Trifle

We had a few friends over on Monday night for dessert and games. We had SUCH a good time! The best part, as always, was the dessert. I'm not boasting here.. but this trifle was good. It also looks beautiful! There are many variations to trifle. I've had chocolate trifle (never made though, and not sure I ever will. It was too much chocolate for me), and I also have a recipe for pumpkin-gingerbread trifle that I can't WAIT to try out in the fall. Trifle can be made so many ways to fit whatever your theme or cravings are. I've seen a red, white and blue theme with blueberries and strawberries. You could do a berry themed trifle. And it's also fun to mix up the pudding flavors to get different colors or tastes. I've always wanted to try something with white chocolate pudding. Yum!

By far my favorite trifle though is strawberry-banana. It's light, it looks beautiful on the table and will always be an instant hit! If you don't have a trifle bowl, it can also be made in a punch bowl. Make sure that it's clear though, that way everyone can admire the beautiful layers and will think you put more work into it than you actually did!

Trifle

1 store bought angel food cake, torn up into little pieces
1 large package vanilla pudding made according to directions
One package fresh strawberries
3-4 bananas
1 large container Cool Whip

Take half of angel food cake and place in bottom of trifle bowl. Spread half of pudding on top of that, covering completely. Layer half of fruit on top of pudding. Spread half of Cool Whip on top of fruit. Repeat with remaining half ingredients with Cool Whip ending on very top layer.

Tips and Tricks:

• Like I said, trifle is malleable to whatever your occasion might be. Experiment, have fun!
• For the strawberries, I sprinkled a little sugar and mashed them a bit to get the juices going. Makes them a little sweeter I think.
• Keep refridgerated until ready to serve. The whole process of cutting fruit and putting it together takes less than 30 minutes.