Strawberry Angel Food Trifle

This is a beautiful spring dessert that can be made ahead. It uses store-bought ingredients and turns them into something amazing. This recipe transforms angel food cake from your favorite grocery store, instant pudding, whipped cream, and strawberries into this showstopper, a Strawberry Angel Food Trifle. It also makes our Organic Vanilla Bean Paste the star and adds an unforgettable punch of vanilla flavor to this dish. I used a generous spoonful on the strawberries and in the pudding and whipped cream. 

1 pint of strawberries

1 angel food cake

1 package instant vanilla pudding

2 cups cold milk

1 pint of heavy whipping cream 

1 TBP Vanilla Bean Project Organic Vanilla Bean Paste divided

Slice the strawberries and drizzle them with Vanilla Bean Project Organic Vanilla Bean Paste, and set aside. In a separate bowl mix the vanilla instant pudding mix, the cold milk, and organic vanilla bean paste and mix with a hand mixer for two minutes. Pour the heavy whipping cream and the vanilla bean paste in a another bowl and whip until soft peaks form. 

Cut up the angel food cake into about one-inch cubes with a serrated knife, or you can tear the cake into bite-sized pieces with your hands if that is easier.

Put half of the angel food cake in the bottom of a trifle dish. Then add 1/3 of the strawberries. You may make a layer of strawberries on the outside of the dish to make it look fancy if you wish. Then add 1/2 of the vanilla pudding and 1/3 of the whipped cream.

Then add the rest of the angel food cake, 1/3 of the strawberries, and the rest of the vanilla pudding. Top with the rest of the whipping cream and smooth the top of the trifle bowl, and then add the strawberries. Garnish as desired.  Put in the refrigerator for two hours to chill and then serve.

In trifle-making as in life, everybody makes it up as they go along. The word "trifle" means something that doesn't mean much. So get creative, make it your own, have fun, and make it beautiful.