Christmas Trifle Dessert is a festive Christmas layer dessert made with crumbles of white and red velvet cake and a sweet creamy filling! Perfect for holiday gatherings, a Christmas trifle can be easily customized to suit different tastes.
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There’s something truly magical about making a Christmas Trifle Dessert during the holiday season—it’s a recipe that brings warmth and togetherness to the table. For me, assembling the trifle is as much fun as enjoying it.
There are a variety of different ways you can make a trifle dessert, but I find this one to be one of my favorites. In fact, I have many different variations of this dessert, including Easter and 4th of July versions!
A sweet, creamy filling layered between crumbled cake makes this dessert moist, decadent, and absolutely delicious!
The finished result may look a bit intimidating and complicated, but it's such an easy dessert to make, I promise! When it’s finished, you’ll have a gorgeous display that’s sure to impress your guests.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Easy to Assemble: With simple ingredients and layers that come together quickly, this trifle is perfect for when you need a show-stopping dessert without hours in the kitchen.
- Customizable to Your Taste: Whether you want to stick with classic flavors or mix it up with your favorite fruits, cakes, or even a splash of liqueur, this trifle can be adapted to suit any preference.
- A Stunning Holiday Centerpiece: Its vibrant layers of cake crumbles and sweet cream make this trifle not only delicious but also a beautiful addition to your holiday table that will impress guests at first glance.
Ingredients
To make this festive trifle, you'll need:
- White cake mix creates a soft, fluffy base that soaks up the juices, adding a delicate sweetness to the layers of the trifle.
- Red velvet cake mix provides a rich, decadent flavor and a deep, festive red color that stands out beautifully in each layer.
- Green food coloring transforms the white cake into a bright, holiday-inspired green, adding a fun and colorful touch to the dessert.
- Cream cheese gives the trifle a smooth, tangy richness that contrasts perfectly with the sweetness of the cakes and fruits.
- Sweetened condensed milk adds a luxurious, velvety sweetness that seeps into the cake layers, keeping them moist and flavorful.
- Whipped topping brings a light, airy finish to the trifle, balancing the richer layers with its fluffy, creamy texture.
See recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Substitutions & Variations
- You can easily swap the white or red velvet cake mixes with chocolate, vanilla, or even spice cake for a different flavor profile while keeping the festive colors with food coloring.
- This trifle works wonderfully with a variety of fruits—try using strawberries, blueberries, or peaches to match your favorite seasonal flavors.
- If you prefer a richer taste, substitute the tub of whipped topping with freshly whipped cream for a homemade touch.
- For a lighter variation, replace the cream cheese with mascarpone or Greek yogurt, giving a creamier, less tangy texture.
If you’re looking for smaller, bite-sized treats to add to your dessert table, these Christmas Cool Whip Truffles are a must-try. They’re easy to make and full of that holiday cheer we all love!
How to Make a Christmas Trifle Dessert
Go ahead and preheat your oven to 350℉. Then, grease two 9x13 inch cake pans. Set them to the side.
- Step 1: Prepare each cake mix according to the directions on the back of the box. You will need additional ingredients, depending on what brand cake mix you purchase.
- Step 2: After mixing up the red velvet cake batter, add 10 green food coloring drops to the white cake mix.
- Step 3: Make sure you keep the two batters separate.
- Step 4: Transfer each bowl of cake batter into the cake pans.
- Step 5: Then, bake one cake at a time for 23-25 minutes. After your cakes are done baking, pull them out and allow them to cool completely. You can place them on the counter on a pot holder to cool.
- Step 6: Next, make the cream. In a medium bowl, mix the cream cheese, condensed milk, and whipped topping until well combined and smooth.
- Step 7: Crumble each cake in the baking pans. You can easily do this with your hands. Set aside ¼ cup of cake crumbles from each of the pans to garnish the dessert at the end.
- Step 8: To assemble your trifle dessert, alternate each color of cake with a layer of cream. Finally, sprinkle the remaining cake crumbs on top.
Helpful Tips
- You can use homemade cake mix or boxed cake mix.
- You can use any kind of container, although I like to use a clear glass container to see the layers!
- For red velvet cake, I like to use berries. For other fruits, like oranges or kiwis, I like to use white cake mix.
Recipe FAQs
A traditional trifle in England was made with sponge cake that has been soaked in alcohol. The cake is then placed between layers of jam and whipped cream.
The majority of trifles here in America do not contain alcohol. They usually consist of multiple layers of crumbled or cubed cake, pudding, and often times fruit.
