Sometimes the perfect dessert is just a trifle

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Visions of sugarplums may dance in your head when you think of holiday sweets. But when it comes to Christmas desserts, I like to think of Jane Austen. (Go with me here.) I picture her at Chawton Cottage in Hampshire, her hair up in simple curls and her dress down to her ankles. There is snow outside on the English landscape. Maybe there is a crackling fire and a Christmas tree. In my dream, she has just finished writing for the day and, as a reward, she strolls into the kitchen, where a gift left by her best friend, Martha Lloyd, is waiting for her. It’s a trifle. A trifle!

Layered with cake doused in sherry, fruit jam, pudding and whipped cream, the English trifle is a perfect holiday dessert. Best of all, trifles came into their own during Jane Austen’s time, but they are popular again. (Try ordering a trifle bowl online this time of year and you’ll see what I mean.) Though they come from across the ocean, the “drunken” treat cuts across national lines. Spain has a version (Bizcocho Borracho). Italy has two (Zuppa Inglese and Tiramisu). Early Americans called theirs “Tipsy Parson” and “Tipsy Squire,” undoubtedly because the alcohol-soaked cakes were a clever way for officials to add a little zip to their Christian diets.

The best thing about a trifle is that it can be elegant, garish, sophisticated or rustic. It can be fattening or low calorie. (More on that later.) No matter how you arrange the ingredients, however, trifles are festive, celebratory and as easy to make as they are beautiful. For the creative cook, they also are simply adapted to suit tastes and occasions. (I made one with chocolate cookies, chocolate pudding and Mandarin oranges.)

Although not much is known about the origin of the dessert, the word itself comes from English and French words that mean “to mock,” “to trick” or something insignificant. (Back at Chawton, I can imagine Martha saying to Jane: “Oh, I just whipped it up. It’s nothing. Just a trifle, really.”)

In its most traditional form, trifles begin with sponge cake and sherry. The addition of sherry, which adds a lovely aromatic edge, probably once made up for a lack of refrigeration. These days, many recipes omit the sherry. Doing so may make the recipe more suitable for tots or those with alcohol allergies, but it also greatly diminishes the flavor.

Because trifle is associated with winter holidays, jam – rather than fresh fruit – makes up the next layer. Most recipes call for raspberry jam, making for an amorous maroon-red color. More recently, however, many cooks choose fresh strawberries or a berry mix. (Strawberries and blueberries are a popular combination for July 4th celebrations.)

Decadence rules with the next two toppings: vanilla pudding and thick, rich whipped cream. Use real egg pudding and heavy whipped cream, and you’re talking extra Lipitor at the end of the day. But if you have a sweet tooth for creamy delights, it may be worth it once in a while. And remember: There’s a lot packed into a small space with a trifle. Take small portions, and you won’t do much harm to your waistline or your cholesterol level. (For the aforementioned low-calorie version, replace the sponge cake with angel food cake, use fruit-juice sweetened jam or fresh berries, substitute pudding with strained low-fat vanilla yogurt, and the whipped cream with no-fat Cool Whip.)

A friend’s mother, who grew up in London, arrived with a trifle one Christmas years ago. She had literally thrown it together, and it was sloppy and wonderful. Until that day, I always felt trifles were too prim. The fact is, they aren’t. When you arrive at the table with yours, no one is going to say it looks as if it took you all day to prepare it. You didn’t. You took a max of about 30 minutes. More time is permitted if you made the pudding and cake by hand and picked all your own berries that day. But one of the treasures of a trifle is that it isn’t time or labor intensive. During the holidays, that’s not only perfect, but necessary. Better to spend time constructing the part of the dinner that actually has nutritional value. Then, do what my English friend did: Throw together the dessert afterward.

If you use a traditional clear-glass trifle bowl, the ingredients stack up nicely, with the pudding dripping down the sides in a sweet imitation of wintry snow scenes. If you use a glass salad bowl or even a glass mixing bowl, slouching is acceptable, if not trendy in shabby-chic circles. But remember to make an entrance, because once you’ve started scooping, trifles are a mess.

In the end, it is a truth universally acknowledged that trifle is about the most fun you can have with a holiday dessert. Be traditional or be whimsical. Dish it out or simply pass around spoons. Go ahead: Trifle with it.

Julie Hagerty’s Perfect Pound Cake Trifle

Serves eight to ten

1 frozen pound cake (10.75 ounce), thawed, Sara Lee brand

1/2 cup cream sherry, Harvey’s Bristol Cream brand

2 bags (12 ounces each) frozen mixed berries, thawed and well drained

3 cups cold whole milk

1 box vanilla instant pudding and pie filling mix

1 container (12-ounce) frozen whipped topping, thawed, Cool Whip brand

Trim crusts off pound cake and cut cake crosswise into 3/4-inch thick slices. Cut each cake slice diagonally in half, forming triangles. Place pound cake triangles in bottom of 2 1/2-quart clear glass bowl. Brush pound cake generously with sherry. Spoon mixed berries evenly over cake. Whisk milk and pudding mix in large bowl for 2 minutes, or until cream and beginning to thicken. Pour pudding over mixed berries. Refrigerate trifle for 10 minutes. Spread whipped topping over trifle. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve. From “Sandra Lee’s Semi-Homemade Desserts” (Miramax Books).

Cherry Cream Trifle

Makes 25 to 30 servings

1 package (18 1/4 ounces) yellow cake mix

2 packages (3.4 ounces each) instant vanilla pudding mix

2 cans (21 ounces each) cherry pie filling

2 cans (20 ounces each) crushed pineapple, drained

2 cartons (16 ounces each) frozen whipped topping, thawed

2 cups chopped pecans

Prepare and bake cake according to package directions for a 13-by-9-by-2-inch pan. Cool on a wire rack. Prepare pudding according to package directions. Cut cake into 1 1/2-inch cubes; place a third of the cubes in an 8-quart punch bowl. Top with a third of the pie filling, pineapple, pudding, whipped topping and pecans; repeat layers twice. Cover and refrigerate until serving. From “Taste of Home’s Holiday Celebrations Cookbook 2005” (Taste of Home Books).

Raspberry Vanilla Trifle

Makes 10 to 12 servings

2 cups milk

1 package cook-and-serve vanilla pudding mix

1 loaf frozen pound cake, thawed

1/4 cup seedless raspberry jam

1/4 cup orange juice

10 soft macaroon cookies

2 cups fresh or frozen unsweetened raspberries, thawed and drained

1 cup heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar

1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted

In a small saucepan, combine milk and pudding mix. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture comes to a full boil. Cool. Cut cake into 1-inch slices; spread with jam. Cut into 1-inch cubes. Place cubes jam side up in a 3-quart trifle or glass bowl. Drizzle with orange juice.

Place macaroons in a food processor or blender, cover and process until coarse crumbs form. Set aside 1/4 cup crumbs for garnish; sprinkle remaining crumbs over cake cubes. Top with berries and pudding. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Just before serving, in a small mixing bowl, beat cream until thickened. Beat in confectioners’ sugar until stuff peaks form. Spread over trifle. Sprinkle with almonds and reserved macaroon crumbs. From “Taste of Home’s Holiday Celebrations Cookbook 2004” (Taste of Home Books).