Cake Fail Trifle
Chocolate Sponge, Strawberries, Vanilla Sponge, and Blueberry Trifle
This wasn’t the dessert I set out to make. It’s not even in the same category of desserts I was considering. But, it’s what I served after two consecutive cake fails. Here’s how I got there.
We invited friends over for an evening of chili and cards. This is a terrific combination of good comfort food and a friendly game of Spades. Being me, I wanted to prepare a delicious cake.
After baking a scrumptious vanilla sponge for the top of the wedding cake (blogged here) but not quite getting the texture right…I decided to tackle it again. I followed this new recipe almost exactly as written. Side note: I’ve been exploring recipes for a White Vanilla Cake that has a deeper flavor than the one I’ve been using for three years.
The results were even worse than before!
“Well, that won’t do. Our friends are coming over in a few hours.”
I decided to bake my favorite go-to chocolate cupcakes. They are never-fail. Until this time. They blew up and over the sides of the cupcake liners and dripped onto the oven.
Seriously, I didn’t know what happened. So I simply stood in my quiet kitchen reviewing everything that I had done during baking…
- were all the ingredients included
- was the oven at the correct temperature
- what have I missed
As I stood there, I noticed the empty flour bag sitting in a bowl collecting the egg shells and other baking detritus… and I looked at the bag…really looked at it. And there it was… “self-rising flour.”
At the store, carrying it into the house, placing it in the pantry, and filling up my flour container in the kitchen because I didn’t have enough flour to bake the vanilla sponge – I never read the label. What a lesson! It was a relief to understand how I had two major cake fails back to back.
I still need dessert! With delicious sponge and fresh fruit in the house, I decided on the trifle. Techniquely, the sponge in a trifle is usually soaked with booze, but you know that’s not my speed.
The filling on a trifle can be whatever the baker decides. For this dessert, I used a combination of Vanilla Buttercream and Heavy Whipped Cream. Next time, I think I’ll choose either pudding or only whipped cream. Including the buttercream in this layering was a little too much sweet for me.
Blueberries on the very top added an amazing bite of freshness.
I am now in love with this dessert as a favorite option when little bits of this and that are left over from other projects. And, I don’t see myself being limited to vanilla and chocolate… what about a spice cake with apple chunks and butterscotch pudding? Yum!
I had six matching, recycled jars in the pantry because I kept telling myself, “they’ll come in handy one day.” Bingo!
I love my life partner husband and our card-playing ways.
I love that our people love playing cards with us and our new people are willing to learn.
I’m grateful for sobriety and the life it lets me live.
The Homer Laughlin Fiesta Dinnerware Foundry Serving Tray was perfect for presenting this dessert.
