Gingerbread Pear Trifle Food

GINGERBREAD TRIFLE WITH COGNAC CUSTARD AND PEARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch-round-by-2-inch-tall cake pan; line with parchment.
• Sift together flour, baking soda, salt, 1 teaspoon ginger, and 1 teaspoon cinnamon in a large bowl, and set aside.
• Beat 8 tablespoons butter in electric mixer on medium-high speed until lightened, 3 to 4 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula. Add 1/2 cup sugar, 1/4 cup at a time; scrape down sides after each addition. Beat until fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes more. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating 1 minute after each addition. Slowly add molasses, beating on medium speed, about 10 seconds. Slowly pour in buttermilk; beat to combine.
• On low speed, slowly add reserved flour mixture in 3 parts, beating to combine after each addition. Transfer to prepared pan. Bake until cake tester inserted into center comes out clean, 35 to 45 minutes. Let cool on wire rack. Gingerbread may be made 2 days ahead or kept frozen for 1 month.
• Juice lemon; place juice and both halves in large bowl of cold water. One at a time, peel pears, quarter, core, and cut into 1- to 1 1/2-inch chunks; transfer to acidulated water.
• Drain pears; transfer half to 12-inch skillet. Add 1/2 cup sugar, 2 tablespoons butter, 1/4 teaspoon ginger, and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon. Place over high heat; saute, stirring, until sugar and butter melt and form caramel, 4 to 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium high, cover, and continue cooking 10 minutes more, stirring occasionally. Transfer pears and liquid to large bowl to cool; repeat with remaining pears, 1/2 cup sugar, 2 tablespoons butter, 1/4 teaspoon ginger, and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon. Let cool completely.
• Slice gingerbread into 3 rounds of equal thickness. Cut each round into 8 triangles. Line bottom of trifle bowl with 8 triangles of gingerbread; trim to fit if needed. Spoon 1 cup Cognac Custard over gingerbread, followed by 2 cups pears. Repeat process in two groups, layering with remaining gingerbread, custard, and pears.

GINGERBREAD TRIFLE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, whisk milk and pudding mix for 2 minutes. Let stand for 2 minutes or until soft-set., In a 2-qt. serving bowl, layer half of the cake cubes and pudding. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup toffee bits. Top with remaining cake and pudding. Spread whipped topping over the top; sprinkle with remaining toffee bits. Garnish with cherry.

GINGERBREAD TRIFLE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Prepare gingerbread batter as directed on package; spoon into 12 muffin pan cups sprayed with cooking spray.
• Bake 25 min. or until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 min. Remove to wire rack; cool completely.
• Meanwhile, beat pudding mixes, spices and milk in medium bowl with whisk 2 min. Stir in 1 cup COOL WHIP. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• Melt chocolate as directed on package. Cut cupcakes horizontally in half. Reserve bottom halves of cupcakes for next step. Spoon melted chocolate into piping bag; use to pipe some of the chocolate into swirl pattern on cupcake tops as shown in photo. Decorate gingerbread cookies and marshmallows with remaining melted chocolate as desired. Refrigerate decorated cupcake tops, cookies and marshmallows until chocolate is firm.
• Cut reserved cupcake bottoms into quarters; place half in trifle bowl. Stand single layer of cupcake tops, decorated sides out, along side of trifle bowl. (Depending on size of trifle bowl, some cupcake tops might not fit. Cut into quarters and reserve them for next step.)
• Spoon pudding mixture into trifle bowl; top with remaining cupcake bottoms and any unused cupcake tops. Top with remaining COOL WHIP, gingerbread cookies and marshmallows.

GINGERBREAD PEAR TRIFLE

Steps:

• Make gingerbread: Preheat oven to 350°. Butter an 8- by 8-in. baking pan. In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking soda, cinnamon, 1 teaspoons ground ginger, the cloves, and 1/2 teaspoons salt. In a large bowl, whisk 3/4 cup granulated sugar with 1 egg until thick and pale.
• Stir in applesauce, molasses, 1 tablespoons fresh ginger, oil, and 1/4 cup hot water. Stir in flour mixture.
• Pour into pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Let rest 5 minutes; turn out onto rack and let cool. Cut into 1-in. cubes.
• Cook pears: Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a frying pan over medium heat. Add pears. Cook, stirring, until soft, 7 minutes.
• Stir in brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger, and 1/4 teaspoons salt.
• Make custard: In a pan over medium heat, whisk half-and-half, 3 eggs, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, cornstarch, and 1/4 teaspoons salt until thickened, 10 minutes. Take off heat; stir in vanilla and 2 tablespoons butter.
• Whip cream: In a large bowl, beat cream, powdered sugar, and remaining 1/2 teaspoons fresh ginger until soft peaks form.
• 5. Assemble trifle: Put half the gingerbread cubes in a trifle dish or glass bowl. Sprinkle with half the brandy. Spoon half the pears and liquid over gingerbread. Pour half the custard over pears. Top with half the whipped cream and half the crystallized ginger. Repeat layers. Serve immediately, or cover and chill up to 1 day.

GINGER PEAR BREAD

Steps:

• Toss chopped pears with sugar, ginger, and cloves in a large bowl. Set aside and let the sugar dissolve in the pear juices.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease an 8x4-inch loaf pan.
• Stir vegetable oil, vanilla extract, and eggs into the pears. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the pear mixture and stir gently just to combine. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 40 minutes.

LEMON-PEAR GINGERBREAD TRIFLE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Spray bottom only of 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray. In large bowl, stir gingerbread mix, water and egg with fork until blended. Stir vigorously about 2 minutes until well mixed. Pour into pan. Bake 18 to 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
• Meanwhile, drain pears into 2-cup glass measuring cup, reserving 3/4 cup pear liquid. Add 1/2 cup of the pie filling to pear liquid. Microwave uncovered on High 1 to 2 minutes or until heated; stir with wire whisk until smooth. Refrigerate pears and remaining pie filling.
• Prick top of warm cake in several places with fork. Pour warm lemon sauce over cake; spread evenly. Cool cake completely, about 1 hour.
• Cut cake into 1 1/2-inch squares. In large bowl, beat whipping cream with electric mixer on high speed until thickened. Slowly beat in remaining pie filling; continue beating until thickened. Place 1/3 of the cake cubes in bottom of 2-quart clear glass bowl. Spread with 1/3 of the cream mixture. Arrange 1/3 of the pears on cream mixture. Repeat layers twice with cake, cream mixture and pears. Cover; refrigerate at least 12 hours.