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Hi Bold Bakers!
I’m sharing my favorite Irish Gingerbread recipe and I’ll show you how to make it into a BIG & BOLD Holiday Trifle with gorgeous layers of whipped orange cream cheese filling and cranberry orange sauce. My Holiday Gingerbread Trifle is definitely a crowd pleaser!
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Watch The Recipe Video!
Holiday Gingerbread Trifle (Irish Recipe)
Serve up a Bold & Delicious dessert with my Holiday Gingerbread Trifle recipe featuring warm Gingerbread, creamy orange filling and cranberries throughout.
Servings: 10 portions
Serve up a Bold & Delicious dessert with my Holiday Gingerbread Trifle recipe featuring warm Gingerbread, creamy orange filling and cranberries throughout.
Servings: 10 portions
Ingredients
- 1 Cup (8oz/225g)) light brown sugar
- ¾ Cup (8oz/225g) Treacle/molasses
- 2 sticks ( 8oz/225g) Butter
- 3 Cups (16oz/450g) Ap flour
- 2 tsp Ground ginger
- 1 Tbsp Cinnamon
- 2 Whole Eggs
- 1 ¼ cups (10floz/300ml) Whole milk
- 2 level tsp Baking soda
- Cream Cheese Orange Cream :
- 8 oz cream cheese , room temperature
- 1/4 cup (2oz/55g) sugar
- 1 orange , zested and juiced
- 2 cups heavy cream
- Cranberry and Orange Sauce :
- 2 bags (12 oz each) cranberries, fresh or frozen
- 2 cups (400g/14oz) sugar
- 1 orange , zested and juiced
- 2 cups (16oz/45ofloz ) water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 150oC/300oF.
- Grease and line 2 loaf tins (9x5”)
- In a pot, gently heat the sugar, butter and treacle until melted. Set aside to cool once melted.
- Sift the flour and spices over the mix and stir in. Then whisk in the eggs.
- Whisk the eggs together and then pour them into the treacle mix.
- Whisk Warm the milk in the microwave or in a pot on the stove. Whisk the bicarbonate (baking soda) into the milk . You will see it bubble and activate.
- Whisk the milk straight into the treacle mix until well combined. You will notice this is a thin batter, that's ok.
- Pour the batter into your prepared tin.
- Bake at 300oF (150oC) for 45 minutes. Then gently cover the tins with aluminium foil and continue baking for a further 15 minutes. This step is very important as it creates a lovely sticky, moist gingerbread.
- Once the hour is up take them out of the oven, leaving the foil on.
- Now let them sit on a wire rack in the tins until they are totally cold. The warmth of the cakes steams the cake and you get a beautifully sticky top and a soft moist cake.
- Store your gingerbread well wrapped in parchment paper and cling wrap. The bread will stay fresh for 3-4 days. Also freezes well.
- For the Cream cheese orange filling : In the bowl of an electric mixer with a whisk (or in a large bowl with a hand mixer), whisk cream cheese until smooth. Then add sugar, orange zest, juice and cream. Beat until the mix thickens and doubles in size. Store in the fridge until needed.
- Cranberry and Orange Sauce :In a medium saucepan, combine cranberries, sugar, orange zest and juice and water. Bring to a simmer over low; cook until cranberries begin to burst, 10-12 minutes until it resembles jam and is thick. Remove from heat and let cool completely.
- To build your trifle: In your presentation bowl, lay in cubes of gingerbread. Top with a thick layer of the orange cream filling. Then generously spoon over your cranberry sauce. Repeat layers again for a BIG and BOLD trifle.
I’m in Australia & have not been able to find fresh or frozen cranberries – only dried. Any suggestions or substitution?
Hi Gemma In the video you say dark brown sugar but in recipe it says light brown sugar. Does it matter? Also can I use 2 percent milk or does it have to be whole milk?
What kind of cinnamon do you use.
I also like to use Jaggery for the brown sugar and add a bit of black strap molasses to my granulated sugar, what do you think of these additions instead to this recipe?
Hi Gemma – my kitchen is smelling wonderful right now! After the bread cools should it be refrigerated? Thanks for the recipe! ????
In the video you mention salt but it is not in the recipe.
I am making the trifle for Christmas this year! I can’t wait. Question: how long in advance can I make the complete trifle? Will it hold without getting soggy? Thanks!
Hi Gemma, I do have another question
If I use ginger bread cookies should I dip them in left over coffee before I use them? Kinda like what you do with some of your other recipes
Hi Gemma have a another question
When do you plan on doing another challenge and an could it be a holiday recipe. I don’t cook that much but I do love watching you cook.
Instead of making it as ginger bread cake could you change the recipe and make it as ginger bread cookies.
I love ginger bread cookies
I like both
What if you don’t want to make
Home-made cranberry sauce can you skip that part and just use store-bought