This Strawberry Cheesecake Trifle is one of those make-in-advance crowd pleasing desserts. It's filled with sweet strawberries, cake and a homemade vanilla cheesecake mousse. Serve it for any occasion when stunning and delicious desserts are on the menu.
The Best Way to Assemble Strawberry Cheesecake Trifle
To assemble this confection, I recommend starting with cubed cake, then strawberries then vanilla cheesecake mousse in that order. Depending on the size and depth of the trifle bowl used, the layers could come together differently, so consider the size of the bowl you're using when separating the ingredients into layers. This strawberry cheesecake trifle is a fun dessert to make and serve and there's never ever a spoonful leftover.
When to Serve Fresh Strawberry Trifle
Birthday parties, church and office potluck gatherings and of course, for the holidays. I literally make this trifle year-round when I can get my hands on sweet strawberries. Thankfully, that's not a problem thanks to my local grocery store which seems to always have them in stock. It's a given that it will show-up during the glorious strawberry picking season, but the colors make it perfection at Christmas, too.
More Strawberry Desserts To Try
Checkout these recipes to enjoy fresh strawberries at any time of day:
- My spectacular Strawberries and Cream Poke Cake
- Strawberries and Cream Magic Bars from Wine and Glue
- Black Bottomed Strawberry Cheesecake Pie
- Easy Strawberry Parfaits
- Fresh Strawberry Coffee Cake
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Helpful Kitchen Items:
Strawberry Cheesecake Trifle
Ingredients
- Strawberries:
- 2 pints fresh strawberries hulled and cubed
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 1 lemon juiced
- 1 21 oz can strawberry pie filling
- Vanilla cheesecake mousse:
- 2 8 oz cream cheese softened
- 2 cup powdered sugar divided
- 4 cup heavy cream divided
- 1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 angel food or vanilla pound cake cubed
Instructions
- Mix together the cubed strawberries with ⅓ cup granulated sugar and 1 juiced lemon. Stir well then set aside to macerate while you make the filling.
- Whip together 2 [8] oz softened cream cheese with 1 ½ cup powdered sugar and 1 ½ cup heavy cream. Add 1 Tbsp pure vanilla. Whip for 2-3 minutes until creamy, fluffy and combined. In a separate bowl, whip the remaining 2 ½ cup heavy cream with ½ cup powdered sugar, more if desired. Whip until stiff peaks form.
- Fold 2 cup of the whipped sweetened fresh cream into the cheesecake mixture by hand. Reserve the remaining whipped sweetened fresh cream for the top of the trifle.
- Add the strawberry pie filling to the macerated strawberries, mix well.
- To assemble, alternate layers of cubed cake, strawberries, and vanilla cheesecake mousse. Repeat until all ingredients have been used.
- Top with the remaining sweetened fresh whipped cream and garnish as desired. Chill for 3-4 hours prior to serving.
- Store leftovers chilled.
Nutrition
My name is Melissa and I'm the Creator of Melissa's Southern Style Kitchen. Cooking, baking, developing recipes and kitchen tips is my passion. I love sharing my dishes and connecting with people through the food that I create.
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Amanda Guerrero
Got some pound cake from the Costco bakery and made for Vday this year. Super simple and delicious! 😋❤️
Melissa
I'm so happy you enjoyed it, thanks!
sue
Can you substitute with blue berries?
Melissa
I have a recipe for blueberry trifle here.
JoAnn
June 27,2020
I made this for my daughter’s housewarming party. I only changed one thing and it wasn’t an ingredient, but serving container. You can hardly beat the beauty of serving a trifle in a trifle dish, however we opted to go with dessert shooters! The particular ones I chose were about 4-5 oz. Although I only filled a dozen of them with this yummy dessert, it would have easily filled approximately 20-24. (We also served 2 other dessert shooter options and just didn’t need too many of them filled.) The trifle was a hit for everyone at the party and they commented many times on the amazing desserts! Thank you for such a great recipe!!!
Melissa
Love that, thank you!
Fabrizz
I have made this already quite a few times since I pinned it. I’ve done it as a cheese cake like the recipe but have also substituted and put banana vanilla pudding mixed with whipped cream. We love it!!! Great for no bake not to heat up kitchen on hot days.
Melissa
Sounds great, thank you!
Ayshie
Can you make ahead , the day before? Thank you!!!
Melissa
Absolutely, no problem at all. Just cover and chill.
Tracie Ridgeway
instead of pie filling, could you use strawberry glaze?
Melissa
If you prefer.
Tay
Are you supposed to chill the entire dish for 4 hours after you have assembled everything before serving it? The cook time says chill for four hours but never says what or when in the directions.
Melissa
Yes, please chill to allow it to set up after preparing.
Rose
This sounds so good! What could be substituted for the cheesecake mousse? I can’t find it anywhere 🙁
Melissa
You actually make the cheesecake mousse according to the recipe. If you can't find cheesecake pudding mix try white chocolate.
