Re: Mrs. Whitman's Trifle

Dear Terri,

Did Mrs. Whitman use Bird's Dessert Mix (custard) by any chance? I have used it and just love it. For any body reading this, this mix requires only milk to be added and cooks up like a dream and is just incredibly good for very little effort.

I never made trifle using this (well, perhaps not "true" trifle); however, one day I tested a cake mix I has sitting around (it looked interesting on the shelf. Unfortunately, the flavor was something else again (yuuuuck!). I cubed this nasty cake, then drenched it in Marsala (cheap but great for cooking) and shoved it into the refrigerator for 2 hours. In the meantime, I cooked up an envelope of Birds.

(I need to state that I am utterly hopeless with regard to preparing cooked pudding and pie filling; this is the one product I have used that even I can't screw up!)

After the custard cooled slightly, I layered the cake cubes in a small dish, then spooned custard over, repeating as necessary until all cake cubes were covered. Then back into the frig for about an hour or 2.

My roommate loved it (said that if I was so inclined, perhaps I would make this more often). I have and it always turns out just like the first time.

If anyone wants to try this, there are similar products available (most are European). If there is an issue with using sherry, I see no reason why a good fruit syrup wouldn't work just as well.

And, believe me, those "weird" cake mixes work very well in this type of dish.

Terri, thanks for reminding me of this -- Cheers!