Individual Berry Trifles
I’ve always had the thought that for a dessert to be good for Fourth of July, it has to encompass the following: have all the colors of our great American flag, incorporate lots and lots of berries, and be guiltlessly delicious. This year, I wanted to create a dessert that could be in hand and on the go, while conversing with friends and devoured at any time. I thought that individual berry trifles would be the perfect fit because they are colorful, fun and encompass all the flavors that encompass the Fourth of July.
This dessert looks decadent (which it is) but is also light in flavor as the base of this dessert is one deconstructed, vanilla cupcake with layers of fresh strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries with whipped cream in between. This is also a fun dessert to assemble and make with family and friends as you can see from our assembling video below. This recipe may look familiar as we are using the same vanilla cake base from our Vanilla Raspberry Cake, but the flavor profile of this dessert is so much more diverse with the flavors of the blueberries and strawberries. Enjoy it!
MAKING YOUR VANILLA CUPCAKES
Makes: 12 individual berry trifles
Materials needed: 1 12 cup cupcake pan, 12 cocktail glasses (or plastic cups)
Prep Time: ~35 minutes (not including cooling time)
INGREDIENTS
Fresh strawberries, raspberries and blueberries
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup whole milk (I substituted with almond milk and it was just as delicious!)
2 eggs, at room temperature
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 tablespoons mild-flavored oil (I’ve used coconut oil or sunflower oil, both were great!)
WHIPPED CREAM FOR THE FILLING:
1 cup heavy cream, chilled
1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
3 tablespoons confectioners’ sugarRaspberry Preserve
INSTRUCTIONS
MAKING THE CAKE
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease your cupcake pan with baking spray
2. Wash all your berries and place in separate bowls to dry. Set aside.
3. Add the lemon juice to the milk to sour it. Set aside.
4. In a small bowl, whisk the eggs together. Set aside.
5. In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sift through.
6. Using an electric mixer with beaters or a paddle attachment, beat the butter for 30 seconds on medium speed and then gradually add the sugar. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Continue beating on medium speed for another 4 minutes or until light in color and fluffy.
6. Add the vanilla extract and beat until combined.
7. Gradually add the eggs on medium speed.
8. On low speed, add the flour mixture and then the oil and milk; mix until just combined. Don’t overbeat. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.
9. Pour the batter into the prepared cupcake pan and fill each cup 2/3 full. Bake for 17-20 minutes. After you take them out of the oven, cool completely on a wire rack.
MAKING THE WHIPPED CREAM
While the cupcakes are cooling, make the whipped cream!
1. Pour the cream into a large bowl, add the the vanilla extract and confectioners sugar.
2. With a mixer, beat the cream until it has doubled in volume, has smooth soft peaks and is light and fluffy.
ASSEMBLING THE BERRY TRIFLES:
1. Start by cutting the tops of your cupcakes off (feel free to munch on the muffin tops as they will not be used for the berry trifles!)
2. Slice the cupcake in half again horizontally, so that you get two cupcake discs from the one cupcake
3. Let’s create our trifles! We will be using one cupcake (two layers) per trifle for a total of 12 individual trifles. Start layering the trifle in your cocktail glass in the following order: cake, berries (I used strawberries and blueberries, saving the raspberries for the top!), dollop of whipped cream, cake, berries, whipped cream. By this point you will be at the top of your trifle. Fill the tops of your trifle with an abundance of strawberries, blueberries and raspberries. Repeat for the remaining trifles.
Enjoy this sweet dessert and have fun assembling these with your family and friends!
