Take Back the Tea Party Trifle

Thursday, January 20, is Take Back the Tea Party Day. It is a holiday that a friend and I came up with, sick of politics, sick of animosity. We decided to take back the tea party, full of deliciousness and elegance.

What better tea party treat than a traditional trifle?

I've actually never made trifle before. And I didn't *exactly* follow a recipe, so I'm not sure how it turned out yet, but I think the picture makes it look like a giant dessert goblet. I looked through hundreds of pictures and recipes and they all seemed to include some kind of cake, some kind of fruit, and some kind of creamy mixture somewhere in between custard, pudding, and whipped cream. Well, those things I can do.


First, I started with pound cake. Since one of my goals for the year was to find a go-to pound cake, I went with the Million Dollar Pound Cake recommended by a friend, Laura G2. I did something wrong, clearly, since it didn't come out of the pan very well. It is a good thing I'd intended it for trifle all along! I trimmed off the top, sliced it up, and sandwiched strawberry jam in between the slices. The slices got diced into 2" cubes.

I made a cooked vanilla pudding, and after it cooled slightly, it was mixed with some fresh whipped cream and a jar of lemon curd. I cooked some frozen cherries and blueberries (mid-winter not being the most seasonal of times to decide to make a trifle!), and used the juice from that to soak the cake layer. I didn't want to use alcohol this time around because of all the pregnant women at work. Nobody wants to be excluded from a tea party!

The fresh fruit I saved for the outward facing layers- strawberries on the bottom and kiwis around the top. I basically layered cake - fruit - cream, repeated, and took it to work to stick in the fridge until tomorrow. It must weigh 25 pounds. I hope there isn't too much liquid inside, but it will probably still taste delicious.

Because that's what tea parties should be... delicious.

Check out the Worldwide Take Back the Tea Party Event, and feel free to join in on the celebration!