A Patriotic Berry Trifle Recipe
It seems like June was over in a flash, and now July is here. And that means the Fourth of July is just a few days away! For the big celebration we typically have a cookout with the family. I always like to serve some sort of patriotic themed dessert to celebrate the day. Last year I made patriotic cupcakes (see this post). This year I decided to make a patriotic berry trifle for Independence day given we had a plethora of strawberries from our strawberry picking day. Keep reading to see how easy (or hard) it is to make!
Make it From Scratch for Best Results
A trifle is a relatively simple concept. It is a British dish that is similar to strawberry shortcake, with the addition of pudding and a few extra berries. You can make a trifle the easy way or the hard way. I like making everything from scratch (as I find the results much more gratifying, not to mention tastier!). This recipe has five simple ingredients – pound cake, vanilla pudding, whipped cream, strawberries, and blueberries. If you are in a time crunch you can buy a pound cake and whipped cream at the grocery store. Get some instant vanilla pudding and berries and you are done. But if you want better results, I recommend making pound cake from scratch. I like to keep things simple so I used a classic pound cake recipe from The Cake Bible. And make the vanilla pudding and whipped cream from scratch too as both are so easy to make! But once you have all your ingredients together the assembly is the easy part.
Assembly is the Easy Part
A trifle bowl is all about presentation. Start by cubing your pound cake and put a hand full of it in your trifle bowl (I used this one). I like to do this first so my first layer of strawberries stays put. After you place your cubed pound cake in the bottom of your trifle bowl, arrange your strawberry pieces circularly around the cake.
After you put your strawberries and pound cake in the bowl, next comes the vanilla pudding. I made my own vanilla pudding (a simple recipe of milk, sugar, corn starch and vanilla) and it is so worth it to do this! I like to place the pudding directly on top of the pound cake cubes.
Next add your whipped cream. Again I make this myself in my Vitamix with heavy whipping cream, vanilla, and sugar.
Then add your blueberries, and repeat with a layer of pound cake, vanilla pudding, whipped cream. Then top with remaining strawberries and blueberries! This couldn’t be easier to do. After gathering all my ingredients, the whole trifle is assembled in less than five minutes. And I tell you it was such a hit with my family that it barely lasted five minutes too!
The Berry Trifle as the Centerpiece
When it comes to the Fourth of July, this patriotic trifle makes the perfect centerpiece for my festive Independence day tablescape. It really is almost too pretty to eat!
I love creating holiday tablescapes, and decorating for the Fourth of July is the perfect time to do so! The red, white, and blue colors of the trifle complement perfectly these Serena and Lilly gingham napkins. And these blue scalloped AERIN salad plates are perfect for serving the trifle. These seagrass chargers are practical for the outdoors, and they add just the right amount of color and contrast to the table.
Patriotic Berry Trifle
Ingredients
For the Pound Cake
- 3 tbsp milk
- 3 large eggs
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1 1/2 cups (150 grams) cake flour
- 3/4 cup (150 grams) sugar
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 13 tbsp (184 grams) unsalted butter
For the Vanilla Pudding
- 2 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 tbsp corn starch
For the Whipped Cream
- 4 cups heavy whipping cream
- 4 tbsp sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla
For the Trifle
- 1 pound cake
- 2 cups vanilla pudding
- 4 cups whipped cream
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 5 cups fresh strawberries
- 3 cups blueberries
Instructions
For the Pound Cake
- Preheat oven to 350°
- 1. In a medium bowl, combine milk, eggs, and vanilla.
- 2. In a large mixing bowl, combine all dry ingrediens and mix on low speed for 30 seconds to blend.
- 3. Add the butter and half the egg mixture.
- 4. Mix on low speed to moisten the dry ingredients.
- 5. Increase to medium speed and beat for 1 minute to develop the structure of the cake.
- 6. Gradually add the remaining egg mixture and beat until fully incorporated.
- 7. Scrape the bater into a prepared 8 inch by 4 inch pan (very important to use the correct sized pan!).
- Bake for 55 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cover loosely with buttered foil after 30 minutes to prevent over browning.
- Let cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack, then invert it onto the rack, taking care to reinvert so that the top is up.
- *Adapted from The Cake Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum
For the Vanilla Pudding
- Put 2 cups milk, sugar and a pinch of salt salt in a smallsaucepot over medium-low heat. Cook just until mixture begins to steam.
- Combine cornstarch and remaining 1/2 cup milk bowl and blend until there are no lumps.
- Add cornstarch mixture. Then cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture starts to thicken and sticks to a metal spoon easily.
- Continue to cook, stirring frequently, for an additional 5 minutes.
- Pour into a 1 quart dish, then cover and refrigerate until cool.
For the Whipped Cream
- Combine 4 cups heavy whipping cream, 2 tbsp sugar, and vanilla together in a stand mixer or professional blender.
- Blend until the whipped cream forms soft peaks.
For the Trifle
- Mix strawberries with 1/2 cup sugar and allow to sit for 15 minutes.
- Cut pound cake into 1 inch cubes.
- Add as first layer into center of trifle bowl.
- Add a ring of strawberries, facing outward around the bottom layer of pound cake.
- Add 1 cup of vanilla on top of the pound cake.
- Top the pound cake with 2 cups of whipped cream.
- Then add 1-2 cups of blueberries.
- Add another layer of cubed pound cake. Again add 1 cup of vanilla pudding to center of trifle.
- Top with remaining 2 cups of whipped cream.
- Add remaining strawberries and blueberries to the top of the trife.
I hope this berry trifle recipe has given you plenty of inspiration for the Fourth of July! And as always, thanks for stopping by!
xo | April
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love your post Dr. April-I was quit surprised when I saw your beautiful dessert i have been making those for years and had just made one for my sister that flew in from S. C.the only thing I do different but im sure it would not effect the tast is I use Angle food cake -I think it is such a pretty dessert
Thanks Margie! And I think using Angel food cake is a great idea (not to mention healthier!).
This looks so delicious! While I know the 4th of July has passed, I love that this berry trifle can be made for any occasion! I have got a family member’s birthday coming up, I can’t wait to try this! Btw, this belted dress from Draper James is beautiful. The color is stunning!
Maureen | http://www.littlemisscasual.com
Thank you Maureen! You are so sweet!