spiced blood orange & campari trifle
with spiced creme patisserie, blood orange & campari jelly, whipped cream and a cherry on top!
this is a trifle for adults - it’s boozy, not too sweet, and has a good bitter kick from the jelly
it is definitely a labour of love, and preparation is best started four days before serving
timeline
three days before - candy the orange slices and leave out to dry
two days before - make the spiced creme patisserie
one day before - make the blood orange & campari jelly (recipe below), assemble the trifle, and refrigerate overnight
serving day - serve
yields 3L of trifle (enough for 8-10 guests depending on enthusiasm for trifle)
ingredients
300g savoiardi (ladyfinger) biscuits
one batch orange slices
one batch spiced creme patisserie
one batch blood orange & campari jelly (recipe below)
3 tbsp water
2 tsp gelatine powder
600mL thickened cream
1 tsp vanilla paste
0.5 tsp ground cardamom
0.5 tsp ground nutmeg
one cherry, to decorate
method
arrange half the biscuits (150g) at the base of the trifle dish
press half the candied orange slices around the edge of the dish (mine stuck nicely to the glass)
spoon in half the creme patisserie (500mL), making sure to press it between the biscuits and right to the edges of the dish to help prevent jelly leakage later
return to the fridge and chill for one hour while you prepare the jelly
carefully pour half (500mL) of the jelly mixture over the chilled custard, trying not to let it leak through into the biscuit layer (mine did! you can see in the photos how my bottom two layers inverted. don’t fret if this happens, it still tastes great!)
pour the rest of the jelly (500mL) into a clingfilm-lined baking dish to set
chill the trifle and remaining jelly for 90 minutes or until set
arrange the rest of the biscuits (150g) on top of the set jelly layer
arrange the remaining candied orange slices around the edge of the trifle dish
gently spoon the remaining creme patisserie (500mL) onto the biscuits
remove the jelly baking dish from the fridge and cut into cubes
arrange the jelly cubes on top of the creme patisserie layer
chill the trifle for 30 minutes while you prepare the stabilised whipped cream
add the water (3 tbsp) to a small microwave-safe bowl and sprinkle over the gelatine (2 tsp) and set aside for 5 minutes to hydrate
meanwhile, whip the thickened cream (600mL) to soft peaks
once the gelatine has hydrated, microwave the mixture for 20 seconds until the gelatine has dissolved
let cool slightly before pouring into the lightly whipped cream
add the vanilla (1 tsp), cardamom (0.5 tsp), and nutmeg (0.5 tsp) and whip to stiff peaks
remove the trifle from the fridge and top with the stabilised whipped cream and a cherry
refrigerate until ready to serve
blood orange & campari jelly
confession: not actually made with campari, but with luxardo aperitif which tastes very similar and is half the alcohol strength
alcohol affects how jelly sets, so if you choose to splash out and use real campari for this, dilute it by half with tonic water or water to bring it down to about 12% alcohol
yields one litre, enough for two generous layers in a 3L trifle dish
ingredients
500mL freshly squeezed blood orange juice (from about 1.2kg oranges)
28g gelatine
50g caster sugar
500mL luxardo aperitivo (or sub with half campari and half water)
method
add the orange juice (500mL) to a large saucepan and sprinkle over the gelatine (28g) and set aside for 5 minutes to hydrate
once hydrated, turn the heat to low and stir until the gelatine has dissolved
add the sugar (50g) and stir until dissolved
add the booze (500mL) and stir to combine thoroughly
let cool for 5 minutes before assembling into trifle or pour into jelly moulds and serve with macerated orange segments and lightly whipped cream for a lush summer dessert
thanks for sticking with me through this three-part trifle adventure!