The seven rules of trifle – and when to break them

 From unexpected flavours to a lack of layers, here’s how top chefs are challenging the beloved British pudding

Trifle recipes have been passed down for generations, but is it time to shake up the formula? Credit: Getty

Do you have strong views about trifle? If so, steady yourself, for I bring mixed news. While the beloved pudding is enjoying a revival in restaurants across the land – joy! – be warned. Some chefs are going off piste with the British classic, telegraph.co.uk.

Trifle’s traditional architecture of booze-soaked sponge, fruit, a creamy element and jelly in a glass are making way for unorthodox twists, unexpected flavours and – sometimes – no proper layers!

“I think rules are there to be tested and traditions need to be challenged,” says Jan Ostle, chef/owner of Wilson’s in Bristol. His latest trifle features a sherry-soaked sponge, raspberry jelly, fresh raspberries from the restaurant’s market garden, plus custard and ice cream scented with home-grown lemon verbena.

Ostle serves it in a shallow bowl, so there are no visible layers. But the pudding still evokes nostalgia, and for him that means memories of eating a trifle as a child that was so boozy he got drunk. “Any food that can communicate nostalgia, that can take you back to a place, is really special,” Ostle says. “Really, it’s the most important thing.”

Other trifle twists

Kirk Haworth, chef/founder of plant-based restaurant Plates London serves a dairy-free trifle that pushes boundaries, too. It’s layered up with Bramley apple compote, fresh blackberries and blackberry jelly, and a custard made with coconut milk and tofu.

“Traditional dishes can be evolved as long as they’re a better, more interesting spin on the classic,” Haworth says. “Most classic trifles are heavy in dairy products, so for those who cannot consume dairy, a plant-based version is definitely needed.”

At Benedicts Restaurant in Norfolk, chef/founder Richard Bainbridge makes a festive trifle featuring sherry-drenched sponge, mulled wine jelly with oranges, sherry custard, cinnamon cream and white chocolate ganache. Controversially, he serves it freestanding on a plate, like a piece of fine patisserie. “When trifle is served in a big bowl, the person who gets the first scoop gets the best bit and the last scoop can be very unappetising,” he explains. “So, we like diners to have a trifle to themselves and serve it in a way that brings a nostalgic classic into the 21st century.”

The origins of trifle

Is there even a ‘right’ way to make trifle? The dish started life in the 16th century as the fruit-flavoured cream known as ‘fool’, explains Regula Ysewijn MBE, author of Pride and Puddings. It evolved until 1760 when cookery writer Hannah Glasse published a recipe for “a Grand Trifle”, the dish we would recognise today. So, what are today’s trifle rules?

1. The layers

According to Ysewijn, a proper trifle must include: a layer of biscuits and/or sponge fingers; a layer of fresh or preserved fruit, jam or jelly; a layer of custard; and a layer of cream. “For me, omitting any of these four things results in a layered dessert, not a trifle,” she says. “Apart from that you can be as creative as you want.” She adds that it’s fine to replace booze with something non-alcoholic.

2. The fruit

Chef Anna Tobias leans into trifle at her Bloomsbury restaurant, Café Deco. “It’s an excellent example of traditional British cooking and all the nostalgia that comes with it,” she says. She always includes seasonal fruit compotes, which she layers with sherry-soaked sponge, custard, whipped cream and candied flaked almonds. Greengage trifle was a big hit over the summer, and apples will be smuggled in over the festive season.

Chef Paul Ainsworth adores trifle so much it will never be off the menu of his Cornwall pub, The Mariner. He agrees seasonal fruit – not tropical – is best. “Tropical fruit is wasted,” he says. “And we have amazing seasonal fruit available to us here in the UK.”

3. The alcohol

When it comes to booze, Ainsworth believes trifle can be delicious without it, but if you favour alcohol, he suggests dark sherries like Pedro Ximénez and Oloroso, or liqueurs such as Cointreau and Grand Marnier. In Scotland, where trifle variations like tipsy laird and cranachan are popular, whisky is often the booze of choice. But at Glasgow’s Gloriosa restaurant, chef founder Rosie Healey soaks her brown butter almond cake in amaretto before layering up with custard, raspberry jelly, more custard, fresh raspberries, Chantilly cream and caramelised almonds. “It’s very good,” she says.

4. The sponge

Chefs agree it’s fine for home cooks to use shop-bought custard or sponge. Tobias would go for home-made sponge and buy in the custard if time were short. “You’re more in control of how thick the sponge is if you make it yourself,” she says. She points out that the sponge doesn’t need to be fresh if you’re soaking it in booze, which means you can make it in advance.

5. The custard

Ainsworth also favours a little cheating; he adds Bird’s Custard Powder to the crème anglaise-style custard he makes from scratch. “It gives the custard a lovely malty, comforting taste, texture and colour,” he says.

6. The jelly

Although jelly in trifle is authentic, an optional component that dates to the 18th century, Ainsworth believes it essential. “In my humble opinion, a traditional trifle needs a really good, flavour-packed jelly,” he says.

7. The decoration

Traditionally, candied angelica (a sweet herb) was used to decorate trifle. “But I don’t think it brings anything apart from an overriding sweetness,” says Ainsworth. He prefers caramel popcorn, which adds crunch, while Bainbridge dusts his with freeze-dried powdered raspberries, and Haworth opts for tangy apple and blackberry sherbet.

But old-school flourishes are good, too. “We use flowers at the restaurant,” says Ostle, “but why not use silver balls or hundreds and thousands? It’s a wonderful thing for people to express themselves through trifle.”