frozen *whipped topping, thawed (So Delicious Coco Whip is a good dairy-free choice)

Egg-Free Pound Cake:

1 1/2 cup milk of choice
1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice
3/4 cup unsalted butter or dairy-free butter, softened
1 1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour or gluten-free flour blend
3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoons salt (if using salted butter, only use 1/4 teaspoon salt)

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Instructions

About 30 minutes before assembling, prep fruit and place in a large bowl. Sprinkle sugar over the fruit and toss to coat (amount will depend on sweetness of your fruit. Add more sugar for tart fruit, less for sweet fruit.) Let fruit macerate, stirring every so often to help release the natural juices.
Once the fruit has created a good amount of “sauce,” it’s time to assemble the trifle.
For the trifle in the photos, I just alternated a couple of large spoonfuls of each around the trifle dish–cake, fruit, whipped cream–until I reached the top. However, most people choose to layer, but you can choose whichever option you’d like. Instructions for layering below.
In a trifle bowl or large glass bowl, place about 1/2 of the cake cubes at the bottom of the dish.
Top the cake cubes with about 1/2 of the fruit. You’ll want to use a large non-slotted spoon to capture as much as the sauce along with the fruit to pour over the cake. The cake will soak in the juices and capture more of the flavor.
Top the fruit with 1/2 the whipped cream, continuing to repeat the process one more time. You may not need to use all of the cake.
Decorate the top with reserved fruit. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Trifle is best when made several hours ahead of time to give the cake time to soften and allow the flavors to meld. Serves about 8-10.

Pound Cake:

If making homemade, the cake needs to be made several hours ahead of time, up to a day or two prior to assembling the trifle. It must cool thoroughly before using!
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Lightly grease a 9×13 baking pan or line with parchment paper.
In a small bowl, combine milk of choice with vinegar and set aside to sour.
In a medium bowl, blend together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, beat softened butter together with sugar until fluffy. Beat in vanilla extract. With the mixer on low, add some of the flour mixture alternately with some of the milk, beating until incorporated. Continue alternating flour and milk until everything is mixed together and the batter is smooth.
Pour batter into the prepared pan and spread into an even layer. Bake for 25–30 minutes, or just until center is set and a toothpick inserted comes out mostly dry. Time may vary depending on your pan and true oven temperature.
Allow cake to cool thoroughly before slicing and layering in trifle. A hot cake will melt the whipped cream.

Notes

*Can also whip up 2 cups heavy whipping cream or a dairy-free heavy cream alternative with 1/4 cup sugar. Beat together in a large mixing bowl until soft peaks form.

Category: dessert, vegan, gluten free