Chocolate Cake Custard Trifle Cups
The first batch I made ran straight to the bottom of the glass. I’d pulled the custard off the heat the second it looked thick, and cornstarch doesn’t really set until it’s had a full minute at a bubble. Now I let it blip away, stirring the whole time, and it firms up in the fridge into something you can actually spoon.
This is what happens to the last third of a chocolate cake in my house after the holidays. Dry edges, frosting and all, crumbled into glasses. Honestly, slightly stale cake works better here because it soaks up the custard without turning to mush. I don’t bother with whipped cream on top. We eat them cold, straight from the fridge, and they keep for two days covered with plastic wrap.
Chocolate cake custard trifle cups are a make-ahead dessert that serves four with almost no effort. Thick vanilla custard, set firm, sits between layers of soft chocolate cake crumbs in small glasses. No oven needed. Make them in the morning and they're ready after four hours in the fridge, or assemble them the night before a party.
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Whisk the sugar, cornstarch and salt together in a medium saucepan, off the heat, until no lumps of cornstarch remain.1/2 cup granulated sugar, 3 tbsp cornstarch, 1/4 tsp fine salt
- Whisk in the egg yolks to form a thick paste, then pour in the milk a little at a time, whisking constantly so the mixture stays smooth.3 large egg yolks, 3 cups whole milk
- Set the pan over medium heat and stir constantly, switching to a spatula once it warms up so you can scrape the corners. When it starts to bubble, keep it at a gentle boil for 1 full minute so the cornstarch sets properly.
- Take the pan off the heat and stir in the butter and vanilla. Strain the custard into a bowl, press plastic wrap right on the surface and let it cool for 15 minutes, until warm but still pourable.1 tbsp unsalted butter, 2 tsp vanilla extract
- Crumble the chocolate cake into small chunks. Spoon a layer of cake into each glass, cover it with custard and repeat twice, finishing with a thick layer of custard on top.3 cups chocolate cake
- Cover the glasses and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, until the custard is set and the cake has softened. Serve cold.
Nutrition
Notes
Any leftover cake works, frosted or plain; scrape off very thick frosting so the cups don't turn too sweet. If the custard sets in the bowl before you layer it, whisk it smooth again. For another chilled layered dessert, try our Best Lemon Tiramisu.
used leftover german chocolate cake from thanksgiving, pecans and all. boiled the custard the full minute like you said and it set up perfect overnight
good but i cut the sugar to 1/3 cup since my cake had buttercream on it, still plenty sweet. the kids wanted whipped cream on top so i added some anyway
made these in jars for a potluck and stacked them in the cooler. tried one glass with fresh cake and it got kinda soggy, the day old cake held up way better