Strawberry and rhubarb trifle

Yes, I am still wading my way through all the rhubarb in my garden. I might as well rename the blog "what do you make of my rhubarb?"

In my effort to find more ways to use rhubarb I stumbled across a raspberry and rhubarb trifle recipe online by Phil Vickery. Having never tried rhubarb in a trifle before I was suitably intrigued and decided to make it for a little family gathering to celebrate my first wedding anniversary with the Man. If anniversary trifle isn't a thing then I'm totally making it a thing.

I made some tweaks to the recipe according to taste and also what I had in the kitchen. The most obvious swap was strawberry instead of raspberry as I had two packets of strawberry jelly and two tins of strawberries in syrup in the cupboard left over from Christmas (as trifle is a Christmas necessity) so it made sense to use them.

My only other significant change was using less sugar in the stewed rhubarb and omitting the vanilla as I prefer a more tart flavour. I think the original quantities would be far too sweet as mine was sweet enough. I guess it'll vary depending on your rhubarb though.

Although not necessarily a change, I also didn't follow the recipe for the custard. I used the same ingredients but measured by eye and went by taste. It was roughly the same quantity.

Usually for trifle I make a plain Victoria sponge, however I decided to go for a Swiss roll like the Phil Vickery recipe. I used my trusty Mary Berry recipe from her "Baking Bible", once again swapping the raspberry for strawberry jam. It's been a few years since I last made a Swiss roll (9 years ago, apparently?!) so that was a fun change.

The resulting trifle was fantastic! The lemon in the rhubarb gave a lovely zingy flavour in contrast to the sweeter strawberry flavour and Swiss roll. 

Everybody thought this trifle was immensely tasty. I have to admit, the rhubarb in our garden is the nicest rhubarb I've ever encountered; it is so red and sweet. This trifle is definitely one to add to the rhubarb repertoire.

Strawberry and rhubarb trifle

Recipe based on Phil Vickery's mum's trifle

X1 Swiss roll filled with strawberry jam. I used this Mary Berry recipe but without lemon. Same method but I used the following quantities in a larger tin measuring 33 x 23cm:

4 large eggs

100g caster sugar 

100g self raising flour

At least 4 spoonfuls of jam for the filling.

X2 135g packet strawberry jelly, made according to instructions. Admittedly I didn't end up using all the jelly, but I felt it needed more than one packet.

X2 tins of strawberries in syrup (drain the syrup) or fresh, chopped strawberries

Stewed rhubarb:

350g rhubarb, chopped into small chunks

Juice of 1 large lemon

100g sugar

Approx. 1 pint of custard, fresh/homemade, shop bought or made up with Bird's custard powder.

300ml double cream, lightly whipped.

Method: 

Make the Swiss roll, cut it into slices, then cut each slice in half. Place into the bottom of the trifle bowl and around the sides. Layer the fresh, chopped or drained, tinned strawberries into the centre.

Make up the jelly according to instructions. Top tip: if using tinned strawberries, use the fruit syrup for your jelly. Add enough boiling water to melt the jelly blocks then top up the rest of the liquid with the fruit syrup.

Once cool, pour the jelly into the trifle bowl until it fully covers the sponge and fruit. Put in the fridge to set, ideally overnight.

Put all ingredients for the stewed rhubarb in a pan and simmer over a low heat until the rhubarb has softened. Set aside to cool. Once cool, add on top of the set jelly.

Make up the custard, either using the powdered variety, make from scratch or buy ready made. If you're making it though, it's best to make it on the thick side to give it a firmer set. Let the custard cool before adding to the trifle, on top of the rhubarb layer.

Lightly whip the double cream and add as a final layer on top of the trifle. Re-chill and serve, with a flourish of sprinkles for decoration.

lemon curd swiss roll

For Father's Day last weekend Dad requested something lemon-y. I sense people may groan at the amount of lemon bakes I produce on this blog, but hey, my family *loves* lemon. Rather than bake my fail safe lemon drizzle I thought I'd go for something slightly different, a swiss roll.