Christy
Where is the pudding mix in the recipe? I made this once and I thought it had pudding mix, but now I don't see it in the recipe?
Melissa
I have many trifle recipes and each one is slightly different. This one doesn't have pudding mix in the mousse. When you have time, browse the recipe index for trifles when you have time.
Kim
Made this tonight. Super easy and oh so good!
Melissa
Wonderful, thank you!
Joanne
This looks delicious! I'm wondering if you could add some blueberries with the strawberries for the 4th of July? Or would that change the taste too much?
Melissa
Not a problem at all go for it!
Kathi Griffith
Hi Melissa,
Made your fabulous recipe last night for a large group and it was a HUGE hit!
Can it be made with bananas?
Don’t know what pie filling to use with this.
Melissa
I'm glad you enjoyed this! Trifles can be made in many different ways. Checkout others in my recipe index here.
Francesca
If you are using bananas rather than pie filling try banana instant pudding! Make sure to prepare the pudding first and adjust the correct measurement! Like if the pie filling is 16 oz make sure you make 16 oz of pudding!
Melissa
That would turn this into a different recipe altogether.
Linda Adkins
Hey Melissa, i was just wanting to know if i could use coolwhip instead of heavy creme ?
And if so would a 16 oz size work the best ?
Melissa
I make this recipe just as written. If you'd like to adapt this my guess is you will need at least double that.
Donna Latimer
My question is on step 2: do you use the 1 1/2 cups of heavy whipping cream in liquid form or is it
Whipped first? What is Maserati going strawberries? I've cooked for 65 years and have never heard this term or seen it in a recipe?
Melissa
Macerated berries are berries sprinkled with sugar to allow the juices to release. The heavy cream whipped with the cream cheese does not need to be whipped beforehand. The heavy cream that is whipped is for the topping.
Teena
When does the vanilla cheese pudding go in at
Melissa
There's no pudding in this recipe. The mousse is layered with the cake and strawberries.
Cathy
I made this for a baby shower two weeks ago. It was amazing! Will definitely be making it again. Thank you for sharing the recipe.
Diane
Any chance you can use frozen strawberries if thawed and well drained. It is hard to get strawberries where I live right now.
Melissa
I'm sure you could adapt this, sure.
E.
This recipe is wonderful! I've made it twice with great results. I may try it with raspberries next time. Thank you. It certainly doesn't last long. 😉
Melissa
Sp happy you're enjoying this one, I love it, too! Thanks so much for visiting.
Christine
I really would prefer not to use pie filling. Would you recommend using more doubling the strawberry/sugar/lemon juice part?
Melissa
It won't be the same but, you could try it if you prefer.
Dana
Hi. I made this last week and company raved! I want to make it again for Mother's Day perhaps with a different fruit. Do you think peach works with the cheesecake mousse ? Thanks for the great recipe 🙂
Melissa
I'm so happy you enjoyed this one. I think you could use any fresh fruit you like in this trifle, the cheesecake should compliment peach as well.
Carleen
What is the cheesecake moose? A pudding?
mary lou whatmore
I am going to make this sunday for Mothers Day. I have a question can i make individual small ones or does it have to be in the bigbig bowl and everytone takes some.I thought it would be nice if everyone had their own.cant wait to make it it looks so good.
Melissa
I assume you mean as parfaits. Sure, why not if you have a collection large enough to handle the amount of ingredients. They would be pretty!
Michelle
I'm hoping someone in my family picks up on my hints and makes me this for Mother's Day!
Melissa
I hope so too, Michelle!
Alisa
Strawberry is my Fav Fruit and I love those dish which uses strawberry
Jen
Hi Melissa,
Question: Does the recipe as is , make enough to garnish the top or should I plan on buying extra whip topping?
Can't wait to try it!
Melissa
You may need extra so make sure you have ample if you want to pipe the whipped cream on top.
Dianne Ledet
I made this last week end and it was FABULOUS!!! We were at our week-end beach home and our grocery store is limited. I used a frozen pound cake - I would never have eaten this cake by itself, but in this trifle, it was perfect! Next time I will use a pound cake and see if I like it any better. Thanks for a a really, really good recipe!!
Melissa
I'm so happy to hear it, thank you!
Kayla
How could I cut this recipe in half?
Melissa
Since this recipe isn't baked requiring adjusting ingredients you could adapt this into a smaller version just by cutting things in half.
Joanna
If preparing the day before, would you recommend using the angel food or the pound cake? Would you add the whip topping to the top of the trifle the day before, or add it before serving?
Melissa
If kept well chilled, either of those cakes should maintain their texture. If you're planning on topping this as pictured, I usually frost with the cheesecake layer and then cover with plastic wrap to keep it fresh then I finish the top with the decorative topping just before serving. This way,I can leave it uncovered and not ruin the garnish. If traveling with this do the same, so you won't have to cover it and damage the whipped cream.
