This fresh fruit angel food cake trifle is a light and refreshing dessert made with layers of vanilla pudding, whipped cream, fresh berries, and angel food cake.
It's a red, white, and blue trifle, that looks patriotic making it perfect to serve for a 4th of July celebration, but delicious enough to enjoy any time of year!
Patriotic berry trifle with angel food cake is the best of both worlds. Sweet in-season berries layred with sweet, fluffy angel food cake and a sweet and creamy filling.
There is a lot to like about this simple red, white and blue dessert. For a more another variation of trifle, you might enjoy this mixed berry trifle with a cheesecake filling
What is a Trifle?
Trifle is an English dessert from the 18th century that is made of layers of fruit, sponge cake or ladyfingers that are typically soaked in sherry or fortified wine, jam, and a layer of custard or whipped cream.
The varieties and options for making trifles are endless. One of my favorite things about trifles is that they are usually lighter in texture and less sweet than many desserts.
If you enjoy a light and creamy dessert made with fresh fruit, I think you'll love this Strawberry Charlotte Cake, Berry Cheesecake Fruit Salad.
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- This angel food trifle is quick and easy to make! It takes only about 20 minutes to assemble!
- Light and refreshing making it perfect for a hot summer day.
- Red, white and blue trifle is loaded with sweet berries.
- A dessert everyone loves!
- Customizable recipe to suit your tastes.
Ingredients
As you can see, you don't need a ton of ingredients to make this cake! Let's take a look a what you need.
- Angel food cake: Use a store-bought angel food cake or you can make your own. You can also use a white, yellow, or vanilla cake if you prefer.
- Creamy filling: A simple trifle filling made with cool whip, whole milk, and vanilla pudding mixture. Make sure you are using instant pudding.
- Fresh berries: For a red, white, and blue trifle you can use blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries. Choose large bright red strawberries and blueberries with a dark blue color, almost purple. Strawberries will not continue to ripen once picked, so check carefully for bright red berries.
TOP TIP: Berries of all varies are very susceptible to mold so be sure to check your packages well before you purchase them. Turn them upside down and check the underside of the box too!
How to Make a Patriotic Trifle
Here are the step-by-step photos and instructions for making this easy Fourth of July patriotic trifle. For complete instructions, check the recipe card further down on the page.
First, you need to prep the angel food cake. Make your own angel food cake or purchase one ready-made from the supermarket.
Next, prep the pudding mixture and fold it together with the whipped cream.
Layer One: Angel Food Cake
Trim the cake so it fits in your trifle bowl or cut the cake into bite-sized pieces.
Place a layer of angel food cake in the bottom of the trifle dish or glass bowl.
Layer Two: Adding Cream and Berries
Make certain that you clean the berries and chop up the strawberries first.
Spread a layer of the whipped cream mixture on top of the cake and spread it out in an even layer. Then add them over top of the whipped cream.
Layer Three: More Cake, Cream, and Berries
Have fun with this! The cream cheese and whipped cream layer is the creamiest part of the trifle and tastes amazing.
Make it smooth and don't worry if it drips between the layers of the angel food cake. It's going to happen.
Decorate the Top
The top of the trifle is where the strawberries are going to go and you can make such a pretty design. Fill in with blueberries.
Isn't it just lovely?!
Substitutions and Variations
Don’t have the correct ingredients on hand or simply want to change something up? Here are some helpful tips for you to change this berry and angel food cake trifle.
- Angel food cake: If you don't want to use angel food cake, swap it for vanilla cake, pound cake, lady fingers, or any kind of sponge cake.
- Vanilla pudding: Use cheesecake flavored or your favorite instead.
- Don't want to add the cakes whole? Cut them up into squares using a knife with a serrated edge or even your fingers.
- Change up the pudding layer. Use a different flavor such as banana!
- Add some crunch between the layers with chopped nuts or pretzels.
- Swap out the berries with another fruit!
