Angel Trifle is beautiful and delicious – A Strawberry Trifle made with pure white Angel Food Cake, doused with (optional) Cointreau Orange Liqueur.
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DON’T LOSE THIS RECIPE… PIN IT FOR LATER…
Angel Trifle – Heaven in a Glass
Behold the beauty of this Angel Trifle… A pure white sponge, contrasted with fresh, bright sweet strawberries and juicy blueberries, doused in boozy Cointreau orange liqueur… All topped with a layer of vanilla custard and softly whipped cream. It’s truly dessert sent from heaven!
Made with Angel Food Cake, this strawberry trifle is a little different to the usual trifle-offerings both for texture and flavour. Although it follows a standard layering of cake, fruit, custard and cream, the unique character of Angel Food Cake gives a deliciously mallowy experience to each and every spoonful.
Is Angel Trifle dairy free and Vegan?
Angel Trifle relies on egg whites for the sponge (it’s what gives them the purity of whiteness), so sadly it’s not suitable for a Vegan diet. It can however be made gluten free (as long as my recipe for gluten free Angel Food Cake is used).
The sponge is fatless and so naturally dairy free, as it the fruit. So, all that is needed for a dairy free version is a sub of dairy free custard and to use lightly whipped coconut cream.
A strawberry trifle among many trifles
At Gluten Free Alchemist, we LOVE trifle. Why? Because it is an amazingly versatile little bowl of loveliness. Trifle can be made to incorporate just about any variety of sponge. And it can be paired with anything from chocolate, fruit and nuts, through to mousse, jelly, custard or cream. Even the ‘soaking’ offers options. Like it boozy? Choose your poison! Prefer to stay sober? Then douse with juice.
Unsurprising then, that with left over Angel Food cake following our annual post-Christmas bake, it seemed right to create an Angel Trifle. But this strawberry trifle is just one among many trifle options created and devoured at GFHQ.
A trip over to the Desserts & Trifles Index reveals an array of drool-worthy options. From easy Banoffee Trifle or traditional coffee-infused Tiramisu Trifle, to a choice of Lemon and Berry, seasonal Pear and Ginger and even a decadent Nutella Trifle (which goes way beyond the jarred stuff). And for more fruitiness, we have a Boozy Orange Trifle, a Raspberry-Lemon Drizzle Trifle and even a Black Forest version. We even have our own home-made Trifle Sponges.
Is this strawberry Trifle easy to make?
The hardest part about Angel Trifle is making the cake. But since the cake is utterly delicious in itself, it’s well worth the effort. And let’s be honest, saving a few slices for a strawberry trifle as gorgeous as this one is barely a hardship… Just think of it as two desserts for less effort!
Once the cake is made, it’s simply a case of chopping, whisking and layering. How tempting is that?
Here’s how to make Angel Trifle
So, with no more babble, here’s how to make Angel Trifle. Rather than duplicate on old posts, the recipe for Angel Food Cake is linked as a separate recipe. Once the cake is in place, simply follow the Angel Trifle recipe for all the additional steps needed to make this beautiful dessert.
Let me know what you think with a comment below. And rate the recipe to help others find it.
And if you’re looking for other gluten free recipes, head over to our Gluten Free Recipe Index for inspiration.
Angel Trifle with Strawberries (& Cointreau)
Key equipment
- sharp knife
- serving dishes
Ingredients
- 80 g Angel Food Cake (3 to 4 slices) Recipe link Angel Food Cake
- 400 g fresh strawberries approx weight
- 100 g fresh blueberries approx weight
- 2 tsp caster sugar (superfine sugar)
- 4 tbsp Cointreau liqueur or Amaretti liqueur (or a little juice if making without alcohol)
- 350 g fresh vanilla custard approx weight (or dairy free alternative)
- 400 ml double cream approx weight (or whipped coconut cream)
Instructions
- Trim hull and slice the strawberries (reserving a few (one per individual trifle) whole for decoration).
- Place the chopped strawberries in a bowl with the fresh blueberries.
- Sprinkle the sugar over the fruit and pour on a good glug of Cointreau/liqueur.
- Fold the liquid over the fruit and leave to marinate for a good couple of hours (or overnight) stirring occasionally.
- Cut the sponge into cubes.
- Place a layer of fruit in the bottom of your trifle serving dishes (preferably glass so that you can see the layers).
- Top this with a layer of sponge and drizzle some of the boozy-juice from the fruit over the top to soak into the sponge.
- Add a further layer of fruit, topped with sponge.
- Drizzle more juice over the top (if you run out, add a drizzle of neat liqueur).
- Spoon over a layer of custard and allow to settle over the trifle, mingling with the sponge and fruit in the gaps.
