Simple Berry Trifle
This delicious, fresh and simple berry trifle recipe is a great dessert when you can’t decide what to make. Just white cake and fresh fruit. Add whipped cream if you like or omit for dairy free.
I love dessert. The funny thing about eating pretty clean is, eventually you just don’t like really sweet stuff anymore. Desserts that are lightly sweet and don’t sit too heavy are my favorite.
I also love making things from scratch so that I know exactly what’s in the food we eat. That being said, I’m a busy mom and I’m not too proud for a quick dessert made from boxed cake mix.
I had this cake mix on hand already so while I was rummaging through the cupboards looking for inspiration, I found it and knew immediately what I wanted to make.
You’ll love how easy this is.
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Ingredients
Fresh Fruit
Since it’s 4th of July weekend, I wanted to use red and blue fruit to go along with the white cake. You can use any fruit you like. I used raspberries and blueberries since I already had some.
White Cake Mix
This is an easy one. My two boys and I are dairy free, so I have to find cake mixes that don’t have any milk in them. It’s either that, or I make it from scratch. Admittedly, I’m a much better cook than a baker, so I tend to go the easy route there. Duncan Hines products, for the most part, are dairy free. The white cake mix is a safe option for us. Always check labels though, because ingredients in previously safe products can change at anytime.
Whipped Cream (Optional)
Since going dairy free, whipped cream is something that I miss. I’ve had dairy free alternatives and haven’t found one yet that I like. I miss home made whipped cream that’s just very lightly sweet. The store bought alternatives are way too sweet for my liking. I’ve only tried once to make some myself, but it wasn’t successful. I’ll keep working on that.
If you’re not dairy free, some fresh home made whipped cream would be absolutely divine on this berry trifle. I will always remember my mom making whipped cream with her old Sunbeam hand mixer and giving my sister and me a beater to lick.
How to Make a Berry Trifle
First, you’ll start by making the cake. The directions on the box say to use only egg whites. This is only to keep the cake as white as possible. I don’t mind it being a little yellow so I use whole eggs. Since you’re cutting the cake into little bite size pieces, you can use just about any size pan you want. Just follow the directions on the box for cook times and temperature, which might be different depending on the type of pan it is. I used a 13×9 dark coated pan.
Line your cake pan with parchment paper and then when the cake comes out of the oven, let it cool for a little bit, then tip the cake out onto a cooling rack. Once it’s completely cool, cut some of the cake into cubes. You’ll have cake leftover, but if you have kids or a significant other, you’ll likely have random hands coming by to swipe cake bites.
Set the cake cubes aside but don’t cover them or they’ll tend to get a bit sticky. If you aren’t going to assemble the trifle right away, then you’ll eventually need to cover it. If you do plan on assembling and serving it right away, then leave it uncovered while you make everything else.
Now it’s time to get to work mashing your fruit. A potato masher makes this super easy. Add some sugar to sweeten the fruit just slightly and then mash away.
There’s no perfect consistency. Just stop when you like how smooth or chunky it is. For the blueberries, if you don’t like the texture of the skins in the mash, you can strain them out. I personally don’t mind it and I’m certainly not going to add any steps to such an easy dessert if I don’t have to.
It doesn’t take much elbow grease at all to mash up the fruit. Once it’s the consistency you like, give it a good stir to make sure the sugar dissolves. Taste it and add more sugar if desired.
Now you’re ready to assemble your trifles!
Serving Suggestions
You can absolutely make one large trifle, but I find it a little extra fun to make individual ones.
You can use:
- mason jars
- cocktail glasses
- wine glasses
or anything else you like. I used wine glasses for my husband and me to make them a little extra fancy. Be careful serving dessert to guests in your nice stemware though. Using a metal spoon might risk damaging them. If you’re making this for a party, I’d suggest getting some plastic ones or just using mason jars since those are much sturdier.
Simple Berry Trifle
Ingredients
- 1 cup fresh raspberries
- 1 cup fresh blueberries
- 3 tsp sugar
- 1 box Duncan Hines White Cake Mix
Instructions
- Make the cake according to the instructions on the box. It's okay to use whole eggs. It just won't be as white.
- Add the raspberries and 1 teaspoon of sugar to a bowl and mash them to preferred consistency. Stir to make sure the sugar is dissolved.
- Repeat above step with the blueberries, adding 2 teaspoons of sugar.
- Once the cake has completely cooled, cut into small cubes.
- Layer ingredients together in a glass or bowl, starting with one layer of cake, then blueberries, followed by another layer of cake and topped with raspberries. Add optional whipped cream to the top and garnish with whole raspberries and/or blueberries.
- Serve immediately. Store any remaining ingredients separately, in the refrigerator.
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