My son Matthew’s idea of a birthday cake is not your traditional take on birthday cake – he prefers Trifle! Considering his birthday is in June it is the perfect time of year for a trifle.  Berries are just coming into season – not so much local, but at least berries that taste almost like a berry instead of cardboard. So this year was no different and trifle was requested again!

Now most folks use pound cake when making a trifle, but I find that the light fluffy texture of angel food cake makes this dessert even more delectable.  When layered between whipped cream, pudding and berries it makes a cushion for all that goodness to rest on. It tastes so light that the second serving doesn’t make you feel too guilty!

Making an angel food cake is very simple…just egg whites, sugar and a little flour and not much else.  There are a couple of tricks to make sure your cake turns out nice and tall.  Ensure your egg whites are room temperature before beating them- this takes at least 30 minutes sitting on the counter. I usually use the egg whites sold in the carton as I don’t want to waste all of the yolks. One 500 ml carton is enough for a cake and some left over for an omelet.  Use an aluminum tube pan – never non-stick for angel food cake as you want to cake to rise and climb the sides of the pan. Flip the cake upside down in the pan to cool completely before removing from the pan.  Once you master these steps you will be churning out beautiful high fluffy angel food cakes.

To make the trifle you just slice the cake and cut it into squares and layer with your favourite flavour of pudding, whipped cream and your choice of berries. This version is vanilla pudding with 2 cups of whipped cream folded in. Let is sit covered in the fridge for a few hours before serving so that the flavours meld together and voila- deliciousness!