Perfect for sharing, impressive looking with a layered appeal, this Berry Pandan Trifle is sure to wow. In conceptualising this glorious centrepiece, I thought to give it a familiar local twist to appeal to all ages!

This Berry Pandan Trifle comes with impressive layers of a light cream cheese whipped cream, soft and fluffy pandan chiffon cake with an assortment of berries. I hid dollops of kaya and garnished with toasted shredded coconut and mint to create a harmony of flavours.

While most components of this Berry pandan Trifle are ready-made or can be so, let me explain more about the two components that we are making from scatch:

  1. Pandan Chiffon Cake – A Staple

    I have an inclination to make this from scratch for it’s fluffiness and aroma. It’s also especially rewarding to see a nice pandan sponge come out from the tube pan and there’s something special about homemade. Once it’s made, the cake is sliced to nice little cubes and layered with Nyonya kaya within the trifle. Of course, an added bonus is how absorbant this cake is, especially for any sauces you might have!

    Nonetheless and if you’re running a packed schedule, consider purchasing an off-the-shelf or the bakery Pandan Chiffon. They could also be readily purchased especially within Southeast Asia. Naturally, other sponge cake varieties work too!

  2. Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting – A Must Have and Must Make

    This is a light and tart cream which I used between the trifle layers. Not only is this easier to make, it’s not overly sweet. Furthermore, it can complement many possible ingredients, forming a good background flavour for the various customisations you might have.

    In fact, this went really well with my Pandan Chiffon slices alongside my assorted berries. It almost taste like liquid cheesecake!

Thereafter, this Berry Pandan Trifle is your creative and culinary playground to customise the way you like it! Possible ways include having a coconut cream frosting or gula melaka bits to go all out on these fragrant Southeast Asian flavours.

I hope the video guide will be useful to you too, if not, feel free to ping me! Without further ado, the recipe!

Berry Pandan Trifle
by Javier Tan December-22-2024

This glorious Berry Pandan Trifle comes with a layered appeal, with a harmony of light and refreshing flavours in each bite!

Ingredients (Pandan Chiffon)

  • 15 Pandan Leaves + 1/3 Cup or 80ml Water
  • 5 Eggs, separated
  • 1/3 Cup or 75g of White Sugar
  • 1 Tsp or 5ml of Pandan Flavour / Extract
  • 3 Tbspns + 1 Tsp or 50ml of Coconut Milk
  • 1/3 Cup or 80ml of Flavourless Vegetable Oil, such as Canola
  • 1 Cup or 120g of All-Purpose / Plain Flour
  • 1 and 1/2 Tsps or 6g of Baking Powder

Ingredients (Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting + Assembly)

  • 2/3 Cup or 100g of Icing Sugar
  • 1 and 1/2 Cup or 320g of Cream Cheese, Softened at Room Temp
  • 3/4 Cup + 1 Tbspn or 200ml of Whipping Cream
  • Assorted Berries, Mint, Kaya for garnishing and filling between the layers!

Instructions

  1. Firstly, blend pandan and water together, and strain to get pandan juice.
  2. Then, in a mixing bowl, whisk yolks and 40g sugar till frothy.
  3. Mix in pandan flavour, 40ml pandan juice, coconut milk and vegetable oil.
  4. Next, sift and mix in baking powder and plain flour.
  5. Separately, whip egg whites with remaining 35g sugar in 2 parts till stiff peaks.Whisk in 1/3 of the meringue into the batter. Fold in the remaining 2/3 until consistent colour and texture, batter will be smooth.
  6. Transfer to a 7 inch chiffon pan, hit the pan against the counter to dislodge excessive air bubbles and bake at 160C for approx 45 – 50 mins till golden brown. Once done, rest the cake upside down for at least an hour.
  7. In a separate bowl, whip cream till stiff peaks. Then, mix in 1/3 of this into the cream cheese to lighten. Fold in remaining 2/3, just like step 6.
  8. Assemble your trifle! I alternate between cream and cake for the layerrs, with berries on the side.

Details

  • Prep time: 2 hours
  • Cook time: 1 hour 20 mins
  • Total time: 3 hours 20 mins
  • Yield: 1 Centrepiece Worthy Berry Pandan Trifle

Notes:

  1. If you would like to be updated for more recipes which I strive to create to perfection for sharing and for free, do check out my Instagram, Facebook Page, or YouTube 🙂 Thank you so much for all of your support! Feel free to tag me or link back here!
  2. Serve preferably fresh at room temperature (on the day itself) or in a fridge (up to 3 days). If refrigerated, do remove it 10 mins prior to serving.
  3. Please do not copy and paste the recipe without my permission, but feel free to link back here!

Enjoy!
– Bakeomaniac, Javier Tan