My First Trifle {Recipe}

There are some awesome bakers in my office who could whip up some lemon curd in their sleep
They bring in some scones that they *just decided to make this weekend*
And think that their lucious peanut butter cupcakes are *only ok*
I am not one of these people.
But these people did inspire me to try my hand on a less than easy {no bake} dessert for Easter.
A trifle.

And it wasn't that hard!

Lemon Curd Trifle with Fresh Berries

Recipe courtesy of Food Network

Ingredients

6 large egg yolks

1 cup sugar

4 lemons, zested and juiced

1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut in chunks

1 pint fresh strawberries, stemmed and halved lengthwise

1 pint fresh blueberries

1 pint fresh blackberries
1 pint fresh raspberries

2 cups sweetened whipped cream
(master chefs -
am I actually supposed to use the canned whipped cream for this?
it tasted great, but someone please correct me if I'm wrong!)

1 prepared lemon pound cake, sliced
(i'm sure you could whip up your own, but I just bought one at Ralphs)

Fresh mint leaves, for garnish

(bought these and totally forgot to use them...)

First thing's first. 
You have to make the lemon curd.
Ahhh I'm scared already.

Here's what you do.  First you've got to zest and squeeze your lemons.  This part's fun.  And it makes your whole kitchen smell good.

Next, you bring the water in the bottom of your double broiler to simmer over medium-low heat.  While you're waiting combine the egg yolks, sugar, lemon juice, and zest in a bowl and whisk until smooth.

Pour the mixture into the top of your double broiler (make sure the water isn't touching the top portion at all), and continue to wisk (you can also do this with a normal pot and heat resistant bowl). 
Wisk for about 10 minutes, and don't let it boil
My arm was dying by the end.
Liiitttle out of shape.
Don't judge.

The curd will double in volume and become very thick and yellow.  After your 10 minutes is up (and your arm has fallen off), remove the pot or bowl from heat and whisk in the butter, a couple of chunks at a time, until melted.

Pour into a bowl and refrigerate until it's cold and firm.
Phew.
Hard part's done.

Now onto the fun part.  Building the trifle.  Clean the berries and toss them together so they're evenly distributed.

Fold the whipped cream into the chilled lemon curd to lighten it up into a mousse. 
Don't stick your finger in and taste.
Ok, well do.
You need to make sure it tastes good, right?

Cut up the pound cake and get ready to roll.

Line a glass bowl with pieces of pound cake to fit (I didn't have a trifle bowl so I made it work with another pretty glass bowl). 

Spoon a layer of the lemon curd over the cake

Spoon a layer of mixed berries over the lemon curd.

Rinse and repeat
Food Network reminded me that the last layer looks best if it's the berries
Which is good because I probably would have ended up with ugly cake on top otherwise.

Chill before serving
Garnish with fresh mint
(whoops, I forgot this part)

Enjoy every bite of the trifle
And savor every compliment you get from your guests
Deelicious.

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