Pina Colada Trifle
45 minutes to prepare serves 8-10
INGREDIENTS
1 box vanilla cake mix, plus ingredients listed on box
1 can crushed pineapple, drained
1 jar maraschino cherries
1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
1 box instant vanilla pudding
1 cup milk
1 1/4 cup shredded coconut
1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
1/2 teaspoon rum extract
2 1/2 cups frozen whipped topping, thawed
PREPARATION
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Spread the shredded coconut evenly onto a baking sheet and place in the oven until golden brown, about 5-8 minutes. Remove and set aside to cool.
Prepare vanilla cake according to package instructions. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely. Once cool, cut into 1-inch cubes.
While cake bakes, beat cream cheese in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Set aside.
In a separate medium bowl, whisk the milk and the pudding mix together until thickened. Slowly add pudding mixture into cream cheese bowl, then add rum and coconut extracts, and beat until well combined. Once fully combined, gently fold in 1 cup of the whipped topping.
Begin to assemble the trifle layers. Place 4 cups of cake cubes in the bottom of a trifle bowl. Top with a layer of drained pineapple, and then a layer of cherries.
Spread half of the cream cheese/pudding layer over the fruit, and repeat the layers: cake, pineapple, cherries, cream cheese/pudding.
Spread the remaining whipped topping over the top layer and sprinkle with toasted coconut. Garnish with cherries if desired.
Keep chilled until ready to serve. Enjoy!