Lemon Curd Trifle with Fresh Berries

By Hklbrries

From pastry chef Gina Garcia of Cake. Cake is the new bakery at Chaps, in the Latah Creek Shopping Center on South Cheney-Spokane Road. The expansion and bakery are expected to open sometime this spring.

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Whether you’re serving an elegant evening meal for the Easter holiday or a more casual brunch, the arrival of spring begs for desserts with a seasonal flair.

“I love that Easter and spring arrive together because it means that I can start baking with fresh fruit,” says Gina Garcia, of Cake.

Garcia’s new bakery, an expansion to Chaps in the Latah Creek Shopping Center on South Cheney Spokane Road, is scheduled to open soon.

She shared a trifle recipe that comes together quickly with layers of lemon pound cake and lemon custard with fresh berries.

“My family is Italian and we typically celebrate Easter with a fruit trifle made with zabaglione, a frothy custard flavored with marsala,” Garcia says. “I have adapted this dessert for folks who may not like the sharp flavor of Marsala.

“In the recipe, I have made a lemon custard which is just tart enough to contrast nicely with the sweet berries.”

For those who are up for more of a challenge, Europa pastry chef Christie Sutton shared a recipe for a classic French dessert called pithiviers (pronounced pee-tee-vyay).

“I was just trying to come up with something a little different,” she says. “The light and flaky pastry just makes me think of Easter.”

The layers of puff pastry surround a rich almond filling and raspberry preserves. Sutton tops the dessert with fresh fruit and powdered sugar and serves it slightly warm or at room temperature.

Davenport Hotel executive chef Bryan Franz shared a recipe for individual mascarpone cheesecakes topped with huckleberry compote. (Substitute blueberries if your freezer stash of the wild berries is gone.)

He tops the cheesecakes with the compote and mint leaves for garnish, along with a pistachio tuile – a crunchy French cookie.

Decorated sugar cookies are a popular item for Easter at Carolyn’s Cake, Candy and Cookie Supplies, says new owner Michele Clemons.

Clemons purchased the store, 1705 N. Hamilton St., from original owner Carolyn Largent last April. She shared the recipe instructors give to students in classes.

She recommends decorating the cookies with candy melts rather than royal icing. The candy comes in an array of colors that can be melted and poured into squeeze bottles for easy decorating.

The store offers decorating classes for cookie bouquets, as well as cake decorating instruction. A new series of classes will be announced soon.

I couldn’t resist throwing in a few more recipes for good measure. White chocolate dipped strawberries with citrus sugar are finished quickly and have a nice seasonal flavor.

Coconut cupcakes drew raves all around when a friend made them recently. (They’re the grown-up version of the coconut-topped bunny cake my grandmother sometimes made for the holiday.)

And I’m using up the end of last year’s rhubarb in the Rhubarb Custard Bars from Cooking Light’s newest cookbook, to make room in the freezer for this year’s crop.

Ingredients

• 6 large egg yolks
• 1 cup sugar
• 4 lemons, zested and juiced
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cubed
• 2 cups heavy whipping cream, whipped to soft peaks
• 1 prepared lemon pound cake
• 1/4 cup Limoncello or Grand Marnier (optional)
• 1 pint strawberries
• 1 pint blueberries
• 1 pint raspberries
• Fresh mint for garnish

Preparation

Step 1

To make lemon curd: Bring a pot of water to a simmer. In a glass, heatproof bowl combine yolks, sugar, lemon juice and zest. Whisk until smooth.

Set the glass bowl over the simmering water. The water should not touch the bottom of the bowl. Whisk continuously and vigorously until the curd has doubled in volume and becomes thick and yellow. This should take about 10 minutes. Do not boil.

Remove the bowl from the heat and whisk in the butter until melted and fully incorporated. Cover with plastic wrap so that the wrap sets right on top of the curd and refrigerate until cold and firm.

To assemble the trifle: Whip the cream to soft peaks. Fold into the cooled curd until it lightens up into a mousse-like texture. Slice the pound cake into thin slices.

Put one layer of cake into the bottom of the trifle dish. If using, drizzle some Limoncello over cake. Spoon some of the lemon mousse over cake. Layer berries over mousse.

Repeat this process until all of the ingredients are gone. Garnish the top with fresh mint and a few berries. Chill.