Stone Fruit Trifle With Lemon Balm Or Verbena Or Mint Cream Recipes

STONE-FRUIT TRIFLE WITH LEMON MOUSSE

Steps:

• Whisk together 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, the yolks, wine, lemon juice, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Simmer, stirring, until thick, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Strain through a fine sieve into a bowl. Stir in grated zest. Gradually whisk in butter until smooth. Press plastic wrap directly onto surface of curd. Refrigerate until set, about 1 hour or up to 2 days.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Toss fruit with remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Roast fruit on 2 rimmed baking sheets, rotating their positions halfway through, until caramelized and juicy, 15 to 17 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, with juices. Let cool slightly.
• Whisk cream until soft peaks form. Whisk curd to loosen. Working in 3 additions, fold whipped cream into curd.
• Layer a third of the cake in the bottom of a 12-cup bowl. Cover with a third of the lemon mousse. Spoon a third of the roasted fruit over lemon mousse. Repeat twice with remaining cake, lemon mousse, and fruit. Refrigerate trifle at least 2 hours or up to 1 day. Garnish with lemon zest.

OUTRAGEOUS LEMON BERRY TRIFLE

Steps:

• Stir 2 cups whipping cream, milk, lemon pudding mixes, and lemon juice in a large bowl until creamy and smooth. Cover and refrigerate until set, about 1 hour.
• Beat remaining 2 cups whipping cream in a bowl until foamy. Gradually add confectioners' sugar and vanilla extract, continuing to beat until stiff peaks form. Lift your beater or whisk straight up: the whipped cream will form sharp peaks.
• Layer half the angel food cake in a trifle bowl. Top with half the lemon pudding mixture, half the strawberries and half the blueberries. Spread half the whipped cream over the berries. Repeat the layers. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

CLASSIC TRIFLE WITH BERRIES OR CITRUS

Steps:

• Make the custard: In a large bowl, combine sugar, cornstarch and salt. Add egg yolks and whisk until smooth.
• In a medium saucepan, heat cream, milk and any of the optional flavorings over medium heat until simmering.
• Slowly whisk 1/2 cup hot cream mixture into yolk mixture until well mixed. Whisking egg mixture constantly, slowly pour in remaining cream. Pour the egg mixture back into the saucepan and place it over medium-low heat.
• Cook custard, stirring continuously especially around the bottom and edges of the pot, until the custard has thickened enough to mound on the spoon, 5 to 10 minutes. Don't let it come to a boil, but a few simmering bubbles is fine. If it starts to curdle at any point, remove pot from the heat and whisk it intensely. It should smooth out.
• Once the custard is thick, scrape it into bowl, whisk in vanilla, and press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto its surface. Let the custard cool for at least 30 minutes. At this point, custard can be chilled for up to 3 days, or used to assemble the trifle. Pluck out cinnamon stick or cardamom pods, if using, just before assembling trifle.
• Prepare the fruit: If using berries, put them in a bowl, sprinkle with sugar to taste, and use a fork to mash them. If using oranges, supreme them: Cut the tops and bottoms off each one, squeezing the juice from the severed pieces into a bowl. Using a paring knife, cut the peel and all the white pith off the fruit. Working over the bowl to catch the juices, slice the segments away from the membrane, letting fruit fall into the bowl. It's OK if the segments fall apart; you're going to break them up anyway. When all the segments are cut out of the membranes, squeeze the membranes over the bowl to release as much of the juice as possible. Sprinkle oranges with sugar, to taste, and, using your hands, break the segments up into pieces. You want a pulpy, juicy mix in the bowl. There should be a lot of liquid. Let oranges or the berries macerate for 20 minutes.
• To assemble the trifle, spread the ladyfingers on one side with a thick layer of jam or marmalade. Put the ladyfingers, jam-side down, in the bottom of a medium (6- to 8-cup) trifle dish or any other serving bowl or dish (or use individual dishes, cups or glasses). You want to cover the bottom completely and, if you are using a bowl, go a little bit up the sides; break up the ladyfingers if needed to make them fit.
• Sprinkle sherry (or whatever liquid you are using) over the ladyfingers, making sure they are well moistened. Be generous: You don't want any dry bits.
• Spoon fruit and all their juices over ladyfingers. Top with custard. If you like a higher cake-to-custard ratio, you can break up a few more ladyfingers and scatter them on top of the custard, then drizzle with more sherry. Press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or up to 24 hours.
• When ready to serve, using an electric mixer or a whisk, beat the cream and confectioners' sugar until fluffy; it should hold a light peak. Spoon whipped cream on top of trifle and garnish as you like. Serve immediately. (Leftovers will keep covered in the refrigerator for 2 or 3 days.)

LEMON DELIGHT TRIFLE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, whisk milk and pudding mixes for 2 minutes. Let stand for 2 minutes or until soft-set., In another bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Gradually stir in pudding until blended., Set aside 1/4 cup each of whipped topping and crushed cookies for garnish. Fold remaining whipped topping into pudding mixture. , Place half of the remaining cookies in a 3-qt. glass bowl; top with half of the pudding mixture. Repeat layers. Garnish with reserved whipped topping and crushed cookies. Refrigerate until serving.