While a trifle is sweet like Ellen’s success, the lemon adds a little tang that reminds us of Julia’s hardship.

Ingredients

• 1 block (8 oz) of cream cheese, softened
• 2 boxes (3.4 oz each) of instant lemon pudding mix (dry, not prepared according to package directions)
• 3 cups of milk, room temperature
• 8 oz of frozen whipped topping, thawed
• Angel food cake (2 loaves or 1 tube cake), cut into 1-inch pieces. (Pound cake works well too!)
• 1-2 lbs (3-4 cups) fresh strawberries, sliced, except for a few set aside for garnish
• sliced lemon for garnish (optional)

Directions

1. Beat the cream cheese and dry pudding mixes together until smooth.
2. Slowly add the room temperature milk until smooth.
3. Fold in 2 cups of the whipped topping.
4. In a trifle bowl or 3-quart bowl, layer 1/3 of the cake, 1/3 of the pudding, and 1/3 of the strawberries. For a fancier look while layering the strawberries, place some sliced strawberries along the glass.
5. Repeat layers two more times.
6. Garnish with reserved whipped topping and lemons.
7. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

Tips: If the lemon pudding is too tart, try vanilla instead. If you don’t like frozen whipped topping, try homemade whipped cream. Some people macerate their strawberries when using them in a trifle but i find that to be too sweet in my opinion.