Equipment
You only need a few kitchen tools to make this trifle with berries.
- Trifle Dish or Large Glass Bowl
- Cutting Board
- Sharp Knife
- Rubber Spatula
- Hand Mixer or Stand Mixer
- Measuring Spoons in Various Sizes
- Measuring Cups in Various Sizes
Storage
Refrigerator: Cover leftovers well with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. To make ahead, I recommend serving no more than 24 hours after serving or it may become very soggy.
Freezer: I don't recommend freezing trifle. However, no worries because you likely won't have any leftovers.
Tips
- Prep all the elements for the layers before assembling the trifle.
- Use a serrated knife when cutting angel food cake for smoother cuts.
- Let prepared trifle sit covered in the refrigerator for a few hours before serving. This gives the flavors a chance to meld.
- Make sure your trifle layers are as level as possible and visible through the bowl. The sequence should be one cake, half of the pudding mixture (about 1 ½ cups), then the chopped strawberries. Then repeat with a second cake, the remaining pudding mixture, and blueberries. Last, top with the rest of the Cool Whip and decorate with fresh berries.
FAQ
Do you have questions about this trifle with angel food cake and berries? Here are some of the most commonly asked questions about trifles.
Since the trifle is layered, using a glass bowl with straight edges is best to show off those beautiful layers. I have a beautiful trifle bowl with a stand that I LOVE to use when serving this trifle because it sits up high on the table for everyone to see. It showcases the trifle beautifully! Occasionally I will a glass salad bowl and it works just fine.
I do not recommend using frozen fruit for a few reasons. First, it is a lot harder to use for decoration. Frozen fruit tends to bleed and will color the pudding layers. Frozen fruit also doesn’t keep as long as fresh fruit and becomes mushy. Stick to fresh berries for best results.
Yes and no. You can definitely make the pudding layer ahead of time and prep up the cake layer no more than one day in advance. But you should wait to assemble the trifle no earlier than the day you plan to serve it. Keep the pudding in the fridge and the cake wrapped up on the counter until you're ready to assemble the cake layers.
More Delicious Trifle Recipes
Angel Food Cake Trifle (Red, White Blue Trifle)
Equipment
- Trifle Bowl 8 inches in diameter
Ingredients
- 1 angel food cake or cake mix plus baking ingredients
- 1 3.4- ounce instant cheesecake pudding or vanilla pudding
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 tub ( 8 ounce) Cool Whip divided
- 2 ½ cups fresh strawberries chopped into small pieces
- 1 ½ cups fresh blueberries
- whole berries strawberries, blueberries and raspberries for garnish
Instructions
- Prep the angel food cake. If making homemade bake them in 8-inch pans to layer. If using store-bought, cut it into small bite-sized pieces or shape it into 1-inch layers by slicing it horizontally.
- In a large bowl add instant pudding mix and milk and beat until it starts to thicken with a hand mixer.
- Fold in half a tub of Cool Whip and set aside.
- To layer the trifle start with a layer of angel food cake. If necessary, trim the edges of the cake to fit your dish.
- Next add half of the pudding mix and layer smoothly (about 1 ½ cups) followed by the chopped strawberries.
- Add the second cake layer, the rest of the pudding, and then the blueberries.
- Finally top with the final layer of Cool Whip and decorate the top with berries.
- Keep in the fridge until ready to serve.
Notes
- Prep all the elements for the layers before assembling the trifle.
- Use a serrated knife when cutting angel food cake for smoother cuts.
- Let prepared trifle sit covered in the refrigerator for a few hours before serving. This gives the flavors a chance to meld.
- Make sure your trifle layers are as level as possible and visible through the bowl. The sequence should be one cake, half of the pudding mixture (about 1 ½ cups), then the chopped strawberries. Then repeat with a second cake, the remaining pudding mixture, and blueberries. Last, top with the rest of the Cool Whip and decorate with fresh berries.
Nutrition
This post was originally published in May 2021. It has been republished with new content and images.
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