- While the custard settles, whisk the cream to soft peaks.
- Spoon a layer of cream onto the top of each trifle.
- Top with a strawberry and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
© 2019-2023 Kate Dowse All Rights Reserved – Do not copy or re-publish this recipe or any part of this recipe on any other blog, on social media or in a publication without the express permission of Gluten Free Alchemist
Angel Trifle shared with
- Cook Blog Share week 4 2021 with Effortless Foodie
- Fiesta Friday #364 with Angie, Of Goats & Greens and Food, Eat Love
- What’s for Dinner #300 with The Lazy Gastronome
- Full Plate Thursday #521 with Miz Helen’s Country Cottage
These are beautiful!! Pinned to make this summer! Thanks for sharing at the What’s for Dinner party! Have a fantastic week!
Thank you Helen. You too x
oh wow! These look so nice! I have pinned these so I can make these! I must try these out.
Thank you Natasha. Enjoy xx
What a gorgeous idea for using up leftover cake, the Angel Sponge Cake would be perfect for this. I use Genoise Sponge and let it dry out a bit so you get those familiar crispy edges. Fab photos too Kate xx
Thank you Rebecca. Genoise sponge is fab for trifles and crispy edges sound yummy. Any left over cake in our house usually gets smothered in fruit, custard and cream. It’s the best use for leftover cake I’ve ever found x
Amazing photos! I love trifles, besides, strawberries and cream are my fav ever dessert. Thank you for sharing 🙂
Thank you so much. You’re so welcome. What a lovely comment. xx
Definitely, this looks cool and refreshing – and your photography is spot-on. Thanks for bringing this over to Fiesta Friday!
Thank you so much. I adore trifle… but this one was particularly yummy.
And thank you for hosting xx
I don’t know if the hardest part is baking the Angel food cake or trying to resist these gorgeous looking trifle cups.
Ha ha. Yes! I think the cake and the trifles make the decision to risk baking it easier xx
Thank you xx
Another absolutely stunning creation! These look so beautiful! Thank you for sharing with the No Waste Food Challenge 🙂
Awww…. Thank you Elizabeth! You're welcome. It's one of my favourite challenges! x
Oh yes, they really do look pretty Kate. I adore trifle and have made some excellent ones, but I've never been able to make them look appealing on camera. Yours most definitely do and they sound delicious too.
Thank you. Trifle can be tricky on camera. I'm no technical photographer, but try to avoid getting too much reflection on the glass….. seems to help!
It's worth the effort if you can capture the layers…… I adore trifle! x
Oh wow. These look gorgeous. Love your photos :-). Love that you have included Miss GF in your celebrations. We don't do a lot to celebrate Valentine's in our house – just cards usually – but I will take any and every opportunity to make nice food! Eb x
Thanks Eb. I always think Valentines is a bit lame…… If you are going to celebrate love, it should be with those who really matter!
Oh WOW!!! These trifles not only look so pretty but they sound amazingly delicious! Thank you for sharing with #CookBlogShare x
Thanks Kirsty. Always great to share…… especially when it's a trifle this good! xx
I think strawberries say "Valentine's" just as much as chocolate! I'm with you about Valentine's Day, we don't celebrate it in our house (aside from the cute cards the boys made at school) but it's just the perfect excuse for a bit of over the top baking. This trifle sounds just delicious.
I agree Charlotte….. any excuse for a good bake-up is good with me, too! And yes….. strawberries must be up there with chocolate for Valentines.
Yum yum.. this looks like an Italian ice cream "coppa"! One of those big ice creams with cream and cherries. Looks fantastic and it is beautifully photographed too! Happy Valentine!
Thank you Alida. I have never heard of 'coppa' before, but having googled it, I see what you mean!
Hope you had a good Valentines weekend.
Oh, yum. Looks so good!
Thanks Bethany x
Oh wow this does look like a romantic dessert, it may be on my valentines menu:-) Thanks for linking to #CookBlogShare
Thanks Hayley. Trifle is so easy to make beautiful….. fab for Valentines!
Oh yum! I wish I could…!!! Sounds like you have a wonderful valentine's weekend planned. I love the peak district! I went to university in Sheffield so spent a lot of time up there escaping the stress! Have a lovely time x
Thanks Vicki. Came back this evening….. had a fab weekend! Managed to get the (increasingly independent) girls walking and climbing all over the place! Hope you had a great weekend too xx
Your trifles look really beautiful. As a trifle novice I am filled with admiration. Hope you have a great time in the Peak District – sounds like fun way to spend valentines – much nicer than in an overpriced restaurant 🙂
Thanks Johanna. Trifles are such a fab way to use stuff up…… and it's so easy to make them look pretty!
The Peaks were fab….. just got back this evening! x