ENGLISH TRIFLE

Saturday was Kentucky Derby Day and our friends were holding their annual Derby Day party. It is always a fun day and this Saturday the weather proved to be on our side, being May it can go either way, but we were fortunate enough to be able to sit outside, a great treat for us after the long winter months.

Everyone brings along either a starter or a dessert. KFC provides the chicken. There was also a delicious ham to go along with salads, rice dishes and many other wonderful tasty bits which people had contributed. Of course there was the obligitory Mint Juleps served as always by Max, and some delicious home made lemonade.

I was struggling a bit this year with my dessert. I always do desserts and now it is what is expected from me. The reason I was having so much trouble was due to the fact that the hostess, my good friend Robin, is expecting a baby. Suddenly I started to realise that most of my offerings would contain either raw eggs, as in a tiramasu, soft cheeses, which ruled out my cheesecake and so many other desserts were ruled out because of alcohol! Being pregnant really limits your sweet intake.

In the end I settled for an ENGLISH TRIFLE, yes I know there is some sherry in it but with a tray of cupcakes I had it covered. I have been making trifle for many years now and do not have a written recipe so I will do my best to take you through the process, which is really a very simple one. I am amazed by the fact some people include jelly (jello) in trifles. This is a definite no, no. A real English Trifle contains only 6 ingredients. Trifle sponges(lady fingers) split and spread with raspberry jam, sprinkling of sherry, frozen raspberries, custard and cream. You can also use a few fresh raspberries to decorate. These ingredients will produce a delicious dessert which everyone will appreciate. I prefer to use frozen raspberries as they soak in nicely to the sponges.

Lay the sponges, spread with the jam in the bottom of a deep dish. Sprinkle 2-3 tbsp of sherry over the top. Add the defrosted raspberries on top. Now add you layer of custard. You will need 1 pint(500mls). You can use fresh or buy it ready made. Depends on how much time you have. On this occasion I made it fresh. The final layer is a layer of whipped cream finished off with fresh raspberries to decorate.

I'm happy to say that it went down well. I did not bet on the winning horse but the day was a winner in many ways. Good food, good friends and sunshine, what better way to spend a Saturday afternoon. Thank you Robin & David for your hospitality.