Strawberry Lemon Poppy Trifle

Well I am a big fan of trifles. I just love cake, with fruit, with some sort of cream or pudding. I can wait for summer to try some more recipes. But my hubby loves almond poppy seed cake , I love lemon, the midget loves strawberries and we all love pudding. So this is a trifle mix for us. Gonna see how well it does at a party later. 

Strawberry Lemon Poppy Trifle

Makes 8-12 Servings

Ingredients:

• 1 to 1 1/2 lb of Fresh Strawberries
• 3 Tbsp of Sugar
• 1 1/2 Tbsp Fresh Lemon Juice(plus 1 Tbsp to thin curd)
• 1 1/2 cups Homemade Vanilla Pudding(recipe below or you could buy)
• 16 oz container of Cool Whip(not frozen, so room temp for 20 minutes or from fridge)
• 1/2 cup Homemade Lemon Curd(or you could buy)
•  2 small Almond Poppy Seed Bread(about 1 lb of cake)
• Slivered Almonds

Directions

Rinse strawberries and cut into quarters or in half. Add sugar and 1 1/2 Tbsp of lemon juice, mix, set aside. 

Take pudding and 2/3 of cool whip and mix together. Set aside. 

Take lemon curd, 1 Tbsp of lemon juice and mix, this will make it more pour-able. 

I take my cake slice and break up as I go along.

The order for trifle is: cake, macerated strawberries, lemon curd drizzled on strawberries, pudding mix 

and repeat. 

Add slivered almonds, piped remaining cool whip. 

Decorate with strawberries, almonds and last of drizzle. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

ENjoy

Can be made a day ahead. Last up to 3 days with airtight lid in fridge.

Strawberry Lemon Poppy Trifle by NikkieDidIt

Almond Poppy Seed Bread

Makes 6 small loaves or 2 large loaves.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/8 cup Coconut Oil(or cooking oil like safflower or almond)
• 2 1/4 cup Sugar
• 3 Eggs
• 3 cups AP Flour
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
• 1 1/2 cup Milk
• 1 1/2 Tbsp Poppy Seed
• 1 1/2 tsp Almond Extract
• 1 1/2 tsp Vanilla Bean Paste(can sub with vanilla extract)
• 1 1/2 tsp Butter(salted)-melted

Glaze(if you were just making the cake to eat)

• 1/4 cup Orange Juice
• 3/4 cup Sugar
• 1/2 tsp Almond Extract
• 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 tsp Butter (salted)-melted

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350(340 for dark metal) degrees. Grease and flour pans or use parchment. Mix flour, baking powder and salt together. Mix coconut oil and sugar together, add on egg at a time till incorporated. Alternate flour mix and milk. Add poppy seeds, almond extract, vanilla paste and butter. Pour mixture into pans, bake large loaves 40-50 minutes for dark metal and 50-60 minutes for light metal/glass. Minus 10-15 minutes for smaller loaves. 

For glaze, take a small saucepan pour all ingredient in and mix. Heat on medium heat until sugar melts. Pour glaze over warm bread. Sprinkle with slivered almonds if you like.

Let bread cool and store for up to a week or two in a airtight container. 3 months in freezer without the glaze.

Almond Poppy Seed Bread by NikkieDidIt

Homemade Vanilla Pudding

Makes 4-6 Servings

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 1/2 cup Whole Milk
• 4 Large Egg Yolks, beaten lightly
• 3 Tbsp Unsalted butter
• 2 tsp vanilla extract(I used vanilla bean paste)

******Variation: Chocolate(1/3 cup cocoa powder)******

Directions

Place mesh strainer over measuring bowl/cup, set aside.

In a medium saucepan, whisk sugar, cornstarch and salt. (If making Chocolate pudding, add cocoa powder a little at a time). Make sure cornstarch is well dissolved. Whisk in egg yolks.

Put saucepan over medium heat, whisking constantly, until first bubble forms. Reduce heat to low, still whisking, cook 1 minute. Remove from heat. Immediate our thru sieve into bowl. Stir in butter and vanilla.

Place plastic wrap directly on surface of pudding(to prevent skin from forming) and chill at least 3 hours. Martha says pudding only last  3 days but it last up to a week. Before serving give a good whisk and divide in serving dishes. Serve by itself or with fresh fruit.

****Tips: This recipe can be done with a double boiler as well. Leaving no need for strainer*****