STRAWBERRY And SHERRY TRIFLE

My husband Geordie asks for trifle from time to time as it reminds him of eating in the castle as a child. He thought it was a great excitement to have a pudding with a strong taste of alcohol. It is a very English pudding with layers of fruit, jelly, custard and tipsy sponge. Do not trifle with the trifle – it is a great traditional pudding.

Serves 8-10

250g (9oz) softened butter 250g (9oz) caster sugar 250g (9oz) self-raising flour

4 eggs

A pinch of salt

A splash of milk 350ml (12fl oz) full-fat milk Seeds from 1 vanilla pod or a dash of vanilla extract 4 egg yolks

60g (2¼oz) caster sugar 20g (¾oz) cornflour

Sherry, to taste

600g (1lb 5oz) strawberries, hulled and sliced

400ml (14fl oz) strawberry jelly (made up from a packet) 400ml (14fl oz) double cream

Preheat the oven to 110°C/fan 160°C/gas 4 nd grease and line a 0cm cake tin. o make the sponge, eam together the utter and sugar in a od processor. Add e flour and eggs in lternate batches ntil all incorporated. dd the salt and nough milk to chieve a ‘dropping’ onsistency (where e batter will owly drop from a poon under its own ravity). Transfer e sponge batter o the cake tin and ake for about 2 minutes, until olden and pulling away from the sides of the cake tin. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly before removing from the tin, then leave to cool completely on a wire rack. Once cold, roughly cut the cake into chunks.

Meanwhile, prepare the custard. Place the milk and vanilla in a pan over a moderate heat – do not boil. Beat the egg yolks, sugar and cornflour together in a mixing bowl until quite pale and thick. Pour half the warm milk in and combine. Then add the rest. Return the egg mix to the pan and continue to heat until it thickens. Stir continuously to avoid sticking or burning. Transfer to a clean dish and allow to cool thoroughly.

Line the base of your chosen serving dish (or individual dishes) with rough chunks of sponge. Pour some sherry over to soften the sponge, being careful not to drown it (unless you like a very wet trifle!). Cover the sponge with half of the strawberries, then pour the jelly over and transfer to the fridge to set.

While the jelly sets, whip the cream to very soft peaks. When the jelly is firm enough, pour the custard over, then spoon on the whipped cream (if you have time, use a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle) and finish with the remaining strawberries.