Blackberry and apple trifles
Cook the apples using only a little water, letting them simmer to a soft and fluffy puree. Add the blackberries at the end, so they don’t overcook, mashing them a little so their juices lightly bleed into the apples. Give the sherry and orange juice a little time to soak into the sponge fingers to make sure they are thoroughly saturated. Like most trifles, the longer the layers of fruit, sponge and cream are together, the better the result.
Serves 4
Ingredients
150g sponge fingers or ratafia biscuits 80ml dry sherry
Juice of 2 medium oranges
For the apples: 1.5kg cooking apples 100ml water
2 Tbsp caster sugar 200g blackberries
For the cream:
150g double cream
125g mascarpone
1 Tbsp icing sugar
A few drops of vanilla extract
Method
Peel the apples and cut into large chunks. Put them in a nonreactive saucepan with the water and sugar, set over a moderate heat and bring to the boil. Lower the heat and leave for 1015 minutes, with the occasional stir, until the apples have become soft enough to mash to a puree. Stir in the blackberries and crush lightly with a fork. Lightly whip the cream until it starts to thicken. It should be just thick enough to slide off the spoon. Stir in the mascarpone, icing sugar and vanilla extract.
Break up the sponge fingers and put them in the bottom of four large glasses or glass bowls. Mix together the sherry and orange juice, then pour over the sponge fingers and leave to soak in.
Spoon the apple and blackberry mixture on top of the sponge. (There may be some left over — use it with yoghurt for breakfast.) Place a spoonful of the mascarpone cream on top of the apple, leave for an hour in the fridge to settle before eating.