Lamington trifle

This is a play on lamington flavours: chocolate chiffon cake layered with whipped cream and raspberry sauce, garnished with crunchy coconut toffee.

Lamington trifle Credit: Lyndey Milan's Baking Secrets

• serves

  8-10

• prep

  30 minutes

• cook

  30 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• ¾ cup (105 g) plain flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tbsp cornflour
• 2 tbsp cocoa
• 3 eggs, separated
• ⅔ cup (150 g) caster sugar
• ¼ cup (60 ml) extra virgin olive oil
• ⅓ cup (80 ml) espresso coffee, cooled
• 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
• 300 ml cream, whipped to soft peaks
• ⅓ cup (80 ml) coconut liqueur

Raspberry sauce

• 300 g frozen raspberries
• 1 tbsp icing sugar
• 1 tbsp lemon juice

Coconut  toffee shards 

• 1 cup (50 g)  flaked coconut
• 1 cup (220 g) caster sugar

Instructions

1. For the sponge cake, pre-heat oven to 160⁰C. Grease a 30cm x 20cm lamington tin with butter and line the base with baking paper.

2. Sift flour, baking powder, salt, cornflour and cocoa into a medium bowl and stir to combine. Place the egg yolks in a medium bowl. Add a third of a cup of the caster sugar, and oil, coffee and vanilla bean paste, and whisk until light and smooth. Gently fold through the sifted flour mixture.

 

3. Whisk the egg whites in a large bowl until they form soft peaks. With the motor running, gradually add the remaining caster sugar, a tablespoon at a time, whisking well to ensure the sugar dissolves. Using a spatula carefully fold one-third of the egg white mixture into the cake batter. Once no streaks of egg white remain, gently fold in remaining egg white mixture. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin, tap on the bench a few times to remove air bubbles and bake for 30 minutes or until the top springs back when pressed. Set aside on a wire rack to cool.

 

4. For the raspberry sauce, combine raspberries, icing sugar and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Stir over a low heat to break up the raspberries. Simmer for two minutes. Strain into a jug through a fine sieve to remove seeds. Refrigerate until cold.

 

5. For the coconut toffee, toast the flaked coconut in a pan over medium heat until golden. Transfer to large baking paper-lined tray. Spread the coconut out to cool.

6. Place a wide, heavy-based frying pan over a low to medium heat. Add the sugar and gently shake the pan to distribute the sugar evenly over the base. Cook until sugar has dissolved, carefully and gently shaking the pan from time to time as the sugar melts. Once sugar has melted, raise the heat to medium and boil without stirring until the mixture is golden brown. Carefully pour the toffee over the coconut. Set tray aside until the toffee sets. Do not refrigerate.

 

7. To assemble, fold 1 tablespoon of the coconut liqueur into the whipped cream. Cut chocolate cake into small squares. Place a few pieces into each of eight glasses and sprinkle with some of the remaining coconut liqueur. Top with a few spoonfuls of whipped coconut cream and a drizzle of raspberry sauce. Continue layering each glass with cake, liqueur and cream, finishing with raspberry sauce. Alternatively, layer in a 1.5 litre glass bowl for a large trifle.

 

8. Break the coconut toffee into shards and sprinkle over each trifle. Serve immediately.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.