Trifle Love

Don't know about you, but I love anything almond... especially almond-flavored cookies, cakes, coffee, etc. I buy the Tastefully Simple Absolutely Almond Pound Cake Mix and keep several boxes of it on hand for whenever my sweet tooth craving flares up for something almondy and delicious.

For my mom's Fourth of July Picnic, I decided to tweak a recipe on the back of the Absolutely Almond Pound Cake Mix to make a trifle. I followed the recipe for the most part, but I "jazzed" it up a bit. I named my trifle "Strawberry-Amaretto Almond Trifle". A better name for it would be "Sin in a Bowl" ...because it's really, really good. Just LOOK at it:

Here's what you need to enjoy your own bowl full of heaven:

Absolutely Almond Pound Cake Mix*

3/4 cup melted butter (1.5 sticks)

1 cup water

3.4 oz box of instant vanilla pudding

1 1/2 cups milk

8 oz. thawed whipped topping

2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled & sliced

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup amaretto liquer

Directions:

1. Prepare Absolutely Almond Pound Cake as directed on the package with butter and water. Cool completely; cube. *If you don't have any Absolutely Almond Pound Cake Mix on hand, SHAME ON YOU!!! ...Just kidding :)  You can use your own pound cake recipe and add some almond flavoring! ...But seriously, save yourself the time and energy and stock up in the Tastefully Simple mix!

2. In a bowl, sprinkle the sugar over the sliced strawberries and pour the amaretto liquer over the strawberries. Give the strawberries, sugar, and amaretto mixture a good stir to combine. Let the strawberries soak in the amaretto syrup for a few minutes...or hours. (I usually do this step the night before I assemble the trifle and let the strawberries soak up all of the amaretto goodness overnight).

3. Combine pudding and milk in a separate bowl. Whisk 2 minutes. Fold in the whipped topping.

4. In a clear glass bowl, layer pudding mixture, cake cubes, and strawberry slices. It's important that you layer in that order so that the pound cake absorbs the strawberry-amaretto syrup and juices.

Makes 10-12 Servings

Linking up {{here}} and {{here}}

If you are interested in purchasing some delicious Tastefully Simple products, click {{here}} to contact my friend Amanda, and be sure to tell her I sent you!

On a side note, check out the pretty bowl that I served my trifle in! I actually went yard-saleing on the 4th of July at the "Mile-Long Yard Sale" near my town in search of a pretty trifle bowl. I came across this lovely find, with an asking price of $5. I ended up getting the bowl for $2... love a bargain! It has a pretty silver base that polished up nicely with some baking soda.

...And since it's Wednesday, I'm linking up {{here}} to share what I'm loving today!

1. My new 85mm prime lens from Nikon! It's a fixed focal length, no zoom. Great for low light situations (goes down to f/1.8) and has a great bokeh effect - gets really blurry outside of focus area. It's recommended for portrait photography. I got to stretch its legs during a wedding on Saturday and on a hike with J on Sunday... and I AM IN L-L-LOVE!!!

2. Quality time with good friends. My friend Amy and I went out for dinner and fondue the other night. We played catch-up for four hours... she's one of those friends that I may not see or talk to her every week or even every month, but whenever we get together we pick right up where we left off. We have a lot in common because we are both teachers, our husbands are friends and share a common interest in tractor pulling (...I know, I know... I hear the crowd saying, "Tractor-what?" Don't worry, I'll explain this hobby in another post), and we are both into photography.

3. Fondue... Yummm! Amy and I had some chocolate marshmallow fondue to finish off our dinner the other night, and I *LOVE* the spread of sweet and salty treats that we got to enjoy.

4. Local gems. Took my summer school kiddos on a field trip today to the Washington County Rural Heritage Museum. Saw all kinds of neat exhibits about our county's history. Loved this particular exhibit of old photography equipment.

5. Sparkles. Love this shirt/necklace/earring combo!

What would the world be like without sparkle?!

Shirt: Gap

Necklace & Earrings: Premier Designs

And, as always, love my Hubby!

Here he is on the day I became his wife. Best day ever.



Until next time... xoxox