ZUPPA INGLESE here the recipe for Wayne and all the fans

SHERRY TRIFLE (Edmonds Cookery Book-- regarded as the NZ Bible)

200g bought sponge 1-4 C raspberry jam 1-4 C sherry 425g can fruit salad (mixed fruit, usually pears, peaches and pineapple chopped small) 4 Tbsp custard powder 3 Tbsp sugar 2 C milk

whipping cream

1. Depending on the thickness of your sponge, cut in half horizontally and spread with raspberry jam. Cut into cubes and put in serving dish. (Size of cubes isn't very important, whatever fits nicely into dish, not too small). Spoon sherry over sponge. Spoon fruit salad and juice (from can) evenly over sponge. Set aside.

2. Make custard: combine custard powder and sugar in a bowl. Mix to a smooth paste with 1-2 C milk. In a saucepan, heat remainder of milk till almost boiling. Pour heated milk on to custard powder mixture, stirring constantly. Return mixture to saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly till mixture boils and thickens. Remove from heat. Leave till cool.

3. Pour custard over fruit salad in serving dish. Chill till set.

4. Before serving, cover with whipped cream and decorate top as desired (kiwifruit, or other fruit).

Note: step 2 can be subsbreastuted with your favourite way of making custard.

----------------------------- So Pandora, basically, a trifle is sponge cake spread with jam (jelly to Americans), soaked with sherry then topped with fruit, custard and whipped cream.

My husband insists on having this as a dessert every Christmas. Personally, I never eat it and neither do my children, so he gets the lot for himself. I leave out the sherry.