Black Forest Trifle

 Delicious Back Forest Trifle!!

Recipe for the Cake (directly adapted from PAB by Deeba)
Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 11/2 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder  
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups hot water
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Method: 
Preheat oven to 180ºC with rack in the center. Line the bottom of 21 inch cake tin with grease proof paper.
Whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt in a large mixing bowl. {Don’t use a mixer.}Combine water, oil, vinegar, and vanilla in a large measuring cup. Add to the dry ingredients and whisk just until combined, a few lumps are OK. Turn batter into prepared tin {or divide batter between pans if using 2}, then bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 50-60 minutes for 1 or 35-40 minutes for 2.
In the orignial recipe you bake the cake in 2 separate baking dishes but I just baked one large cake and sliced it into two. 


Recipe for trifle:
Ingredients

• 2 small packets of Italian sponge biscuits or lady fingers
• 750  ml Lemon or Lime juice cordial 
• 3Tbsps. Strawberry conserve 
• 250 ml Double cream 
• 250 g mixed frozen berries
• Juice of 2 oranges 
• Chocolate cake or sponge cake 
• 1 tub Mascarpone mixed with a few drops of vanilla extract 
• Milk chocolate for garnishing 

(The measurements can alter per your liking. I have given approx measures here.)

Method:
In a trifle dish or a large baking dish arrange the sponge biscuits or lady fingers to form the base of the trifle. 

Pour about 750ml of lime juice cordial evenly on the sponges so the juice is soaked properly. 

In a mixing bowl add about 2-3 tbsps. of strawberry conserve. to that add whisked double cream and fold everything gently together.

Take the mascaporne and whisk it till stiff. Add frozen berries mix well. Leave some for garnishing. It is the mascarpone that takes the edge off the berries. 

Now for the layering the trifle. Yes the fun part!!

On top of the lady finger base, smother a layer of the cream and strawberry conserve. Cover it with first layer of the sponge cake. Squeeze the juice of 2 oranges on the cake and make sure the cake is nice and moist. Cover the cake with vanilla flavoured mascarpone and berries. Add second layer of the cake and cover with left over mascaporne and strawberry conserve if left. 

Garnish with remaining berries and grate some milk chocolate over the berries. Freeze for an hour. 

And to my relief, the trifle was devoured and I had not 
realised how close it tasted to the Indian Black Forest pastry. We had it for the next two days with our evening tea and for desert.