Trifle (for breakfast)

I thought that children were supposed to be up before parents on Christmas Day, but apparently not so here. Early on Christmas morning – and I mean early – Mum was in the kitchen making a start on the trifle preparations.

By the time I found her in the kitchen, she had already made the jelly and was spreading raspberry jam on the sponge (after heating the jam and straining it to remove the pips – this removal of the pips is for my benefit entirely, I am embarrased to say.)

The trifle was being prepared for a specific purpose; not to be eaten on Christmas Day, but for the Boxing Day breakfast. Yes, trifle for breakfast. Just as it is essential to have bubbly on Christmas morning, it is essential to have trifle on Boxing Day for breakfast. This is a very important tradition in our family and we only make trifle once a year for this special day. We ALWAYS have trifle on Boxing Day for breakfast. That’s the way it is and that’s the way it shall be. (Have I repeated myself enough to get the message through?)

 What follows is the outline for the traditional way that we assemble our trifles. But, go with your instincts as to the order in which you arrange the layers.

Using a glass bowl is preferable, if mainly for aesthetic purposes, because the trifle looks pretty with its raspberry coloured sponge and layers of fruit, custard, and cream.

Trifle

Prepare the raspberry jelly first, so it can cool a little before pouring it on the sponge.

Spread raspberry jam onto a sponge (strained or unstrained jam according to preference!)

Cut sponge into squares. Arrange in bowl.

Pour raspberry jelly over the sponge.

Place raspberries on top of this.

Then pour on a layer of custard,

then add canned peaches (drained)

then spread whipped cream over the top layer. Sprinkle with walnuts, and garnish with grated scorched almonds (there is always a box of these to be found on Christmas Day).

We use boxed, premade custard for convenience. But if you were to make your own, below is a very nice recipe that would be great for this trifle. It has a lovely smooth caramel flavour. We recently discovered that it is also nice for breakfast, served over chopped fruit and would also make a great filling for custard squares (if the custard is made a bit thicker).

This recipe makes a fair amount, so we halved this recipe.

Caramel Custard

¼ cup of brown sugar

¼ cup custard powder

2 cups milk

1 teaspoon of vanilla

2 tablespoons of butter

Mix the brown sugar and custard powder thoroughly in a large bowl.

Stir in milk and vanilla.

Add butter and microwave on high for 6 minutes, stirring after 3, 4, and 5 minutes.

The custard should bubble over the whole surface.

Cover. Serve warm or at room temperature.

(or if it is to go on the trifle, let it cool.)