Trifle A Splendide
By: Emily Heston
Published: Thursday, December 10, 2009 - 4:02pm

Ingredients




3/4 cup brandy
1 tablespoon Williams Sonoma Vanilla Bean Paste
 cups whole milk
 cups heavy cream
8 large egg yolks
1/4 cup sugar
12 soft lady fingers (store bought)
1/2 cup cherry jam
1 pint blueberries, washed and allowed to dry
1/2 pint raspberries, washed and allowed to dry
2 cups heavy cream, whipped

Preparation

1 Warm milk and cream in a saucepan. 2 Whisk egg yolks and sugar together in a mixing bowl, then beat in the warm milk and cream. 3 Pour mixture into a clean pan and put over low heat. 4 Stir and whisk the mixture constantly until it thickens. 5 If there are signs of the mixture curdling (it will start looking grainy), fill a sink with a couple inches of water, and add ice.   Put the pan in the cold bath and whisk rapidly until the custard smooths out.   If it gets desperate, put an ice cube in the custard mix and continue whisking. 6 When the custard is thick, stir in the Vanilla Bean Paste and 2 tablespoons of the brandy.  The custard can be covered with plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator to chill until needed. 7 Seperate the ladyfingers, spread on jam and sandwich the lid on top.  Line the bottom of a clear glass container with the lady fingers. 8 Sprinkle Lady finger with 2 tablespoons of the brandy, toss on a layer of berries and spoon on a layer of custard. 9 Continue layering until container is full or ingredients are gone. 10 Cover with plastic wrap and chill (24 hours is best). 11 Top the trifle with whipped cream, a sprig of mint and/or more berries before serving.

About


The most challenging part of this recipe is making the custard, it will take about 20 minutes and requires attention.   Once the custard is made, this recipe is very easy..   It is best to make it 24 hours in advanced to let the flavors and textures blend in the refrigerator before serving.   This is a great dessert to "bring" to a party.