This mouthwatering trifle blends light, fluffy angel food cake with juicy mandarin segments, creamy vanilla pudding, and Cool Whip, to make a dessert, which is refreshing on a hot summer day and equally able to brighten up a cool winter evening. Trifle recipes vary but this one is super easy, thanks to the cake mix, gelatin and pudding used to make it. To save even more time, use a readymade angel food cake.
You can use fanned strawberries, blueberries or more mandarin orange segments to decorate the finished trifle if you like and maybe you want to add some chopped berries to the gelatin when it is partially set (adding it too early means it will float or sink rather than be suspended). Sprinkles are also nice for a colorful topping. You can either spread the Cool Whip over the top or pipe it on to make points. If you are going to garnish the trifle with fruit or sprinkles, it is better to spread it with a palette knife or spatula, so the sprinkles or fruit can be distributed evenly over the top.
The angel food cake is topped with the mandarins and the gelatin when it is not quite set, so some of the gelatin soaks into the cake. On top of that you have a creamy layer of instant vanilla pudding. Some trifle recipes use vanilla custard but instant pudding is quicker to make and tastes just as good. The topping is Cool Whip although you could use fresh whipped cream if you prefer. Another thing you could do, if you know how many people you are going to feed, is to make the trifle in individual serving glasses, if you have enough matching ones, rather than using a trifle bowl. Use glass or plastic, so you can see the layers of the trifle. If you are looking for an easy recipe for trifle, this one is really good.
Ingredients
- 2 cups cold milk
- 1 box angel food cake
- 1 can mandarin orange segments, drained
- 1 cup orange juice
- 1 cup boiling water
- 1 package strawberry gelatin
- 2 small boxes instant vanilla pudding
- 8 oz Cool Whip
- Sprinkles or sliced fruit to decorate (optional)
Instructions
- Dissolve the strawberry gelatin in the boiling water, and then stir in the orange juice.
- Follow the directions on the angel food package to make the cake.
- Cook it and let it cool, then cut it into 1 inch cubes.
- Arrange the angel food cake cubes in the bottom of a trifle bowl and scatter the mandarin segments over them.
- Top with the thickened gelatin and refrigerate until the gelatin layer has set.
- Whisk the vanilla pudding with the milk for a couple of minutes and let it stand for 2 minutes. Spread the vanilla pudding over the gelatin layer.
- Add the Cool Whip and decorate the trifle with the sprinkles or with some sliced fruit if you want to.
This four layer gelatin trifle recipe looks tempting and delicious. The fruity flavor contrasts well with the angel cake and the vanilla pudding adds a creamy flavor. Cool Whip is used to finish off the trifle perfectly and you can see from the picture how perfect this dessert looks. Serving homemade dessert recipes is guaranteed to thrill your guests and you cannot go wrong with this easy recipe for mandarin trifle. If you are looking for gelatin recipes, which look impressive, and taste heavenly, this one is a winner. You can make it ahead and keep it in the refrigerator for several hours.
