Recipe: Extra Panettone? Make This Mixed Berry and Panettone Trifle by Ella Mittas

Panettone might be a Christmas staple, but for Melbourne cook Ella Mittas its potential stretches well beyond a simple slice with butter. Instead, she uses the Italian sweet bread as an ingredient in another festive dessert: trifle.

“I came up with this after having lots of panettone on hand,” she says. “It’s a bit of what’s in the pantry, a bit of seasonal fruit, and then homemade custard, which is just so delicious. It’s kind of a trifle, but just the good bits of a trifle.”

Use leftover panettone if you’ve got any, or purchase a pre-made one like Mantovani’s traditional fruit or chocolate panettone from ALDI just for this recipe. It’s toasted, then used as a layer to go in between fresh berries and homemade custard – an easy but impressive way to end Christmas lunch.

The beauty of the dish is its flexibility. You can use whatever fruit is in season, or change up the flavour of your custard with citrus zest or shaved chocolate. “It’s a good base for anything,” Mittas says.

Ella Mittas’s Mixed Berry and Panettone Trifle

Serves 8–12
Preparation time: 40 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes (plus cooling)

Ingredients

600g Mantovani traditional fruit panettone, cut into large cubes
600g mixed berries, without stalks and leaves (such as strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries or cherries)
4 tbsp Baroque brandy

Custard

400ml Farmdale full cream milk
2 tbsp White Mill cornflour
4 tsp White Mill caster sugar
2 Lodge Farms free-range eggs
½ tsp White Mill vanilla extract
300g Emporium Selection mascarpone

Method

Start by toasting the panettone. Preheat the oven to 180°C, then lay the panettone out on a parchment paper-lined tray and bake until it has a little bit of colour, around 10 minutes. You’re only aiming to get a bit of texture on the bread. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the mixed berries. If using cherries, remove the pits first. Pour the brandy over your fruit, stir to combine, and set aside.

Next, make your custard. Pour the cold milk into a saucepan, followed by the cornflour, sugar, eggs and vanilla. Whisk until smooth. Place over medium heat, stirring constantly until the mixture comes to a boil and thickens. This should take about five minutes after boiling.

Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly, stirring occasionally to prevent a skin from forming on top. Once cooled, fold in the mascarpone until smooth and creamy.

Now to assemble the dish. In a glass serving bowl, layer the toasted panettone, followed by the brandy-soaked fruit mix, and then the custard. Repeat this process until all components are used, finishing with a layer of fruit on top. Chill in the fridge until ready to serve.

This article is produced by Broadsheet in partnership with ALDI.