These individual strawberry desserts are creamy and incredibly delicious. They feature strawberry sauce, fresh berries, pound cake and cream. If you use a purchased pound cake, they come together in no time.
A crowd-pleasing dessert
With layers of strawberry sauce, pound cake, fresh berries and sweet whipped cream, these trifles might be the perfect Spring and Summer dessert. This recipe is good for large gatherings, graduations, small weddings, or just because.
If there's an easy-to-put-together dessert for a crowd, that is a trifle.
This one has a cake made from scratch, of course, but a good bakery pound cake is a quick alternative. The rest is mostly prepping.
They can be fruity, like this one and the peach trifle, or not, like the pumpkin trifle jars, which is a great dessert for the holidays.
FAQ
Trifle is a dessert consisting of layers of sponge cake, fruit, custard, and whipped cream. Give or take. I have old recipes that use jam instead of fruit.
Fast-forward to today, and there are trifles of whatever you can imagine.
They all have layers and usually cake, but nowadays you can take no-bake pies with crumb crusts (like banoffee pie or chocolate cream cheese pie) and serve them as a trifle by layering the components in a large trifle bowl or individual jars.
You need a cake that is sturdy and can hold moisture. Pound cakes are perfect.
My favorites besides the one in the recipe card below:
Lemon Pound Cake
Vanilla Shortbread Cake: bake it in two 8 or 9-inch round cake pans.
Brown Butter Pound Cake
Yes, and it's recommended to assemble it at least several hours before serving and up to a day before, to allow the flavors to meld and ingredients to settle.
After one or two days, the fruit and cream will start to release too much liquid or separate, making the layers soggy. If this happens after a few hours or a day, it's probably because the cream was not fresh or the fruit had too much liquid when it was assembled.
Layering the trifle
As I said, there are a few mandatory layers in a trifle, but it's up to what you like and, in my case, what I have available.
- Servings: first of all, decide if you're making individual servings or using a big glass trifle bowl (it has to be glass so you can see the different layers).
- Cake layer: we love pound cake or lemon cake for a strawberry trifle.
- Cream layer: this layer usually goes after the cake to moisten it. The cream has a lot of liquid that will seep into the first dry layer with the passing hours.
- Fruit layer: though it can be optional, fresh strawberries are always the best choice.
- Strawberry sauce adds texture and is a great option for seasons when fresh strawberries are unavailable.
Kitchen Tip
Begin assembling trifles at least 4-6 hours before serving and up to a day before. You need to allow the flavors to meld and the ingredients to settle. So plan accordingly.
Cake layer
You need a cake that is sturdy and can hold moisture. Pound cakes are perfect, as are shortbread cakes.
My favorites besides the one in the recipe card below:
- Lemon Pound Cake
- Vanilla Shortbread Cake: bake it in two 8 or 9-inch round cake pans.
- Brown Butter Pound Cake
Kitchen Notes
- Organization: read the recipe first and ensure you have ingredients at the correct temperature, equipment, and enough workspace. This will make the process so much easier.
- Baking time: consider that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as possible, but it might take you more or less time. You can use a thermometer(like the OXO oven thermometer) to check that your oven is at the right temperature. I recommend keeping track of how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust.
- Make ahead: trifles benefit from being assembled up to a day in advance.
- Cream layer: make sure you add the cream layer after the cake layer so it moistens it enough. You want to bite into a soft cake, not a dry one.
- Strawberries: this recipe uses them fresh and in a sauce to add different textures. Dice the fresh ones into small bites.
- Storage: this strawberry trifle keeps well in the fridge for a day or two. It will have a different texture, but it is still great. The strawberry juice will have somewhat dissolved the cream and sugar, and the cake will be integrated into the rest of the ingredients. Truly wonderful.
- Extra layer: a fantastic addition is dulce de leche, which can be easily bought online. I recommend Vacalin dulce de leche repostero and Veronica dulce de leche. If you have never tried it, you should. There's something about the tangy but sweet strawberries, the gooey sweetness of the milk jam, and the silky cream that is out of this world. It's paradise in a jar.
- Sweetness: depending on how sweet you like your desserts, add more or less sugar to the whipped cream or use a sweeter cake.
- An alternative to making strawberry sauce is to cut the strawberries into small bites, add a few tablespoons of sugar and let them macerate for half an hour until they release their juice. The extra liquid from the fruit will add more moisture to the dessert, but it will not last as long, as the layers will become mushier quicker.
Add a dulce de leche layer
One of my favorite desserts ever is my version of Eton mess, with fresh strawberries, cream, crushed meringue cookies, and dulce de leche. This recipe comes close to dethroning it.
Dulce de leche can easily be made with a can of condensed milk (easy dulce de leche recipe) or bought online. I recommend Vacalin dulce de leche repostero and Veronica dulce de leche.
Replace the strawberry sauce layer with a fat tablespoon of dulce de leche.
If you never tried it, you should. There's something about the tangy but sweet strawberries, the gooey sweetness of the milk jam, and the silky cream that is out of this world. Paradise in a jar.
Related recipes you might like:
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Mini Strawberry Cream Trifles
Ingredients
For the strawberry sauce:
- ½ pound fresh strawberries
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
For the whipped cream:
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- ¾ cup whipping or heavy cream, cold
- 2 tablespoons cream cheese, cold
To assemble:
- 3 slices homemade pound cake, or store-bought, see Notes below
- ¼ pound fresh strawberries, rinsed and cut into small chunks
Instructions
Make the strawberry sauce:
- Wash, hull, and cut the strawberries into small pieces.
- Put the strawberry pieces in a medium saucepan. Add the sugar, lemon juice, and half the water. Cook until it boils and foams, stirring once in a while.
- Dissolve the cornstarch in the remaining water and add to the strawberries in a thin stream. Stir constantly and cook for 1 minute.
- Remove from the heat, transfer to a bowl and let cool completely.
- Store in the refrigerator for up to a week in a glass jar with a tight-fitting lid or other types of airtight container. It can also be frozen for a month and thawed at room temperature.
Make the whipped cream:
- In a medium or large bowl, beat cream with powdered sugar and cream cheese until you have medium-firm peaks.
- Refrigerate covered in plastic wrap if not used immediately.
To assemble the trifles:
- Begin assemble at least 4-6 hours before serving, and up to a day. Use individual mason jars, glasses or goblets.
- Make the layers. I build it with a layer of cake, strawberry sauce, whipped cream, and fresh strawberries. Repeat if you want a double-decker trifle.
- Keep refrigerated until serving time.
- Serve with an extra dollop of whipped cream and half a strawberry.
Carola says
Excellent recipe and very easy!
Elliott says
What kind of cream did you use? Cooking Cream? whipped cream?
I am planning to do this for easter this year 😀
Paula Montenegro says
Hi Elliott, it's whipping cream or double cream, whipped.
Elliott says
Thanks Paula!! Can i use any type of sugar? (brown,gold or white)
Paula Montenegro says
Yes, any type of sugar you want. I use muscovado a lot. Just take into account that brown sugars tint the cream and that, at least the ones I buy here, don't sweeten as much. Have a good weekend!
David says
This looks amazing! So funny that you mention the Eton Mess - I had never heard of it till recently, and now three times in one week!
Anne@ASaladForAllSeasons says
Wow, Paula! This looks amazing! You know, I would never have thought to pair dulce de leche with strawberries. But looking at your beautiful photos, I can see how it works. So perfectly sweet and luscious! 🙂
John/Kitchen Riffs says
So pretty! And such great flavors in this. I don't often make a trifle for some reason, but I should make more. Starting with this! 🙂 Thanks so much.