Durian Trifle

SIGH. This was something I had not intended to make …

… but it was the best I could make of the situation. Say hello to Durian Trifle.

See, this is what happens when you get overly ambitious. I knew I was going out for lunch with the family in an hour. But I convinced myself that since I had baked this Hot Milk Sponge Cake* so many times, I could definitely pull it off in time, even with my eyes closed. Boy, was I so wrong.
* See here and here.

I kinda “forgot” I had 3 children to round up and dress up, you see (duh!). So in between prepping them and beating the batter to ribbon stage, I realised I actually didn’t have enough time! When the hour was up – and we were in a hurry – the cake was still in the oven with another 10 minutes to go. What to do? I had no choice but to turn it off and hope that the cake would be baked through in the hot oven. After all, I psyched myself, it “looked” like it was almost done.

Mistake.

When I got home, all that greeted me was a cake with a depressed centre, and my mood, naturally, took a similar plunge. Gah! I had intended to make a Sponge Cake, then sandwich it with a layer Durian Cream filling … but that was definitely out of question now.

“Nevermind,” consoled the husband. “It’s for home consumption, anyway. We’ll just make do.”

But I couldn’t.

That’s when I remembered my episode withAmbrosia (which I made using cracked meringues). Ah, I reached for my glasses and started salvaging the spongy baked parts from the (SIGH) soggy centre, then began doing the layering. Voila! In minutes, I had Durian Trifle. How’s that for improvisation?

Moral of the story: When life throws you half-baked cakes (literally), make trifle. You heard this first from The Little Teochew. I should trademark this. LOL.

~ Recipe for Hot Milk Sponge Cake ishere.

~ Recipe for Durian Cream (based on my own estimation)
– 1 packet durian (there were about 5 or 6 pieces in there)
– 12 tbsp whipping cream (35% fat)
– Icing sugar (depending on sweetness of the durian – I added 1 heaped tbsp)

1. Put the durian flesh through a sieve to remove the fibres.

2. Whip the cream.

3. Fold whipped cream to durian puree into a smooth mixture. Feel free to adjust the proportion of cream to durian as per your preference.

The amount of durian cream is only sufficient for one sandwich layer of a 6 to 8 inch sponge cake. My original intention was to sandwich the cake with durian cream, and then dust the top with icing sugar. If you want to frost the whole cake, you will need to triple the proportions.

There you have it. Durian Trifle. Not too shabby, huh? 😉