Ingredients: |
Ingredients: 1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/8 tsp. salt
2 cups skim milk
3 egg whites, slightly beaten
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 tbsp. crème de cacao
1/2 cup dark rum
1/4 cup marsala wine
1 package frozen or fresh pound cake, cut into 1/2 inch cubes and thawed
Fresh or frozen fruit such as strawberries, blueberries, peaches
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Directions: |
Directions:In a small saucepan, mix sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Stir in milk and cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly until mixture thickens and comes to a simmer.
Beat about 1/2 cup hot custard into egg whites; return to saucepan and cook a few minutes longer, stirring constantly until mixture thickens.
Divide equally into thirds; flavor one third with vanilla, another with crème de cacao, and the other with 2 tbsp. rum.
Mix remaining rum and marsala wine together and sprinkle over cake cubes. Place a layer of cake cubes into the bottom of a trifle bowl and then spoon the crème de cacao flavored custard on top of the cake cubes, spreading evenly.
Place another layer of cake cubes on top and spoon the rum flavored custard on top, spreading evenly. Add your last layer of cake cubes and spoon the vanilla flavored custard on top. Garnish with fresh strawberries, blueberries or peaches for a festive dessert.
Seal with plastic wrap and put to chill in the refrigerator for around 2 hours. |
Personal
Notes: |
Personal
Notes: Now, why this blend of sponge cake, liqueur, and custard is called Zuppa Inglese is a question with no easy answer. Don’t be fooled by the name – this is neither a soup nor is it English. It’s an Italian trifle-like dessert whose origins are somewhat debated, though they seem to trace back to eighteenth-century Parma. There, at the court of Queen Maria Luisa, the in-house chef devised a layered dessert of sponge cake or ladyfingers dipped in rum (the drink of choice of English sailors at the time, hence the name of the dish) and alternated them with cream, jam and dried fruit.
There are other numerous stories that attempt to explain it. From celebratory dinners for Admiral Nelson in Naples to English house maids throwing together leftovers in Tuscany, there are plenty of possible explanations. What is commonly accepted is that a dish similar to the modern Zuppa Inglese began being developed in the Emilia Romagna and Tuscany regions sometime in the 1500’s.
Regional Variations of Zuppa Inglese:
Emilia Romagna – adds coffee flavoring, plum jam, and rum or layers of chocolate and vanilla pastry cream separated by Alchermes (a spicy-sweet Italian liqueur Alchermes infused with cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, vanilla, and other herbs) Liquor-soaked sponge cake.
Modena – uses ladyfingers or crostata instead of sponge cake, sugar syrup and white vermouth instead of Alchermes, and layers of chocolate or chocolate custard.
Napoli – sponge cake may be replaced with Margherita cake or Pan di Spagna, rum and limoncello may join or replace the Alchermes, and the whole is covered with meringue and baked to set
Although there are many variations on this dish, we will be focusing on the Emilia Romagna style in the recipe later in this article, as it appears to be the most traditional version with the longest history.
One recommended substitute is rum with grenadine (for color) or simply grenadine syrup if you want to make an alcohol-free version of the dessert.
How to Make Alchermes at Home
If you can’t find a bottle of Alchermes, you can make your own that will come close to replicating the original if you have a couple weeks to work with.
Infuse vodka (500ml) with flavoring elements for at least 14 days (3 cinnamon sticks, orange peel from 1 orange, 1 tbsp. mace or nutmeg, pinch saffron and/or 1/2 vanilla bean, and 1 heaped tbsp. of fennel, coriander, and cardamom; all to your preference).
Once the infusion is finished, make about 750ml of simple syrup, allow it to cool and then add coloring (cochineals are traditional, but red food coloring works, ½ tsp as needed for color) and rose water (1 to 3 tbsp to taste, use high quality rose water).
Mix the red and rosy simple syrup with the infused vodka, strain, and bottle.
It is now ready and should keep indefinitely, though giving it a few days to settle is often good for better flavor consistency.
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This recipe for Festive Italian Zuppa Inglese (Italian Trifle or "English Soup") is from