Shruthi
Hi Melissa , this was a wonderful dessert . Everyone just loved the flavours and it was easy to put together. I used the lemon burst buttermilk cake for this and the flavour of lemon complimented the strawberries wonderfully! I must add that I reduced the quantity of cream cheese and cream a little to make it a little guilt free. Also did not have the pie filling . But I just increased the fresh fruit quantity. It turned out well with minor modifications. Thank you so much for the recipes! This will definitely be made for get togethers. The other dessert recipes are equally tempting to try out and taste of course????
Melissa
I love the idea of using that cake in this trifle, thanks so much for taking the time to let me know.
Lesa Miles
Thank you so much for this comment! I made this dessert with the lemon burst cake and it was amazing. I will definitely make this dessert again.
Dave
One question, are you mace rating the berries with the juice of the lemon or with the juiced lemon itself?
Melissa
The berries are macerated with the juice of the lemon not the actual lemon. Hope this helps!
Sharon
I can't wait to make this Truffle it looks so good. I have an important Question. Is there a way to make this and other recipes for Diabetics? I'm trying not to cheat.
Melissa
Hi Sharon, there are so many wonderful low sugar substitutions these days I would suggest you make those based on the brands you like. Perhaps use neufchatel cheese in place of full fat cream cheese, sugar free whipped topping and so on. Hope this helps, stay healthy!
Melissa
Yes it does. This dessert will remain stabilized for much longer than an hour. [Unless it's eaten ☺]
Lilyan
Does the powdered sugar and cream cheese "stabilize" the heavy cream in the mousse? I'm curious as I have not had good success storing desserts with whipped cream for more than a an hour or so :-). This mousse would make an interesting banana pudding variation.
Melissa
So happy to hear it, my pleasure!
Paula Roy
Melissa - this recipe is awesome!! Easy and delicious and perfect for summer parties. Made for our 4th of July picnic. Raves!
Thank you for sharing
Anonymous
I made this today for our July 4th celebration. It was delicious and a huge hit. I'll definitely be making this agsin soon
alicia shepard
I used cheery pie filling...couldn't find strawberry...it was a wonderful substitution.
Lori Duchesne
Did you still use the fresh strawberries along with the cherry pie filling?
Melissa
If you can't find strawberry pie filling {I find it easily at Walmart and local grocery stores} then yes I would still use the strawberries unless you want to make it a cherry trifle. In that case you'd have to adapt it a bit which would be perfectly fine. Totally up to you.
Marsha Hughes
Melissa- this one might be crazy, but I don't understand at what point do I use the pie filling?
Thanks Marsha
Melissa
After macerating the strawberries, mix them together with the pie filling.
Melissa
I wonder, do you have access to instant clear jel? If so, you could make your own filling for this recipe quite easily. It's a modified cornstarch made especially for thickening the juice of fruit pies without the "milky" look an texture.
Anonymous
Hi I live in New Zealand. I dont think we sell strawberry pie filling here. What could I use as analternative?
Michelle
I use cherry pie filling as an alternative 🙂 super yummy
Brandie
Do you mix the cherry pie filling with the cubed strawberries?
Melissa
Yes
Lesa Miles
I made my own strawberry pie filling. I just used about 3/4 cups of strawberries, 2 Tbsp of cornstarch, 1/4 of water, and about a 1/4 of sugar. Mix everything, but the strawberries in a pot cook until thickened, then add strawberries, cook for a while, add about a tbsp of lemon juice cook a bit longer. Remove from stove and let it cool.
Melissa
You can make this a day in advance if needed.
Anonymous
Hi, how ahead of time can this be made ?
Judith Jones
I have been looking for a strawberry trifle to make and this one looks just right! I plan on making it for a celebration and I know it will be a hit.
Thanks Melissa,
Judith
Melissa
Hi Judith, I sure hope so. It's usually a crowd pleaser. ☺ Enjoy!
Melissa
Hello Hedy, yes, that's correct. 2 [8] oz cream cheese or 1 pound total. I know conversions can be a challenge, thanks so very much for visiting from beautiful Holland! I've visited your country and loved it.
Hedy Marechal
Hello Meliisa, I am really gonna try this recipe, looks delicious. I have a question about the amount of Cream cheese. Though I am starting to get used to American measures (we follow you all the way from Holland) I hesitate bij this one. Do you mean 2 x 8 OZ Cream cheese ( approx. 450 grams). Sorry to bother you, but the trifle looks so yummie.
Melissa
Thanks so much Melissa!
Melissa
Thanks Pat!
Melissa @ My Recent Favorite Books
Adding this to my Dessert board on Pinterst! Love the photo! =)
Gypsy Heart
Hmmm, this looks and sounds delish! I will definitely try it soon.
xo
Pat
Denise kuntz
I've tried it. It was a hit with company. They couldn't get enough.
Denise (allentown, pa)
Melissa
Wonderful, thank you!