Black Forest Trifle

• 1 cup hot brewed espresso or strong coffee
• 1 1/2 cups non dairy milk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup non dairy yogurt
• 1 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 cup cacao powder
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
  

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup cacao powder
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 2 1/2 cups non dairy milk
• 2 tbsp vegan butter

• 2 chilled cans of coconut cream (solid top layer)
• 3 tbsp powdered sugar (optional)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 frozen bags of tart cherries
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1/4 cup cornstarch

Top with chocolate decoration, vegan icing, decorative sugar or sprinkles! 

1. Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Then, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
2. To a medium sized mixing bowl, add your wet ingredients, espresso, non dairy milk, vegetable oil, non dairy yogurt and sugar. Whisk until fully combined.
3. Then, to a separate, large mixing bowl, sift in your dry ingredients so there are no clumps, all purpose flour, cacao powder, sea salt, baking powder and baking soda.
4. Whisk your dry ingredients until fully combined, then, add your wet ingredients to your dry and whisk until the texture is uniform. The batter should be smooth and pourable.
5. Add your cake batter to your lined baking sheet and spread out evenly into about a 14in x 10 in rectangle.
6. Place in the oven and bake for about 20-25 minutes, or until a tooth pick comes out clean.
7. While your cake is baking, make your chocolate pudding.
8. To a small pot, add your sugar, cacao powder and cornstarch. Whisk to combine until there are no clumps.
9. Then, add your non dairy milk and stir. Place your pudding on medium heat and whisk until simmering.
10. Let the mixture continue to simmer for about 4-5 minutes. Then, remove from heat and add your vegan butter. Stir until the butter has fully melted.
11. Then, put your pudding in a bowl and place in the fridge to set. The pudding will continue to set as it cools.
12. Next, make your cherry filling by adding two bags of frozen cherries to a medium sized pot. Place the cherries on medium heat and stir. Add in your maple syrup and stir to combine.
13. Cook the cherries down for about 5 minutes, until they have softened and started to release their juices. Then, add your cornstarch and stir until fully combined.
14. Continue to cook until cherries are soft, but not broken down, you want the cherries to stay mostly in tact.
15. Remove from heat and place in a bowl in the fridge to allow them to cool.
16. Your cake should be done baking by this point, remove from the oven and allow cake to cool fully.
17. While your cake is cooling, make your coconut whipped cream. To a small mixing bowl, add your 2 cans of solid coconut cream. The coconut cream needs to be chilled in the fridge overnight or at least a couple of hours to get the solid top layer of cream. If your cream is not chilled, you will need to chill it and make the whipped cream once it has hardened in the fridge.
18. If your coconut cream is solid, add the solid top layer to the bowl, reserving some of the excess liquid in the can off to the side if needed.
19. Using a hand mixer, beat your coconut cream until smooth and creamy. Add in your powdered sugar and vanilla extract and beat until fully combined. If you want the texture to be slightly loose and creamier, add in a splash or two of the coconut liquid and beat again. The texture should resemble whipped cream.
20. Place in the fridge to allow it to cool.
21. Once all of your components have fully cooled you can begin assembly in your trifle dish. Start by layering pieces of your chocolate cake. You can either cut your cake into a circle to fit in the bowl, but I found it more effective to slice the cake into small rectangles. Place your cake in the bottom of the dish until an even layer is formed. Then, layer on about half of your whipped cream, then on top of that, about half of your chocolate pudding.
22. Next, add another layer of cake. On top of this layer add your cherries, then another layer of cake. Next, the other half of your whipped cream, the other half of your chocolate pudding and the remaining cherry mixture to top.
23. This is just how I layered my trifle, you can do it differently if you want!
24. To the top of the trifle add decoration including melted chocolate Christmas trees, white icing snow or sprinkles! Get creative!
25. Allow trifle to cool in the fridge until ready to serve!