I found a wonderful way to use up old cake. When I say "old cake" I mean cake that has not been decorated or gobbled up in a sleep-walking daze. I don't decorate cakes in my sleep except for that one instance and then never again. Chocolate ganache does not wash out. And in my sleep-walking daze, I was not very good at measuring. Nor was I wearing my glasses. You live, you learn.
Since I've been making different vanilla cakes (some with sprinkles, some with vanilla beans, some with both!), it makes the perfect sponge for the bottom of a trifle. What is a trifle? It's layered perfection! It has everything enjoyable about dessert: custard, whipped cream, fruit, jelly, and vanilla sponge cake. In England, everyone knows Marks and Spencer's trifle. It's a staple (stable?) for Sunday Roast. And while I love a bit of designer dessert, it was really really sweet. I'm trying to stop being so horse-shoe-on-its-side shaped, but trifles are truly the siren call of all desserts. I'm a sucker for fragrant vanilla cake, rich eggy custard, and some fruit.
Now, it's really quite simple to throw together if you've already made all the components. Vanilla cake requires mostly egg whites. The egg yolks are used to make custard. The custard is secretly low fat or non fat due to milk. The jelly is made with the juice from no-sugar-added canned mandarin oranges and pineapples. The whole thing tastes like dreamy vanilla pudding with bits of sponge cake and fruit. Nom nom nom.
Just remember that gelatine is NOT VEGETARIAN. When I brought 2 trifles to my friend's birthday party, one vegetarian, people were wondering what sort of meat-and-fruit was in the other trifle. Um. Ha. Gross.
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