This Chantilly Berry Cake Trifle is a real crowd pleaser, and is much quicker and easier to make than a traditional cake! Dense pound cake, mascarpone cheesecake filling, whipped cream, and berries marinated in raspberry liqueur make up the layers of this dessert, which is almost too pretty to eat!
This Chantilly Berry Cake Trifle is pure magnificence.
In that it’s magnificently easy and quick to make. Which is good because – hello – today is Mother’s Day, and I bet some of you forgot.
You’ve got two options:
(1) you could run to the store and buy flowers and candy and a lame card that will get lost in the bottom of the mail pile.
OR (2) you could run to the store, grab the ingredients for this dessert, and make it instead. Which I promise will probably be closer to what the Moms, Aunts, Grandmas, and Wives in your lives want anyway.
She’ll mostly be impressed at the effort you put into it. Remember those handmade things you gave her as a kid? They may have been pure garbage in retrospect, but you made them, so they were perfect.
I just love berry season.
Everything about produce is just so damn photogenic, but berries have a certain sort of joie de vivre that makes them just that much cheerier and lovely to look at.
Can inanimate objects have joie de vivre?
My to-do list of blog recipes grows by the day. I feel like I never have enough time to put a dent in it, but this is one of those recipes I finally got to check off!
I snagged a trifle bowl off Amazon months ago, and it’s just been sitting on my counter, begging to be filled with delicious creams and cakes and fruits. It’s been penciled in for service more than once, but the follow through just wasn’t there.
So sorry, trifle bowl. Today is your time to shine.
Ever since my days working in the Publix bakery, I’ve LOVED everything about Chantilly berry cake.
From the soft crumb of the cake to the complex flavors of the mascarpone frosting, it’s had my heart.
Since my days at Publix, however, I’ve not had the desire to actually make one of those cakes.
This berry trifle, however. It was inspired by that very cake, and it is magnificently much more easy to throw together for the same level of satisfaction.
First of all, it’s no-bake, which is always a yes in my book. Unless, of course, you want to use homemade pound cake. In which case, good on ya, but I’m gonna stick to the good old frozen food aisle version.
(This can also be adapted for your celiac friends by using this Gluten-Free Vanilla Cake recipe instead of pound cake!)
I will, however, make my own cheesecake filling and Chantilly whipped cream because I’m snotty like that.
All in all, this recipe will take you about 30 minutes to throw together.
…Unless you have squirrel syndrome like I do and try to do 37 things at once, and constantly walk away even though the impending thunderstorm outside is threatening to steal all your perfect early afternoon photography light.
(Seriously, it’s like a lesser, multitasking ADHD. Awful.)
How to make a Chantilly Berry Cake Trifle
Soak your berries in raspberry liqueur (essential) while you mix your pudding and whipped cream.
Toss your cake cubes in your trifle bowl, line up your gorgeous sliced strawberries, then just start layering to your heart’s desire until the whole thing threatens to spill over the top of the bowl.
And then throw more fresh berries all over everything for good measure (and that “wow” factor, of course.)
A word of caution: make sure there are enough people at your shindig to eat this…or you may be tempted to keep shoveling it in your own mouth.
(Where’s my clean up crew? I have food to get rid of!)
More dessert recipes to try!
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Chantilly Berry Cake Trifle
Ingredients
Berry Mixture
- 1 cup strawberries chopped
- 1 cup blueberries
- 1 cup raspberries
- 1 cup blackberries
- ¼ cup raspberry liqueur creme de cassis
- 1 orange zested
Chantilly Cheesecake Filling
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 4 ounces mascarpone cheese
- 1 ½ cups milk divided
- 1 3.4 oz package instant vanilla pudding mix
- ½ teaspoon almond extract or vanilla
Whipped Cream
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 6-8 strawberries cut in half
- Pound cake or angel food cake 10-12 oz, cut into pieces
- Assorted whole berries for garnish
- Fresh mint leaves for garnish (optional)
Instructions
Berry Mixture
- Combine berries, liqueur, and orange zest in a large bowl, Toss to coat, then let sit for at least 15 minutes.
Chantilly Cheesecake Filling
- While berries marinate, make the cheesecake filling. Using a hand mixer, blend ½ cup of milk with the cream cheese and mascarpone until it is completely smooth.
- Add the pudding mix, remaining milk, and almond extract to the cream cheese mixture. Beat for about a minute until thoroughly mixed. Set aside.
Whipped Cream
- Place heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract in a cold bowl and whip to medium peaks. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Assembly
- Place half the cake cubes in the bottom of the trifle bowl. Line halved strawberries around the edge of the bowl, cut side out. Fill the cavity with the cheesecake filling, then place half of the marinated berries on top. Add the rest of the cake cubes, then the remaining berries and juice.
- Pipe or spread the cold whipped cream on top of the trifle, then decorate with assorted fresh berries and mint leaves, if desired. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.
cheri says
Hi Erica, I’ve always wanted to make a trifle too but something always comes up. I bet the raspberry liquor is delicious with the berries. Gorgeous dessert.
Nikki says
Such and beautiful and delicious dessert!
Liz says
I made a trifle last week for my book club….and now I want to make another! Yours is picture perfect!!!
Sarah Reid, CNP (@jo_jo_ba) says
Tons of fruit – perfect for the spring and summer, especially here!
Catia says
I love making trifles. Yours looks so pretty.