Lemons, Lemons, Lemons. I’ve been dreaming about lemons, craving lemon foods and wondering what I can make with lemons.

Why? Just because it seems to happen every spring. I start craving lemons and looking at all sorts of lemon recipes. They’re cheery, bright yellow. They’re sweet, tart and fresh.

I should find one of those dwarf lemon trees to grow my own lemons in the dining room. (somebody tell my husband this is a good idea!)

This recipe was inspired by a small box of lemon pudding that somehow jumped right off the shelf at the grocery and landed in my cart. I swear!

I’ve made lemon meringue pies in the past. They’re challenging for me. I have a tough time getting the lemon part to set up solid without becoming too dry. I struggle to whip the egg whites high enough to make a nice meringue. And I seem to always over brown the meringue. I do better to order lemon meringue pie at a restaurant!

Cheery Lemon Cherry Trifle Recipe

Ingredients:

1 (14 oz) confetti white cake mix
1 box (3 oz) instant lemon pudding
1 can (21 oz) cherry pie filling

Recipe Directions:

Prepare cake according to package directions and cool. While cake is baking, prepare pudding according to package directions and chill in refrigerator. When cake is completely cooled; cut cake into half inch squares. In a pretty glass bowl, layer the cake, cherry pie filling and pudding, repeating until all ingredients are used. Garnish with fresh fruit.

Approximate Nutrition Information:

Servings Per Recipe: 6, Amount Per Serving: Calories: 280, Fat: 2g, Cholesterol: 0g, Sodium: 600mg, Carbs: 66g, Protein: 0g.

Make it a Meal:

This is obviously a dessert. If you feel guilty eating this and nothing else, have a peanut butter sandwich first, then fill your bowl with dessert.

Variations:

Replace the cherry pie filling with strawberry pie glaze and toss in some fresh strawberries. Or go with blueberries for the replacement.

Easter Dinner

If you’re invited to the family Easter Dinner and asked to bring a dish, consider taking this dessert along. It’s such a light, refreshing dessert it will follow a traditional ham dinner without overwhelming the diners.

I like to prepare individual servings in small glasses. They are pretty and easy to serve. Each guest has their own dessert that looks as pretty as can be. Of course, if you’re not certain how many guests will be at dinner or want to allow people to portion out their own servings, then preparing the dessert in a large bowl works best.

Fresh Fruit Topping

I love using fresh fruit in recipes. Let’s be honest, I love eating fresh fruit – so I find ways to use it in recipes. This trifle was complete and ready to go. Then I remembered I had a container of fresh strawberries sitting in the fridge.

What better way to use a few of those sweet berries than to place them on top of this lemon cherry trifle. Trust me, the flavors blended well!

I plan on using the rest of the strawberries in a spinach salad. I can’t wait for that! Might even just have the spinach salad for supper tonight!

The beautiful thing about a trifle, is that you don’t have to worry awfully much about how neatly you assemble the layers. I mean, when you’re making a layer cake, each layer must be neatly and directly on top of the layer beneath it. If they’re not lined up, you end up with a Leaning Tower of Pisa cake. (and that’s not pretty!)

With trifle, as long as you have the layers in the bowl, you’re good! I’ve seen some trifles that are smoothly layered from side to side of the bowl. They are pretty. I’ve seen some that have each layer evenly spread, so that the layers line up – equally one inch or so for each layer. That looks lovely.

My layers, on the other hand, are a little more free from. Trust me, people love the flavor and are going to dig the serving spoon deep into the layers to make sure they get as much goodness as possible.

I like to be able to see the various ingredients layered in the bowl, so I use a clear glass bowl. But as long as the ingredients are loosely layered, I’m good.

Take a close look at the layers you see in that picture above. Check out the cake! You can even see the confetti sprinkles in the bits! And don’t the strawberries look so pretty?

That is good stuff right there.

What is your favorite Spring-time fruit?

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