Red, White, and Blueberry Trifles
- 19 hours ago
- 4 min read
Red, White, and Blueberry Trifles- This personal sized dessert is both festive and delicious. It’s like shortcut strawberry shortcake, but better!
July 1, 2026 by Nicole Collins
Today, we’re making Red, White, and Blueberry Trifles!
Can you believe it’s July? I was just having this conversation earlier…somehow, it’s already the 4th of July, but people are out here talking about Halloween and fall. I’m going to need EVERYONE to calm down. Summer just got here! It needs to sloooooooooooow down.
In the spirit of the upcoming holiday weekend, we’re making a totally festive, totally delish, totally simple dessert that’s perfect for those backyard bbqs! Think a personal sized strawberry shortcake, but better!
Let’s talk about the foundation of our trifles: the cake. To make life so simple, I like to use a good ol’ frozen Sara Lee pound cake. They’re delish, they’re fairly inexpensive, and they’re perfect for a dessert like this.
Now because I’m extra, I thawed the pound cake, brushed it in butter, and toasted it in the oven just long enough to form a light crust on the outside of the cake. If you don’t have that in you or can’t stand to turn your oven on in this 100 degree weather, these trifles would be just fine without the extra toastiness. However, toasting the pound cake does add a really lovely textural contrast of a crisp outside and a fluffy center plus an extra burst of buttery goodness. So, I’m on team “toast it”.
While we’re waiting on the cake to toast and cool, we’re going to macerate some strawberries. It’s as simple as tossing some sliced or diced strawberries in some sugar, and letting them sit at room temperature for a half hour. The berries will get nice and syrupy all on their own making them the perfect sweetener for our festive desserts.
The last thing we need to do is make a quick whipped cream. All we need is some heavy cream and some vanilla instant pudding mix. Beat that cream until soft peaks form, add the pudding mix, and beat again until stiff peaks form. That’s it. So easy! And hot tip…this whipped cream trick works well with sugar free pudding mix too if you have a loved one that needs to watch their sugar intake. I like to transfer the whipped cream to a piping bag to make it easier to decorate our trifles, but even that step is optional.
To assemble, I like to use 9 oz disposable clear cups. It makes cleanup super simple while still being able to see all the beautiful layers of our mini trifles. So, we’ll layer in some of our toasted pound cake, some strawberries, a little whipped cream, then some fresh blueberries. Repeat those layers in each cup, and that’s all there is to it!
These are like shortcut strawberry shortcake, but better. The fresh blueberries add a nice pop of brightness to the bite while the strawberries add the sugary sweetness. The cake is soft and buttery with a light, crunchy crust. And the cream is rich and decadent without being overly sweet. Festive and delish…it’s a 2 for 1 kind of treat!
Ok, everyone…I hope you have a safe and happy holiday. But, let’s not wish away the summer…k???
I hope you enjoy! And, let’s eat!
Red, White, and Blueberry Trifles
Serves: 12 Print
Ingredients:
1 loaf (16 oz) frozen butter pound cake (I used Sarah Lee)
2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1 lb strawberries, sliced
2 tbsp granulated sugar
2 cups heavy cream
¼ cup instant vanilla pudding mix
1 pint blueberries
Cooking spray
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil, and lightly spritz with cooking spray.
Cut frozen pound cake into 1 inch slices, and arrange in a single layer on prepared baking sheet. Allow to sit for 20 mins to thaw. Brush the top of each cake slice with butter. Bake for 16-18 mins until lightly golden. Allow to cool completely, and dice into cubes.
Meanwhile, add strawberries and sugar to a bowl. Toss well to coat. Allow to sit for 30 mins to macerate.
Pour heavy cream into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat cream on medium high until soft peaks form, about 1-2 minutes. Add pudding mix, and beat until stiff peaks form, about another minute. Transfer to a piping bag for easy assembly.
Sprinkle half of the toasted pound cake into the bottom of 12 9oz disposable cups. Top with half of the strawberries, whipped cream, and blueberries. Repeat the layers with the remaining ingredients. Serve immediately, and enjoy!
Recipe notes:
*Toasting the pound cake is optional, but I love the extra nuttiness and crispy texture it adds. If you choose to thaw the pound cake and assemble as is, these will still be equally as delicious.
*The strawberries will stretch farther if you dice them, but I like the look of them when they’re sliced. Choose your preference.
*You could absolutely serve this in a larger trifle dish. I just love a single serve, walking dessert.
*These are the cups I use for serving.
