Mini Fruit Custard Trifle Cups

Are you struggling to decide what sweet treat to serve for your special celebration? You’re in luck because I have a fantastic answer for you! These Mini Fruit Custard Trifle Cups are a deliciously mouthwatering dessert. A recipe that is both easy and fancy, great for any event, and full of delicious tastes. I love to combine simple Indian desserts such as custard, gulab jamun, shrikhand, ladoo, etc, to make fusion desserts. Check out these Gulab Jamun Shrikhand Bowls, Motichoor Ladoo Cheesecake Cups, and Gulab Jamun Custard Jars. I recently made these Fruit Custard Trifle Cups for a party, and they were an instant hit. Everyone loved them and asked for the recipe, so here it is! So if you’re looking for an easy Indian fusion dessert, give this one a try!

Watch How to Make Mini Fruit Custard Trifle Cups

What is a Trifle?

Trifle is a traditional British treat with many layers of tasty things inside. Traditionally, it is made with sponge cake or ladyfingers soaked in fruit juice or sherry and then topped with custard, whipped cream, and different kinds of fruit. It’s more than just a treat; it’s a stunningly beautiful, colorful, and irresistibly tasty dish with different tastes and textures. Typically, trifle is made in a large round glass bowl so you can see all the wonderful layers. Now, there are variations to make trifles in mini cups, which is what we will be making here.

Why You’ll Love These Mini Trifle Cups?

Easy to make Easy to customize Crowd-pleaser Perfect for entertaining

Ingredients You’ll Need to Make Fruit Custard Trifle

Fruits: I used strawberries and blueberries, but feel free to use fruits of your choice. Pound Cake: I used pound cake. You can also use Angel Food Cake or any Vanilla Cake. The cake forms the sturdy base of your trifle cups. It soaks up the delicious flavors from the custard and fruits, giving each bite a soft, spongy texture and a mild sweetness. For whipped cream: You can use Cool Whip or make it from scratch; you’ll need heavy cream and powdered sugar. Garnish: To garnish, you’ll need pistachios and dried rose petals.

For the Custard:

Custard powder: It’s a blend of starch and flavorings that helps create a velvety texture. Milk: It creates a smooth and thick custard layer. Sugar: Adds the sweetness to the custard. Cardamom powder: This is optional. But adds a subtle hint of warmth and an exotic aroma to the custard and final dish. Saffron: This is optional. But if you add it, you’ll need crushed saffron strands. It will add a lovely golden color to the custard and an exotic aroma.

How to Make Custard?

Put the custard powder and 1/4 cup of milk in a small bowl and mix them. Set this mixture aside. Put the rest of the milk and sugar in a pot and heat it over medium-low. Bring it almost to a boil. Pour the custard and milk mixture into the pot while whisking the mixture all the time. Stir it all the time until it gets thick and boils. Add cardamom powder and crushed saffron. Let it cool down. As it cools, the custard will get thicker. You can put it in the fridge for one to two hours or overnight. You can also make the custard a day before to make it easier to put together the dessert.

Also, I am sharing here the detailed recipe for Custard.

How to Make Whipped Cream?

Add the heavy cream and sugar to the steel bowl of your stand mixer. Use the wire whisk attachment (or use your hand mixer), and beat the heavy cream with powdered sugar until it forms peaks. Make sure not to overbeat, or else the cream will separate. If you are short of time, you can use store-bought Cool Whip in place of homemade whipped cream.

How to Assemble Custard Trifle Cups?

This dessert can be assembled in mini jars or in mini glasses. I used glass jars, but similar mini plastic clear cups would work great if you are making them for a large crowd for a dinner party. Here is another good option for mini clear cups. You can also use shot glasses with about 4oz capacity to assemble this. Or use mini mason jars. This trifle dessert is super easy to assemble:

Slice the pound cake into 3/4-1 cm layers, then cut it into small cubes. Cut the strawberries into small pieces. Start by filling the bottom of your cups with a spoonful of custard. Then top with pieces of pound cake. Ensure that the pound cake forms a nice layer at the bottom of the cup. Fit in more cubes if needed. Now, evenly distribute a tablespoon of custard over the top of the cake. Arrange a layer of strawberries over the custard. Top the strawberries with another layer of custard. This layer needs about two spoonfuls of custard. Next, we add the blueberries. To make the layer visible, arrange the blueberries along the cup’s rim.

The whipped cream is the last layer. To make it look prettier, you can use a piping bag. Garnish with chopped pistachios and, if you like, some dried rose petals. Repeat these layers in each cup and chill them in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Pro-tips

Cups: You can use various types of cups or jars to assemble this dessert. Square plastic mini cups, cylinder mini cups, glass jars, or mini mason jars all work well. Cream: If you prefer, you can use store-bought CoolWhip instead of making homemade whipped cream. Cake: You can make a pound cake or vanilla cake at home or buy store-bought to make the dessert easier to put together. Custard: I used homemade custard for this recipe. If you like, you can use store-bought custard or vanilla pudding. Fruits: Use fruits of your choice. I prefer to use a variety of fresh berries.

How to Store?

It is best to prepare the ingredients and store them separaely if you want to prepare ahead for a party. Once they are assembled, you can store these mini trifles in the refrigerator for maximum upto a day. Just cover each assembled jar with plastic cling wrap.

Making Custard Trifle Cups for a Party

As I mentioned, I recently made these Trifle Cups for a party. I made over 30 cups, and it took me just over an hour to put them together on the day. I made the custard a day before. Sliced the cake, chopped the strawberries and made the whippe cream in the kitchenaid stand mixer.
The last layer is always the fun one. I garnished with dried rose petals and crushed pistachios. If you like, you can top with fruits. A blurry picture, but here is me ready to make the mini trifle cups to the Diwali party. These cute little jars will be a hit at your Diwali or Holi party or your Indian Thanksgiving dinner. I hope you give them a try!