The back of the fridge special is the cornerstone of student cooking, a bit like Ready Steady Cook but with a greater capacity for things to go sideways and a higher proportion of mince, apples, stale bread and survival kit offcasts. While next week we will deal with that most holy of culinary grails, Everything Pie, this week is all about the sweet stuff, and by sweet stuff, I mean neglected muffins, instant custard and canned fruit.
We never had trifle when I was growing up as my grandmother, who was a terrible, godawful cook, used to make an horrific version for family gatherings and as a result my mother couldn’t stand the sight of it. On the other hand, being of the British Isles, Mr Longbean has fond memories of trifle with the Sunday dinner, which I hear is more civilised than beans on toast in front of whatever movie’s on Four. Luckily the world has moved on from my grandmother’s lime jelly flavoured monstrosity and now houses such marvellous creations and mocha-berry, passionfruit and Cointreau, and black forest trifles.
Trifle consists of a mix and match of various layers in a deep, straight sided bowl or container:
Something cakey – store-bought sponge, leftover cake or muffins
... soaked in something alcoholic – liqueur, sherry, Baileys, or juice if you simply have to go teetotal
... then covered with a layer of something squishy and fruity – canned or fresh fruit, fresh or frozen berries
... then (perhaps) something gelatinous – optional, but mix up some jelly and pour it over when it’s semi-set
...then covered with in something gloopy – whipped cream, pastry cream, sweetened marscapone, custard, instant pudding, yoghurt
... and repeat (or not) at will
... finally topped with something extra – chocolate chips, broken up chocolate bars, hokey pokey bits, chopped nuts, cherries, more whipped cream, type 2 diabetes
Do it in a sundae or other tall glass, eat with that long-handled spoon you pinched from a cafe (presuming you didn’t beat it out to make a spotting implement), and feel special about things in general.
September’s banana, plum and chocolate lunchbox special
The following recipe is as it is purely because that was what was in the cupboard and fridge, as embarrassed as I am to say that chocolate and Bailey’s hadn’t been polished off after the last big aftershock.
- 8 stale chocolate muffins, forgotten and neglected
- 2 – 3 sad bananas
- 1 810g can of plums in syrup, drained
- Instant custard powder + whatever else you need with that (milk, sugar)
- Chocolate chips (white and dark)
- Baileys
- A 2 litre straight-sided plastic container with a lid, like one of those klip-lock ones
Make up the instant custard to approximately 2 ½ cups (625ml). Slice the muffins into rounds, slice the bananas thinly, and drain the plums. Preparation!
Line the bottom of the container with half of the muffin bits and drizzle over the Bailey’s – not too much, though, or it will go gross and soggy. Make a layer of banana and then plums, breaking up the fruit and removing the seeds as you go. Use your hands, it’s more fun that way. Pour warm custard over to cover, then sprinkle with chocolate chips – with any luck they’ll melt a bit. Repeat the process and you should have just about filled the container. Pop the lid on and let sit for a few hours or overnight for all the ingredients to make friends. Serve with something other than beer – how very civilised!
A word about layering: you can make just about any dessert related bits look fancy pants by organising them into layers or whipping them up a bit then putting them in a cocktail glass. Fold mashed or pureed fruit through whipped cream to make a fool; layer fruit, berries, thick whipped cream or yoghurt, crushed biscuits or toasted muesli, and ice cream sauces to make a parfait; or go old school for an ice cream sandwich. For extra cool points, use a nutella glass.
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