Yes! You sure can! If you have a bit more time, you can easily use your own favorite recipe or even my wacky cake recipe for the base of the trifle.
Double the recipe and make two cakes for the trifle. You will need to use food coloring and make one of the cakes red to make the perfect Christmas dessert.
What’s great about this dessert is the beautiful trifle bowl you assemble it in. I love how you can see the layers through the glass. So pretty!
I use a classic trifle bowl, but if you don’t have one, no worries! There are plenty of other containers you can use, such as a straight-sided vase, a clear glass mixing bowl or other clear glass containers.
Absolutely! Many trifle recipes include fruit to add additional texture, flavor and visual effect. You can add layers of fresh strawberries, blueberries, or raspberries if you choose.
Berries would pair best with the red velvet cake mix. If you want to use fruits such as oranges, kiwis, or bananas, I would recommend only using white cake mix.
Feeling inspired to try more trifle variations? Along with this festive Christmas Trifle, I love whipping up my classic Dirt Cake Trifle for a rich and indulgent treat. And if you prefer something a bit lighter, the Strawberry Shortcake Trifle brings the flavors of summer into the holiday season!
Storage & Freezing Instructions
Storage Instructions
The best way to store this Christmas trifle dessert is in the refrigerator. Cover your trifle dish tightly with plastic wrap and place it in the fridge. A trifle dessert will stay good for about 2-3 days. After a couple of days, the cake will start to become mushy.
Freezing Instructions
This trifle does not freeze well due to the delicate layers and cream, which can become soggy or lose texture.
More Trifle Recipes You’ll Love
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
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Christmas Trifle Dessert
Ingredients
- 1 white box cake mix (prepared according to box directions)
- 1 red velvet box cake mix (prepared according to box directions)
- Green food coloring
- 8 ounces cream cheese (softened)
- 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
- 8 ounce tub whipped topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º Fahrenheit.
- Prepare the cake mixes according to the box directions.
- To create the green layer, add 10 green food coloring drops to the white cake mix.
- Transfer each bowl of batter into a greased 9x13 cake pan.
- Bake for 23-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Allow cakes to cool. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, mix cream cheese, sweetened condensed milk and whipped topping until well combined.
- Crumble each cake, setting aside a ¼ cup of each color for topping the dessert.
- To assemble the trifle, alternate each color of cake with a layer of cream.
- Sprinkle the remaining cake crumbs on top.
Notes
- You can use homemade cake mix or boxed cake mix.
- You can use any kind of container, although I like to use a clear glass container to see the layers!
- For red velvet cake, I like to use berries. For other fruits, like oranges or kiwis, I like to use white cake mix.
Nutrition
Mildred Rivera
Hi, so I made this and it came out perfect. The only thing I did different was instead of crumbing the cakes, I cubed them. Then I used spiced cake instead of the red velvet because of allergy. I'm reading some of the comments, what I don't get is that some say there wasn't enough of the cream cheese filling mix. That's sounds crazy to me. There was a mix of ages at this Christmas party and everyone said that it was perfect and some even had seconds. I'll be making this again. It was a hit. Thank you! Merry Christmas & Happy New year. 🙂
Carol Catinari
Question: do you mix the cream cheese, condensed milk and whipped topic by hand or in a mixer?
Sara
I usually use a hand mixer! Good luck and reach out with any other questions!
Mildred Rivera
From Millie- Ok... I've read some of the comments. I will buy enough for the cream filling. I love making Trifle dessert dishes and they come out great. My opinion. I'll let you guys know how it turns out. 1st time gonna make this to bring over to my friends house to enjoy after dinner. Oh and I'm gonna add cherry pie filling. Wish me luck. 🙂
Scott Schluter
Needs at least double the cream layer and needs to be loosened a bit with extra cream. Otherwise looks great and tastes great.
Misty
What do you put these in? Could you put these in jars and put in fridge?
Sara
I usually use a large trifle dish but yes, you could use smaller jars if you would like!
Lynda
This is delicious! Perfectly sweet. Question: do you think this would be okay to freeze?
Sara
Because of the cream layer, I probably wouldn't freeze this dessert.
Laura Curley
Can I make this a day ahead and refrigerate over night?
Sara
Yes, absolutely!
Jenna Law
This recipe was a hit! Moist and delicious. Looked so impressive.
Gail
This needs more of the white filling it has 2 cakes and only 1 cream cheese, I would dbl it...
I also didn't do the green due to people not like dye, but it was ok...I wouldn't make it again..
Anonymous
Agreed. Wish I would have read this comment before attempting to make. Very disappointed with how the dessert turned out. Needs more cream.