A swiss roll filled with homemade lemon curd. Mmmmmmm.

Every time I make a fruit curd I think "I should make curd more often!" It's so easy and tastes so much better than shop bought which for some reason I always seem to forget. It's just taking the time for that extra little step in baking. I'd like to try making pineapple curd next to fully embrace summer flavours.

I had forgotten how wonderfully airy fatless sponges were. This swiss roll was so light! I loved the contrast of the crunchy, sugary crust with the fluffy sponge and tangy, sweet curd filling. 

Admittedly my swiss roll isn't the most technically proficient. I rolled mine a bit slack which caused a massive, unsightly crack. I sneakily hid this on the underside so all was ok. I also added so much curd that it squidged out everywhere, but then again I don't think that's a bad thing. Nobody likes a stingey filling.

I can happily report that Dad was delighted with his Father's Day swiss roll and we polished it off within two days. It's worth noting that swiss rolls are best eaten on the day of making as it did lose its freshness the following day (although still perfectly edible.) If there are a few of you eating I'm sure this won't be a problem!

Swiss roll with homemade lemon curd

Swiss roll recipe by Mary Berry. Lemon curd recipe by Delia Smith. Those ladies are the best.

For the lemon curd:

grated rind and juice of 1 large, juicy lemon 

75g (3oz) caster sugar

2 large eggs

50g (2oz) butter (I used slightly salted)

 

Place the grated lemon rind and sugar in a heatproof bowl. In another bowl whisk together the lemon juice and eggs then pour this mixture over the sugar. Add the butter cut into small pieces and place the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water. Stir frequently until thickened (about 20 minutes) and leave to cool whilst making the swiss roll.

For the swiss roll:

3 large eggs

75g (3oz) caster sugar

75g (3oz) self-raising flour
grated rind of 1 small lemon

Preheat the oven to 220C/Fan 200C/Gas 7 and line a 28 x 18cm (11 x 7 inch) tin with baking parchment. Whisk the lemon zest, eggs and sugar until the mixture increases in size and the whisk leaves a smooth trail when lifted. This takes a good 3-5 minutes and it's best to put your whisk at its highest/fastest setting as you want to add as much air into the mixture as possible. Sift in the flour and very carefully fold it into the mixture, taking great care not to knock out all the lovely air you just beat into it. Once incorporated, pour the mixture into the tray, tipping it gently from side to side to evenly spread the mixture into corners and level out. Don't be tempted to spread it with a knife! 

Bake in the centre of the oven for 10 minutes or until the surface is golden and the sides come away from the edges of the tin. While the cake is in the oven, unroll a piece of baking parchment slightly larger than the tin onto a work surface and sprinkle liberally with caster sugar. Once the swiss roll is cooked, invert it straight onto the sugared surface and quickly loosen and remove the parchment from the bottom of the cake. Trim the edges of the sponge (if needed) and mark a score about an inch in from one of the shorter ends (but don't cut right through) as it will help to roll up the cake.

Leave to cool slightly before spreading with curd then roll up the cake firmly from the scored end. Don't try and answer the phone whilst doing this like I did. It wasn't a good idea, you need both hands! Eat whilst fresh and fluffy :)

Uncle John's birthday feast

For his birthday, Uncle John requested an old fashioned afternoon tea (despite his birthday falling on Wednesday and the "tea" being served at 6pm). I was asked if I would prepare some baked goods, naturally I obligied.

All I can say is what a feast! It was fit for a king.

I provided dainty vanilla buns, millionaire's shortbread and a Victoria's sponge filled with jam, cream and strawberries. However I can't claim all the credit, Mum was my sous chef/baker.

I also made some apple and cinnamon buns and a swiss roll. I hadn't made a swiss roll before so was very pleased with my result. I've also discovered a new love for beating eggs and sugar; it was really satisying to watch it double in size and turn pale and glossy.

Aunty Gillian was the tea lady. Is it wrong that I love how the teapot colour coordinates with her dress?

Needless to say everybody felt very happy and very full by the end of the tea!