Chocolate and Cherry Trifle is an indulgent dessert that looks and tastes like it was a lot of hard work but guess what, it’s not :):)
Trifle is a traditional British dessert made with a layer of sponge cake, custard and seasonal fruits all topped with whipped cream. The sponge cake is soaked in sherry and fruit jelly and the dessert is usually served at Christmas. A very versatile dessert that you can make your own by using seasonal fruits and different flavoured custards.
I don’t know whose idea it was to put together chocolate and cherries first but it certainly was a smart move. I personally am forever grateful to him/her for this poetic combination of velvety chocolate and vibrant, tart cherries.
We will prepare our dessert in three stages but that shouldn’t worry you as they are all simple steps and can be done ahead of time. First of all we’ll make a compote with the cherries to soften their tartness a little and release their juices which we will need to soak the sponge cake. 10-15 minutes on low heat with a little sugar will do the trick. It is surprising how much juice comes out of the cherries with a little heat. This time I made the compote with a mixture of sweet and tart cherries as I had a bowl of sweet cherries going soft in the fridge, you can use just tart cherries but you might need to adjust the sugar a little.
And then there is the Chocolate Pastry Cream, so indulgent that you might just want to eat it as is :):) Finally there is the sponge cake which you can prepare according to your trusted recipe or use good quality shop bought cake. The recipe for the Chocolate Pastry Cream is here.
The rest is as easy as 1-2-3… Just layer everything in a big bowl with whipped cream and chill for a couple of hours before serving.
- 200 gr sweet cherries, pitted
- 200 gr tart cherries, pitted
- 3 Tbs granulated sugar
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- 1 batch chocolate pastry cream
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- 200 ml whipping cream
- 2 tsp powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
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- 7-8 slices chocolate sponge cake
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- 50 gr grated chocolate
- Place the pitted cherries and sugar in a medium sized sauce pan, cook for 10-15 minutes on low with the lid on. When cool enough, refrigerate. The fruit will foam up a lot during cooking so take the lid off to release the steam once in a while and whatever you do, don't leave it unattended for too long.
- Prapare the pastry cream and chill in the fridge.
- Whip the cold cream with the powdered sugar and the vanilla extract, preferably in a bowl previously chilled in the fridge.
- Cover the bottom of your trifle bowl with a layer of sponge cake, sprinkle with a few Tbs of the juice and a third of the fruit.
- Spread one third of the pastry cream and a layer of whipped cream. Repeat two more times with the same order.
- Top it with plenty whipped cream and decorate with cherries and grated chocolate.
- Chill for a couple of hours before serving.
You can use kirsch to soak the sponge cake.