"But a true soul mate is a mirror, the person who shows you everything that is holding you back, the person who brings you to your own attention so you can change your life. A true soul mate is probably the most important person you'll ever meet, because they tear down your walls and smack you awake." --Elizabeth Gilbert
I love this quote, as it means a lot. The soul mate can be anybody - your spouse, your best friend, your daughter, your sibling, anybody you can relate to... Somehow, sometimes it happens to be people who you never expect to be one as well. It may be a friend who was just hi-bye and suddenly, they turn out to be the one who could help you out the most. Or it could be a relative who you really never bothered about but when your bad time came, popped in and got you out of the mess. If it leads to better things in life and a better attitude, then why not? :)
Today's recipe is my favorite make-ahead dessert, especially when I have guests coming in large number. The first thing I like about it is that it is a no-fail recipe. You cannot go wrong with it in any way. The other thing I like about it is that you can twist and tweak it the way you want. When I had decided to make this pudding for the first time, I found umpteen number of versions on the net. Then I decided, let me take a little from here and a little from there and mix it up. I have made this two times for gatherings that had more than 15 people and all I got to eat was a spoonful. Wiped out! :) I've actually halved the recipe here.
Easy Trifle Pudding
Serves 6-8
Ingredients:
For the cake base:
2 eggs
2 tbsp all purpose flour
2 tbsp sugar
Sugar syrup from the fruit can
3 tbsp chopped nuts (I used walnuts, pistachios, almonds and cashewnuts)
For the custard base:
500 ml milk
2 tbsp custard powder
1/2 cup sugar (according to taste)
200 gm tin of canned fruit
For the jelly base:
1 packet strawberry jelly
150 ml hot water
150 ml cold water
Whipped cream, for decoration
Method:
First, prepare the cake base. Preheat your oven to 150 degrees. Beat the eggs till fluffy, almost 10 minutes. Then add in the sugar and flour and beat till well combined. Pour into a 1-litre glass pan. Bake the cake till done, approximately 20 minutes. Leave to cool, then poke holes all over the cake. Brush the sugar syrup from the fruit can till the cake is completely soaked. Sprinkle the chopped nuts on top of it.
Prepare the custard now. Start by boiling 450 ml milk. In the remaining milk, add the custard powder to make it a paste. Once the milk starts heating, add the sugar and the custard paste and cook till the mixture thickens. Allow to cool. Pour over the cake base evenly. Spread the fruits all over the custard. Leave it in the refrigerator to set, for a couple of hours.
Now prepare the jelly top. Empty the jelly packet into a bowl and add the hot water. Mix till well disolved. Then add in the cold water and mix well till dissolved. Take out the set custard from the fridge and slowly pour the jelly on top of it, till the top is entirely covered. You may not require the entire jelly, as you are looking for a thin layer on the top. Allow to set for another couple of hours.
Before serving, top it with whipped cream. This is such a good make ahead dessert and will be loved by the elder and younger alike!!!
Notes:
1. For the cake base, you can definitely use store bought cake to save time.
2. Instead of using fruit pieces in a can, you can use fresh fruits and make the sugar syrup to soak the cake, but heating a cup of water with a cup of sugar till well dissolved.
3. You can avoid the nuts if it is not to your taste, or even use praline or crushed peanut candy - I am sure it would give yet another taste to the whole pudding.
4. The sugar as advised by me is very mild, add more for a much sweeter version.
Linking this to Foodelicious "Only Chilled Deserts" event...
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| This is all that I got... :T |
1. For the cake base, you can definitely use store bought cake to save time.
2. Instead of using fruit pieces in a can, you can use fresh fruits and make the sugar syrup to soak the cake, but heating a cup of water with a cup of sugar till well dissolved.
3. You can avoid the nuts if it is not to your taste, or even use praline or crushed peanut candy - I am sure it would give yet another taste to the whole pudding.
4. The sugar as advised by me is very mild, add more for a much sweeter version.
Linking this to Foodelicious "Only Chilled Deserts" event...