Italian-Style Trifle Recipe

Taken from Christmas with Gordon by Gordon Ramsay (Quadrille Publishing, RRP £15)

Ingredients

For the Marsala jelly

• 2 medium sheets leaf gelatine (11 x 7.5cm)
• 200ml Marsala
• 2 tbsp caster sugar

For the trifle

• 500g mascarpone
• 6 tbsp icing sugar, plus extra to finish
• finely grated zest of 2 oranges
• 5–6 tbsp Vin Santo or Marsala, plus extra to drizzle
• 50g chopped mixed peel (optional)
• 300ml double cream
• about 250g panettone
• dark chocolate, for grating

Method

1. To make the jelly, soak the gelatine sheets in a shallow dish of cold water. Meanwhile, put the Marsala and sugar into a small saucepan and stir over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Bring almost to the boil and then take off the heat. Squeeze the gelatine to remove excess water, then add to the Marsala syrup and stir until fully dissolved. Pour the mixture into a shallow container and leave to cool, then cover and refrigerate for a few hours until set.
2. Put the mascarpone into a bowl and sift in the icing sugar. Add the orange zest, Vin Santo or Marsala and mixed peel, if using. Beat until evenly mixed.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the cream to soft peaks and then fold into the mascarpone mixture, using a large metal spoon or spatula.
4. Cut the panettone into small cubes and place in a bowl. Drizzle over a little Vin Santo or Marsala and toss to coat.
5. To assemble the trifle, place a layer of panettone in a large glass serving bowl. Roughly chop the Marsala jelly and scatter half over the panettone layer. Spread half the mascarpone mixture on top. Repeat these layers, then chill until ready to serve.
6. To finish, grate a layer of chocolate over the surface.