Strawberry Banana Trifle

True Confessions: when I made the banana pudding cake, it didn't turn out well. I was trying to use up some overripe bananas, and I used too many for the cake to bake properly.

BUT, all was not lost. I knew I could salvage that cake, and until I could come up with the bright idea, I cut the cake up into cubes and put it in a freezer bag and froze it.

Recently, when I had some ripe bananas and plenty of strawberries, I decided I could use the cake for a beautiful and delicious trifle! Sometimes half the fun of cooking is repurposing your mistakes! And in this case, it turned out wonderfully.

I did toast the cake cubes for about 15 minutes in the oven before assembling the trifle. If you're using store bought pound cake or your own pound cake that wasn't under-baked (!), you could skip that step.

First, make the pudding layer. I used two small boxes of pudding, one banana cream and one cheesecake. Add the milk to the dry mixes and whisk by hand for a few minutes until it starts to thicken. It will thicken more upon standing, so don't give yourself carpal tunnel over-whisking the pudding!



Do let the pudding stand to thicken for a few minutes, then fold in the whipped topping.



Place a layer of the cake cubes in a large glass bowl, or trifle dish if you have one. In total I had 6 cups of cake cubes, so I used just over a cup for this first layer. Since I use a bowl and not a trifle dish, I need to have more "material" higher up in the layers since the bowl gets wider near the top.



Add a layer of pudding and then a layer of sliced fruits.



Repeat the layers: cake, pudding, fruit, cake, pudding.



In this case, since I was using bananas and strawberries as my fruits, I decided to put only strawberries on top since bananas get brown easily. You could add bananas right before serving if you like.

One thing I love about trifles is that the combinations are seemingly endless. Last Christmas, I made a festive dessert using white chocolate pound cake with white chocolate pudding, kiwis and strawberries. Another good combination would be other more "tropical" fruits like mangoes, kiwi, mandarin oranges and bananas with coconut cream pudding. And of course, you could make a trifle with cut up brownies, chocolate pudding, and crushed up toffee bits. I can already feel my waistline expanding.

Get more great recipes at the Krazy Kitchen, Food on Fridays, Friday Feasts, Foodie Friday, and Family Recipe Friday.


Strawberry Banana Trifle

2 small boxes pudding mix, sugar free is fine
(Flavor is up to you, vanilla, cheesecake, banana cream)
3 cups milk
1 8 oz. carton whipped topping
6 cups diced pound cake
2-3 bananas, sliced
1/2 pound strawberries, sliced

Combine the dry pudding mixes and milk in a large mixing bowl and whisk by hand until it begins to thicken. Let stand for a few minutes to thicken slightly. Fold in the whipped topping.

Place about 1 cup of cake cubes in bottom of large glass bowl. Top with a layer of pudding, then a layer of sliced fruit. Repeat layers two more times: cake, pudding, fruit, cake, pudding, fruit. Cover with plastic wrap and chill until serving.

Serves 10-12.