Pina Colada - In A Trifle!!!! - Well, Almost...!

Whats the easiest thing to put together when you have a sponge sitting in your fridge?? A make ahead, elegant dessert which can feed a crowd as well?? A trifle, a trifle, a trifle!!! No fuss, no sweating over slicing the cake neatly, perfect frosting not needed, just assemble however u fancy and chill. And then you sit back and chill.

I love Pina Colada, the pineapple drink with a hint of coconut. And the idea of making a similar cake or dessert had been on my mind since months. My new bottle of pineapple essence had to be tried and tested. I am quite fussy about buying essence as I have had a couple of bad experiences. The essence was so very over-powering, I had to throw the other wise good cake into the trash can:-(. Thankfully the pineapple essence was good.

I made a pineapple sponge with my favorite recipe for a fat-less sponge and put it in the freezer... waiting for an excuse to make a dessert out of it. Vani, initially an acquaintance through my blog and now a friend,  was to drop by at my place. How can I have a guest, a baking enthusiast at that, and not bake something?

Whipping cream whipped with coconut cream, layered with cubes of pineapple sponge, pineapple bits and a sprinkling of grated fresh coconut conjured up in my mind. And at last, my fantasy of making a Pina Colada Trifle came alive.

Here is what I did.

For the fat-less Pineapple Sponge, recipe from Deeba.
 Ingredients:

• Eggs - 3
• Castor sugar - 1/2 cup
• Flour - 1/2 cup
• Pineapple essence - 1 tsp

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C. Line, grease & dust a Swiss roll tin.
• Beat the eggs, essence & sugar till mousse like (almost 10 minutes). I added a couple of drops of yellow food color.
• Lightly fold the flour in 3 goes in figure 8 movements (so as no to release the air bubbles).
• Gently turn into prepared tray & bake for 10-12 minutes till light brown & spongy.

If you would be using a regular 9 inch round tin, it will take longer to bake, mine takes about 30-35 minutes. Turn out to cool on rack, immediately removing the lining. When fully cool, use as needed. If you would be using later, you can store the sponge in the fridge for 2-3 days and in the freezer for longer.

For the coconut cream:
3/4 cup whipping cream ( I have used sweetened non -dairy cream)
1/2 cup coconut cream, chilled.( I used Dabur Hommade)
1 1/2 tablespoons icing sugar (to add sweetness to the coconut cream and help stabilize the same when whipped)


Chill the whipping cream for at least 10 hours in the fridge. Chill the beaters and the bowl for 2-3 hours at least. Stainless steel works best .Combine the whipping cream, icing sugar and coconut cream. Place over a large bowl of ice. Whip first on low for a minute or so and then at medium speed for about 8-10 minutes or till the cream forms soft peaks. Be careful not to over whip.Chill till needed.

More ingredients we will need:
 1 Cup Simple sugar syrup (1 cup water plus 1-2 tablespoons sugar, more to taste) Add a splash of rum if   you like
 1/2 cup chopped pineapple chunks(I used canned)
1 tablespoon grated fresh coconut( you could also use chopped tender coconut)

To assemble:
Cut the sponge horizontally into 2 layers, then cut into small cubes. Take a large transparent bowl( a large tall one works best), place half the cake cubes. Pour some sugar syrup and moisten the cake pieces well. Do not over-soak. Spoon a layer of coconut and cream. Put some pineapple chunks and the grated fresh coconut over it. Put the remaining cake cubes, moisten with syrup, spoon the remaining coconut cream. Garnish with coconut. I had wanted maraschino cherries, but could not get them:-(. Chill for at least 5-6 hours.

Scoop out the dessert from the bottom, making sure every serving has two layers of cake and two of cream. Scoop into dessert bowls and dig in!!!

Note: The cream had a hint of coconut, but could have been better with more. You could try whipping equal parts of cream and coconut cream. You could also skip the coconut cream, and use coconut essence and  whipped cream. I did not as I am yet to find good quality coconut essence.

Add rum to the soaking syrup if you like.

Use chopped tender coconut  instead of grated coconut.

Sending the trifle to Champa's Bake Off .