Lemon Mousse Trifle Recipe
Lemon Mousse Trifle – a lemon lovers dream! It’s a simple but delicious combination of sponge cake, lemon mousse, limoncello liqueur and whipped cream.
Lemon Mousse Trifle
This gorgeous Lemon Mousse Trifle came about as a result of having 18 egg yolks on hand to use. What do you do with 18 egg yolks? You make lemon curd of course!
All the egg whites had gone into making frosting for our Black and White Cake which we had made to provide samples at the Savour Food and Wine Show the day before and yes, all those yolks did make quite a large batch of lemon curd. Don’t worry, we didn’t use it all in this recipe. I used some of it in a lemon pudding and some was just enjoyed on our morning toast; there’s nothing like the tangy zip of luscious lemon curd to wake up your taste buds in the morning.
This trifle really is a simple combination of sponge cake, whipped cream and lemon curd with a little extra citrus punch from limoncello liqueur but the liqueur is purely optional if you choose not to use it. We had about 12 family members over for a roast chicken Sunday dinner when this was served and there wasn’t much left at the end, believe me. I guess I come from a long line of lemon lovers.
I think a very light cake is best in this dessert so I used our standard recipe for Homemade Sponge Cake in this version but a plain Angel Food Cake would be very good too. If you would like to garnish your trifle with candied lemon zest find out how in our recipe for Ultimate Lemon Cheesecake.
Lemon Mousse Trifle Total time 1 hour 10 mins Author: Barry C. Parsons Recipe type: Dessert
One Sponge Cake or Angel food cake cut into small cubes 4 ounces limoncello liqueur (optional) 6 lightly beaten egg yolks 1 cup sugar ½ cup fresh lemon juice zest of two lemons, finely minced ½ cup butter cut into small pieces 1 batch lemon curd, previously prepared and chilled 4 cups whipping cream 4 rounded tbsp icing sugar (powdered sugar) 1 tsp vanilla extract
In a small saucepan combine the egg yolks, sugar, lemon juice and zest. Cook slowly over medium low heat for about 10 minutes stirring constantly until the mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon. Remove from heat and stir in the butter a few pieces at a time until completely smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and chill completely in the fridge. Whip the whipping cream, icing sugar and vanilla extract to firm peaks. Remove about ¼ of the whipped cream and reserve it for the top of the trifle. Using a rubber spatula, fold the chilled lemon curd through the whipped cream until thoroughly blended. Place ¼ of the cake cubes in the bottom of the trifle bowl and sprinkle with 1 ounce of the limoncello if you are using it. Spoon on ⅓ of the lemon mousse mixture. (or ½ if you plan the extra lemon curd layer at the center. See Note.) Repeat the layer until you finish with a final layer of cake and sprinkle on the remaining limoncello. Add the reserved whipped cream on top. Garnish with candied lemon peel if you like. Chill the trifle for several hours or even overnight before serving. The middle layer of lemon curd as pictured is optional in this recipe. If you want to add it, I recommend making 1½ times the lemon curd recipe or even double it if you love lemon curd as I do.
If you like lemon curd that's a little less intense in flavour, use the zest of only one of the lemons in the recipe; about a tbsp should be fine.
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