This week I have 2 desserts for you to try.  They would possibly be regarded by many as ‘old-fashioned’ but that is not necessarily a bad thing – they have stood the test of time.  These recipes come from a time when dessert was created from basic ingredients from the pantry and leftovers, along with seasonal produce from the garden.

LEMON DELICIOUS

1 tablespoon butter
3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons plain flour
Juice and rind of 1 lemon
2 eggs
1 cup milk

Cream the butter and sugar.  Add flour, juice and rind.  Mix well.  Separate the eggs, add yolks and milk to mixture.  Place the whites in a separate bowl and beat until stiff.  Fold the beaten egg white into the mixture.  Pour into an ovenproof dish.  Stand the dish in a tray of water (about 2-3cm deep) and place in a moderate oven for about 30 minutes or until the top is firm to touch and golden.

The finished product is like a lemon self-saucing pudding.  This can be served warm or cold with ice-cream, cream or custard.Now for the trifle.  I am writing the specifically in response to a question from Jeni.  I make trifle about once each year and do not use a recipe.  It is the result of my memories of eating trifle when I was a child.  So, here goes:

TRIFLE

Sponge cake (a little stale is better)
Jelly (red or green)
Custard (cold  and thick pouring consistency)
Coconut
Tinned peaches
Jam
Orange juice/peach juice/sherry

You do need to plan ahead and make the jelly the day before.  Use only 375ml water instead of 500ml to make the jelly a bit stiffer.  Pour into a shallow dish to set.

Slice cake into thin slabs, spread with jam (strawberry is my preference) and sandwich together.  Cut cake into small pieces and set aside.

Cut jelly into cubes (bite-sized pieces).

Cut the peach slices into bite-sized pieces.

Assemble the trifle in a glass bowl starting with a layer of cake pieces.  Drizzle with a little of the juice or sherry.  Sprinkle with coconut and pour a small amount of custard over the cake layer.  Add jelly, then peaches with a little coconut and custard between each layer.

Repeat the process until all ingredients are used up.  Finish with a generous sprinkle of coconut.

HINTS & TIPS

The coconut can be toasted or slivered almonds may be used as well.  I used some sliced glace cherries to garnish the trifle this time.  Many trifles includes cream but I do not eat cream and prefer to serve it as an optional garnish.

Trifle originally evolved as a way of using up leftovers.  If you want to know more about the history you can read it here.

There is nothing definitive about making trifle.  Just do as you please and enjoy!