San Francisco star pastry chef Emily Luchetti’s impressive resume stretches from Jeremiah Tower’s Stars restaurant to Farallon and Waterbar. Now the chief pastry officer for the Big Night Restaurant Group, Luchetti oversees the sweet side of dining at San Francisco’s The Cavalier, Marlowe, Park Tavern, Leo’s Oyster Bar and Petit Marlowe restaurants.
But when it comes to entertaining at home, Luchetti often reaches for a favorite: A sensational seasonal trifle.
Trifles are typically associated with traditional British yuletide feasts, she says in the new cookbook, “Feed Your People: Big-Batch, Big-Hearted Cooking and Recipes to Gather Around” by Leslie Jonath and 18 Reasons (Powerhouse Books, © 2018). But the dessert is every bit as delightful in midsummer, Luchetti says, when it’s made with fresh fruit and bright flavors, fresh blueberries and lemon curd, for example, roasted pineapple and coconut, or sweet strawberries and ripe peaches.
For party hosts, a trifle is a dream dessert, a do-ahead dish that looks fantastic — and serves 20. You can assemble the beautiful layers in a classic 5-quart trifle dish or clear glass bowl, or use wine goblets or small glasses to create individual servings. And while a trifle should be refrigerated for at least four hours (but no more than eight) before serving, the components can be made even earlier. The cake can be baked, sliced and frozen — wrap the slices individually in parchment paper — up to a week ahead, and the lemon curd and blueberry compote can be done the day before.
One last thing: A traditional trifle is a boozy affair, with sherry-soaked layers of cake. This summery version doesn’t do that, but if you’d like to add a little liqueur to your trifle, simply brush it on the cake slices before assembling the trifle.
Lemon-Blueberry Trifle
Serves 20
Sponge cake:
Unsalted butter, at room temperature, for preparing pans
2½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
10 large eggs, separated
2½ cups sugar
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons boiling water
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
Lemon cream:
2 large eggs
6 large egg yolks
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup fresh lemon juice
1¾ cups heavy cream
Blueberry compote:
3 pints blueberries (about 6 cups)
½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Directions:
- Sponge cake: Position racks in the top third and center of the oven; heat to 350 degrees. Butter the bottoms of two half-sheet pans (18 inches by 13 inches), avoiding the sides. Line the pan bottoms with parchment paper.
- Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl.
- In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine the egg yolks and sugar and whip on high speed until thick and pale yellow, about 2 minutes. Reduce speed to medium-low, add the boiling water and vanilla, and beat until well mixed, scraping down bowl sides as needed. Increase the speed to high and whip until mixture is thick, about 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low, add flour mixture and lemon zest, and beat until well mixed. Transfer batter to a large bowl.
- Clean and dry the mixer bowl and whisk attachment and reassemble the mixer. Whip egg whites on high speed until soft, billowing peaks form. They should be smooth and not at all clumpy. Scoop half the whipped whites onto the cake batter and fold in gently, being careful not to overmix. Gently fold in the remaining half, again being careful not to overmix.
- Divide the batter between the two prepared pans, spreading it evenly. Bake until golden brown and the cakes spring back when lightly touched, about 15 minutes. Let cool completely in the pans on wire racks.
- Lemon cream: In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg yolks and sugar until blended. Whisk in the lemon juice. Pour the lemon mixture into a heavy nonreactive (stainless-steel or enameled cast iron) saucepan, place over low heat and cook, stirring constantly with a heat-resistant spatula, until the mixture has thickened, about 8 minutes. Switch to a whisk and whisk until smooth. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing the wrap directly onto the lemon mixture. Refrigerate until cold, about 1 hour.
- Wash and dry the mixer bowl and whisk attachment and reassemble the mixer. Beat the heavy cream on medium-high speed until soft peaks form. Using a rubber spatula, fold the whipped cream into the cold lemon cream mixture just until combined. Cover and refrigerate until needed.
- Blueberry compote: In a saucepan, combine the blueberries, sugar and lemon juice over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the berries begin to release their juice and become soft, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Puree half the blueberry mixture in a food processor; stir the puree back into the berries remaining in the saucepan. Let the compote cool to room temperature.
- Assembly: Run a thin knife around the edge of each cake pan to loosen the cake sides, then invert the cake onto a large cutting board. Lift off the pan and peel off the parchment. Use the edges of the trifle bowl as a template to cut out four cake rounds; you can use the trimmings to fill in any gaps. (To cut out rectangles, use a serrated knife to cut each cake into quarters and then split each quarter in half horizontally.
- Spread a thin layer of blueberry compote on the bottom of a 5-quart trifle dish or glass bowl. Top with a layer of the cake, cutting to fit if needed. Top with another layer of the blueberry compote and then a layer of the lemon cream. Repeat the layers until the bowl is full. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours and no longer than 8 hours before serving well-chilled.
— Recipe by Emily Lucchetti. Excerpted from “Feed Your People: Big-Batch, Big-Hearted Cooking and Recipes to Gather Around” by Leslie Jonath with 18 Reasons. (Powerhouse Books, © 2018)