Cake:
1 store bought genoise cake or you can make your own
4 cups sweetened whipped cream (divided)
Fresh strawberry puree (recipe following)
Coconut custard (see coconut cupcake for this recipe)
Creme de cocoa liquer by DeKuyper (you can use any liquor or a good simple syrup of equal parts sugar and water)
Fresh strawberries for garnishing
Strawberry puree
5 cups fresh strawberries cut into quarters
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 tbsp coconut rum
1 tsp vanilla extract
Preparation:
Start the strawberry puree first by placing the strawberries, 1/4 cup water and sugar in a medium pot to cook over medium heat. Meanwhile, combine the remaining 1/4 cup water with the cornstarch and stir until smooth. When the sugar dissolves in the strawberry mixture add the water/cornstarch to the pot and stir constantly until thickened. Remove from stove and add the coconut rum and vanilla. At this point you can use your hand held emulsion blender, a regular blender, or a masher and begin to make it smooth. Try not to smooth it completely as little bits of chunky strawberries can add some texture to the puree. Set aside and cool completely in the fridge.
You can also prepare the coconut custard and whip up the cream (4 cups whipping cream, 2 cups powdered sugar (more or less depending on taste), 1 tsp vanilla extract), and place in fridge just before beginning to assemble.
When all of your components are nice and cold, divide the whip cream in half, the coconut custard in half and the strawberry puree in half. Take half of the custard and fold it into the one half of the whip cream. Take the one half of the puree and fold it into the other half of the whip cream. You should now have a coconut custard whip cream, a strawberry puree whip cream and just a plain custard, and a plain puree (4 components). Now we are ready to assemble!
Assembly:
Start by taking out your trifle dish. Slice your cake round four times (4 round pieces). You may need more or less depending on the trifle dish. There is no specific way to do this, just make sure it is all layered (you are building on flavors).
Place the first piece of cake in the trifle dish and sprinkle the liquor over the cake making sure it is absorbed. Take some of the coconut custard and spread over the cake. Next, place the strawberry whip cream over the custard. Top with more cake and soak with liquor and add the strawberry puree, then the coconut custard whip cream. Repeat until all pieces are used up. Garnish with fresh strawberries and let sit in fridge and soak for a few hours, then.....enjoy!!