Many things can get in the way of getting home-cooked food on the table
If I asked you the following questions, what would your answers be?
- Do you value being able to cook meals for you and your family?
- Do you try to buy and cook the best possible food for your family?
- Do you struggle sometimes to match your expectations of a family meal with what ends up getting served at your table?
There’s a pretty good chance you replied “yes” to all. As a dietitian I have chatted with many families over the years and consistently through their stories and questions, I have heard them express both their enthusiasm for and challenges with getting food on the table. As the main cook in my family, I too would answer “yes”.
One way I make cooking easier is that I use “ish” recipes
What do I mean by this? “Ish” recipes are basic recipes that can handle a lot of playing around with ingredients and still turn out tasty! These recipes let me use what I have on hand, substitute foods that my family likes, and simplify the process of following a recipe. Some of my favourite “ish” recipes include:
- Main meal salads
- Muffins
- Pizza
- Sheet-pan and foil-pack dinners
- Trifle
Trifle, a go-to dessert
In this blog post, I’d like to share a recipe I’ve made so many times and in so many ways that I know it by heart: Trifle! What is trifle? Trifle is a dessert I grew up with and has its roots in England. My family’s trifle was served at all holidays and special events, and consisted of a glass bowl lined with slices of jelly roll cake and filled with layers of Jell-O, Bird’s Custard, and canned fruit cocktail. I’ve made a few adaptations to the recipe but trifle is still my go-to dessert. I love that it is so easy to make, flexible in terms of what and how much of the various ingredients you use, and can be made ahead. My trifle typically changes throughout the year:
- Summer: Angel food or lemon pound cake, custard and berries and/or peaches
- Fall: Gingerbread or carrot cake, custard and pears
- Winter: Chocolate cake, chocolate custard and home canned cherries
- Spring: White cake, custard or lemon curd, canned mandarin oranges and frozen berries
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do!
Flo’s Flexible Trifle
Ingredients:
- 3-4 cups cubed cake
- 3-4 cups fruit (cut in small pieces if large berries, peaches, bananas, etc. and you can used canned fruit like mandarin oranges, peaches, pears, plums, cherries, etc.)
- 1 can evaporated milk (original recipe used 1 ¼ cups of cream)
- 3 egg yolks
- 3 Tbsp sugar
- 1 ¼ cup vanilla Greek yogurt (I use full-fat yogurt >5% as the original recipe called for whipped cream)
- ¼ cup sliced almonds
Instructions:
- Cube cake and set aside.
- Heat, but do not boil, the evaporated milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat. While the milk is heating, beat the egg yolks with the sugar until pale yellow and smooth. Pour the hot milk into the egg yolks and beat vigorously. Return the mixture to the saucepan and cook, over low heat, stirring until thick enough to coat the back of a metal spoon. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
- Prepare fruit so that it is in bite-sized pieces.
- Placed almonds on a baking sheet and toast in a 400 F oven for about 10 minutes until golden.
- Assemble ingredients: layer cake cubes, fruit, custard in a glass bowl, ending with a custard layer. Smooth the vanilla yogurt over the entire top. Add toasted almonds. Chill for 2 hours before serving. Makes 8 generous servings.
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