Her Italian-style Delia Smith panettone trifle layers Marsala-soaked panettone with spiced fruit, Marsala custard and cream, for 6 to 8. You cook the fruit slowly in the oven, soak the panettone, then layer it all with the custard and whipped cream. The whole thing takes about 4 hours, most of it the fruit in the oven, plus chilling.
Delia’s Happy Christmas (2009, page 212) has the first version, with just apricots and raisins soaked in Marsala. A richer new version went onto her website in November 2019, and that is the one on the card. The full name, Panettone and Zabaglione Trifle, comes from the custard, because it is flavoured with Marsala like the Italian pudding.
For a different Christmas trifle, her sherry trifle and her caramelised orange trifle are on this site too.
Delia Smith Christmas Panettone Trifle
Course: DessertCuisine: BritishDifficulty: Medium8
servings30
minutes3
hours30
minutes700
kcalPanettone soaked in Marsala under a layer of slow-cooked figs, prunes, apricots and raisins, then a Marsala custard, floppy cream and toasted almonds.
Ingredients
- For the fruit:
75g no-soak dried apricots, cut into 6
75g dried figs, cut into pieces the same size as the apricots
75g Agen no-soak prunes, cut the same size
75g Lexia raisins
10g whole candied peel, finely chopped
¼ teaspoon mixed spice
¼ nutmeg, freshly grated
½ small Cox’s apple, chopped (no need to peel)
grated zest and juice of ½ orange
grated zest and juice of ½ lemon
275ml Marsala
- For the panettone:
150g panettone
150ml Marsala
65g toasted chopped whole almonds, skin on
- For the custard and topping:
5 egg yolks
1 tablespoon caster sugar
1 dessertspoon cornflour
150ml Marsala
600ml double cream
Directions
- Oven: Heat the oven to 120°C, fan 100°C, gas mark ½.
- Fruit: Put all the fruit ingredients in a medium casserole and bring them to simmering point over the heat. Cover with the lid and cook in the oven for 3 hours, then leave the fruit to cool.
- Panettone: Cut the panettone into slices about 2cm thick, then into 4cm pieces, and put them in a 1.75 litre trifle bowl.
- Soak: Sprinkle the panettone’s 150ml of Marsala evenly over the pieces. Tip the bowl now and then so no pools of liquid are left.
- Custard: Whisk the egg yolks, sugar and cornflour in a medium bowl. Heat 350ml of the cream with the custard’s 150ml of Marsala to simmering point. Pour it slowly onto the egg mixture, whisking all the time.
- Thicken: Pour it all back into the pan and whisk over a medium heat until it just begins to bubble and thicken. Leave it until quite cold.
- Layer: Stir 1 rounded tablespoon of the almonds into the cooled fruit and spread it over the panettone. Pour the cold custard over.
- Finish: Whip the rest of the cream until floppy, not stiff, and spoon it over the custard. Cover and chill, then scatter the remaining almonds over just before serving.
Notes
- The fan oven setting is our own conversion of her 120°C.
- Use a classic fruit panettone, as her website does, rather than a chocolate one.
FAQs
Is there a quicker version?
Yes, her 2009 Happy Christmas book makes this panettone trifle with a quicker fruit layer that needs only a 40-minute soak. There, 75g of dried apricots and 75g of raisins come up to simmering point in 150ml of Marsala. Then they soak off the heat for 40 minutes.
Strain them over a jug and top the liquid up with Marsala to 150ml for the panettone. That version finishes with 50g of toasted flaked almonds.
How much Marsala do I need?
You need about 575ml of Marsala for this panettone trifle, so buy a 75cl bottle. That covers 275ml for the fruit, 150ml for the panettone and 150ml for the custard, which is our own sum.
The quicker 2009 version uses about 350ml in all.
Can I use leftover panettone?
Yes, this trifle needs only 150g of panettone, so a few leftover slices are enough. For bigger leftovers, her panettone bread and butter pudding with Marsala serves 6 (Happy Christmas, page 56).
She also uses panettone for steamed puddings in the same book (page 53).
Why won’t the zabaglione custard curdle?
The cornflour holds this custard together, so it can be whisked until it bubbles without curdling. If it looks grainy, keep whisking and it turns smooth again, Delia says (Happy Christmas, page 212).
A true Italian zabaglione is a warm foam of egg yolks, sugar and Marsala. So this one is a steadier, creamier cousin, which is my own note.
