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Summer Berry Trifle
The Best Berry Trifle made with Cream Cheese Pound Cake layered with Sweet Vanilla Pudding, Fresh Berries, and Whipped Cream
Years ago I went through a “trifle” stage. Every time I was asked to bring a dessert to a party or get together, it was some kind of trifle dessert. I received a trifle dish as a present and you better believe I got some serious use out of it! The beauty of a trifle is that it is rustic in nature so you can layer it anything your heart desires.
What is a trifle?
It is a chilled dessert of sponge cake layered with fruit, custard, and whipped cream
This is such a beautiful patriotic 4th of July dessert. The strawberries are red, the blueberries are blue, and the whipped cream is white. It is perfect for a potluck as it can serve a lot of people and it is so easy to serve — you just scoop desired serving amount into bowls.
Let’s talk about what goes into this Summer Berry Trifle. I wanted to create a trifle where every layer is perfection. It all starts with a sweet cream cheese pound cake recipe. I shared this recipe yesterday because it is hands down, my favorite pound cake recipe!
Next, we are creating a custard filling by adding vanilla pudding, milk, sweetened condensed milk, cream cheese, and whipped cream. On a scale of 1-10, it is a 12. I can sit and watch Southern Charm on Bravo with a big bowl of this homemade sweet custard and be one happy girl. It is silky smooth, creamy, and sweet.
The strawberries and blueberries are tossed with some sugar to bring out their sweetness and create some natural juices.
How to make the Perfect Berry Trifle:
- Start with the Perfect Cake. I use my cream cheese pound cake recipe because it holds up beautifully in a trifle dessert. It is heavy enough to hold its own when the cream and fruit are layered. If you want to save a few steps, you can use a cake mix or buy an angel food cake at the store.
- Make your own sweet custard layer. This starts with vanilla pudding mix and milk. Sweetened condensed milk, cream cheese, and heavy cream are whipped together until light and fluffy. The key is to make sure the cream cheese is softened so it is smooth and creamy when whipped with the sweetened condensed milk.
- Sprinkle Strawberries and Blueberries with Sugar. This is a key step as it helps to create natural juices which help to keep the cake extra moist.
- This Trifle Dessert can be showcased in a Glass Trifle Bowl. Here’s a traditional glass trifle dish for about $17 bucks and here is an embossed glass trifle dish if you want something more unique.
- Chill and Refrigerate until ready to serve. This is a chilled dessert so it needs to be refrigerated until ready to serve. This helps the pudding to set up.
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Summer Berry Trifle
Equipment
Ingredients
Cream Cheese Pound Cake:
- 1 1/2 cups Unsalted Butter 3 Sticks, softened
- 6 ounces Cream Cheese softened
- 3 cups Sugar
- 1 Tablespoon Pure Vanilla Extract
- 4 Eggs plus 2 Egg Yolks
- 1/4 cup Whole Milk or Buttermilk
- 3 cups Cake Flour
- 1 teaspoon Salt
Custard Filing:
- (1) 5-ounce pkg. Instant French Vanilla Pudding Mix
- 1 1/2 cups Whole Milk
- 1 8-ounce pkg. Cream Cheese, softened
- 1 14-ounce can Sweetened Condensed Milk
- 1 1/2 cups Heavy Whipping Cream
Fresh Fruit:
- 2 lbs. Strawberries sliced
- 1 12-ounce pkg. Blueberries
- Raspberries optional
- 1/3 cup Sugar
Instructions
- Heat oven to 300 degrees. Spray 12-cup nonstick Bundt pan with baking spray with flour. Coat the pan well to prevent sticking.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat butter, cream cheese, and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add vanilla, eggs, egg yolks, and whole milk. Mix for 1-2 minutes.
- Stir in flour and salt and mix just until combined, avoid overmixing. Fold all ingredients together.
- Pour into prepared bundt pan. Gently tap pan on the counter to release air bubbles. Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes -- 1 hour 25 minutes, or until the cake tester comes out clean.
- Let cake cool in pan for 15 minutes. Invert cake onto rack and let cool completely. Cut into cubes.
- In a medium bowl, toss berries with sugar. Set aside and let juices form.
To make Custard Filling:
- In a large bowl, beat together pudding mix and whole milk. In another bowl, whip cream cheese, and sweetened condensed milk until smooth and creamy. Add heavy cream and beat until soft peaks for about 5 minutes. Fold in the pudding.
- Layer cake, custard, and fresh fruit. Repeat.
- Chill in refrigerator until ready to serve.
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I hope you love this patriotic 4th of July dessert! Happy Baking, my friends!
Did anyone else find the pound cake salty? I will cut down a bit on the salt next time
Can I make the summer berry trifle and chill overnight?
The trifle was excellent this summer, But, what really was good is the pound cake. I make just the cake often and it is so good it does not need frosting. Recipe is a keeper! Trifle for summer and cake for anytime’
Love this recipe! So fun for summer!
Excellent recipe that everyone raved about! The cake did take a lot longer to bake though……almost 2 hours for me.
Great recipe, thank you for sharing! I wanted a little lighter taste, so I subbed in homemade angel food cake in place of the cream cheese pound cake (though that sounds delicious too). Fantastic, and everyone loved it. My husband even said it’s one of the best desserts he’s ever had! =]
This is delicious!!! best pound cake ive ever had. but i did have to whip the custard in a kitchen aid for 30 minutes and still barley had a pudding ket alone stiff peaks.
This is a beautiful dessert! You don’t say how far ahead of time to assemble the trifle. Should it be hours? Or overnight? I’m looking forward to tasting the finished product…. I already have the cream cheese pound cake cooling!
Thanks for recipe!