Cranberry Cognac Trifle

Instructions

1. To make cake, preheat the oven to 350º.
2. Butter three 15 x 10 x ½-inch baking pans. Line with parchment, butter the top of the parchment, and dust with flour.
3. Whisk together yolks, 1 ½ cups sugar, milk, and vanilla, until well combined. Whisk in flour and salt. With an electric mixer, whip egg whites until they form soft peaks. Add the remaining ¾ cup of sugar and beat on high till stiff peaks form.
4. Fold a third of the egg whites into the batter, then fold in the remaining whites. Divide the mixture between the three pans. Tap gently to remove air bubbles. Bake for 10-12 minutes...one at a time. Cool in pans.
5. To make jam, scrape seeds from vanilla bean into a medium-sized saucepan. Add cranberries, sugar, orange juice, and water. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally, then reduce to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes longer, stirring occasionally. Puree the jam in a food mill set over a bowl. Cool at room temperature, stirring occasionally. Cover and refrigerate till needed.
6. To make the cognac syrup, bring all ingredients to a boil in a saucepan, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is dissolved. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 5 more minutes. Cool.
7. To make custard, whisk ¼ cup of the sugar, cornstarch, and a pinch of salt in a medium saucepan. Whisk in ¼ cup milk until smooth, then stir in the remaining milk and orange zest. Bring to a boil, whisking frequently.
8. Fill a sink or a large bowl with ice and water.
9. Whisk together yolks and remaining sugar in a large bowl or glass measuring cup. Add about ½ cup of the hot milk mixture while whisking vigorously to temper the yolks. Whisk in more of the milk, then return the yolk mixture to the saucepan.
10. Cook, while stirring constantly, until the mixture reaches 170º. Do not bring to a boil. Pour this custard mix through a fine sieve into a Pyrex or metal bowl.
11. Stir in the vanilla and set it in ice water, making sure the water is not high enough to spill into the bowl. Allow to cool, stirring occasionally. Cover and store in the fridge till needed.¼
12. To make the garnish, mix egg whites and warm water in a small bowl. Dip berries and mint leaves in the mixture, removing excess with fingers. Coat with sugar and place on a rack to dry.
13. To assemble the trifle, cut around the perimeter of the cakes with a knife to loosen. Cover with wax or parchment paper and flip out onto a rack. Remove parchment from the bottom of the cake and put a fresh sheet of wax or parchment on top of the cake. Repeat with the other two cakes.
14. Cut cakes in half from long side to long side. Spread ⅓ of jam on half of each cake...almost to the edge. Use wax or parchment paper to flip the plain half of the cake on top of jam topped half.
15. Cut each "sandwich" into ¾ inch strips (going whichever direction makes the best length for your trifle dish. Line the perimeter of 3 ½ quart trifle bowl with these sandwich strips. Trim tops and brush cake strips with cognac syrup. Brush scraps with cognac syrup.
16. Put some of the cake scraps onto the bottom of the trifle bowl in one layer. Top with 1 cup of custard, then another layer of cake, and another 1 cup of custard. Repeat if there's room in your bowl. Cover and refrigerate till time to serve.
17. To serve, whip cream with powdered sugar, cognac, vanilla, and Whip-it, if using, till soft peaks form. Mound on top of the trifle. Garnish with sugared berries and mint.