Easter Dinner!

Saturday evening my brothers and I all got together at my mom’s for an Easter dinner. A perfect ending to a pretty perfect day! My mom baked a ham, made a new baked macaroni and cheese recipe, green bean casserole and steamed broccoli.

I knew I wanted to bring a dessert since I have not made one in quite a while. I also knew I wanted it to include fresh berries now that they are back in season. After spending almost an hour searching for the perfect recipe…I finally stumbled across Tyler Florence’s trifle recipe. It calls for homemade lemon curd and while it does not have a lot of ingredients, whisking the curd for 10 minutes constantly almost made me change my mind. But it was worth every minute of vigorously whisking! Trifles are always pretty easy desserts that usually do not require baking…they are always beautiful in a glass bowl! This one did not disappoint and the lemon flavor with the berries was a perfect Easter flavor.

Lemon Curd Trifle with Fresh Berries

• 6 large egg yolks
• 1 cup sugar
• 4 lemons, zested and juiced
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut in chunks
• 1 pint fresh strawberries, stemmed and halved lengthwise
• 1 pint fresh blueberries
• 1 pint fresh blackberries
• 2 cups sweetened whipped cream
• 1 prepared lemon pound cake, sliced
• 1/4 cup Lemoncello or Grand Marnier liqueur (optional)
• Fresh mint leaves, for garnish

To make the lemon curd: Bring a pot of water to a simmer over medium-low heat. Combine the egg yolks, sugar, lemon juice, and zest in a metal or glass heat-resistant bowl and whisk until smooth. Set the bowl over the simmering water, without letting the bottom touch, and continue to whisk. Keep working-out that arm and whisk it vigorously for a good 10 minutes, until the curd has doubled in volume and is very thick and yellow. Don't let it boil. Remove the bowl from heat and whisk in the butter, a couple of chunks at a time, until melted. Refrigerate until the custard is cold and firm.

To build the trifle: put the berries in a mixing bowl and toss them together so they are evenly distributed. Fold the whipped cream into the chilled lemon curd to lighten it up into a mousse. Line a glass trifle bowl with pieces of pound cake to fit. Drizzle or brush the cake with the Lemoncello, spoon a layer of the lemon curd over the cake, and then a layer of mixed berries. Repeat the layers until the ingredients are used up, the last layer looks best if it's the berries. Chill before serving. Garnish with fresh mint.