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    Home » Recipes » Desserts

    Vegan Trifle With French Toast

    Posted: Oct 3, 2018 by Lori Last Updated: Mar 9, 2020 · This post contains affiliate links.

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    This Vegan French Toast Trifle combines layers of baked French toast, homemade blueberry sauce, and a lusciously creamy maple-vanilla pudding. From a special-occasion brunch to your holiday dessert table, this vegan trifle is guaranteed to impress!

    Vegan Trifle in a large glass trifle dish showing layers of pudding and berries

    What's your favorite type of dessert? For me, the answer is easy. Combine cake or something bread-y with smooth, cool, creaminess, and I'm all in!

    Cake and ice cream? Yes.
    Soft 'nilla wafers and banana pudding? Goodness, yes.
    Boston Cream Pie? Oh heavens, of course.
    Ice cream sandwiches? Perfection!

    This could go on for a while, so I'll get to the point....

    overhead view of vegan trifle topped with blackberries and raspberries

    And my point is, what's better than a trifle? Typically made with cake, layers of pudding or custard, whipped cream, and fruit. SO many good things packed into one beautiful, see-through bowl, which means you really get to eat with your eyes first. And we all know how important that is. Then, that beauty becomes a messy, irresistible pile of textural, mingling flavors scooped onto your plate. Whew. It's too much.

    Well, we're doing that today with this vegan trifle but with a twist. Our bready ingredient is baked vegan French toast!

    sourdough soaked in vegan french toast batter fit inside cake pans

    How to make the baked French toast for your trifle

    We're going to soak some sourdough, or other sturdy bread, in a simple French toast batter and then play Tetris with it! Actually, it's much easier and less stressful than Tetris. As you can see in the photo above, I started with one whole slice of bread against the right edge of the pan, then cut and tore the remaining pieces until the round pan was filled. Each pan has two layers of the bread, which become one big, thick layer during baking.

    before baking, the French toast sprinkled with a cinnamon-sugar mixture

    Oh, and before going into the oven, each pan gets a generous sprinkle of cinnamon sugar. 

    Vegan French Toast layers fresh out of the oven

    See the two layers of sliced bread in each cake below? All baked together!

    french toast for vegan trifle, cooling on a pan

    Other elements in this vegan trifle

    Maple vanilla pudding - whipping up this 4-ingredient maple-sweetened vegan pudding couldn't be easier. Simply whisk everything together, and heat on the stove until thickened.

    Blueberry sauce - made with fresh or frozen blueberries, this 5-ingredient sauce also cooks on the stovetop in just a few minutes.

    Fresh berries on top make it gorgeous!

    Obviously, some freshly whipped coconut cream dolloped on top is highly, highly recommended. If only I'd remembered to put a can of coconut milk in the fridge the day before! Another option is Coco Whip by So Delicious (find it in the freezer section). It's dangerously good.

    side view of vegan trifle in a glass dish

    close up showing layers of French toast, pudding, and berry sauce

    Tips for Assembling the Trifle

    Each component of the trifle needs time to cool and/or chill before assembly. If you're making this for a party, it works well to make everything a day in advance, then assemble the trifle just before serving.

    Store the pudding and blueberry sauce in the fridge, but keep the French toast cakes at room temp. The trifle tastes best when served cool, not super cold. So, if the French toast is at room temperature, everything comes together perfectly!

    If you're making this the day you're serving, be sure to allow at least two hours for the pudding and blueberry sauce to chill (placing the bowls in an ice bath is a great way to speed up the process, if needed). Then, assemble and serve immediately.

    In case you're wondering, this recipe is definitely sweet enough to serve as a dessert, but could also be served at brunch. Overall, it's less sweet than many desserts, and for goodness' sake, people eat doughnuts for breakfast! If doughnuts are an appropriate breakfast or brunch food, this vegan trifle definitely deserves a pass.

    a serving of trifle in a decorative glass dish

    I hope you enjoy this Vegan Trifle with French Toast as much as we do. If you try it I would love to hear from you. You can give the recipe a star rating below and also share a photo on facebook or instagram. Just tag me @myquietkitchen to make sure I see it! 

    More special occasion-worthy vegan desserts:

    • Cranberry and Citrus Tart
    • Apple Layer Cake
    • Strawberry Layer Cake
    • Salted Chocolate Pecan Pie
    • Chocolate Haupia Pie
    • Chocolate Tart with Date-Hazelnut Crust
    trifle in a large glass trifle dish topped with berries

    Vegan Trifle With Baked French Toast

    Author: Lori Rasmussen, My Quiet Kitchen
    Brunch? Dessert? It's all up to you. Baked French toast mingles with homemade maple-vanilla pudding and blueberry sauce. 
    Servings: 12 servings
    5 from 3 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe SaveSaved!
    Prep Time: 30 mins
    Cook Time: 40 mins
    Chill time: 2 hrs
    Total Time: 3 hrs 10 mins

    Ingredients 

    For the pudding:

    • 4 cups vanilla or unflavored non-dairy milk
    • ⅓ cup maple syrup
    • ¼ cup corn starch
    • 1 tsp vanilla extract

    For French toast:

    • 12 - 16 large slices sourdough bread - (I used almost a full loaf of Trader Joe's sliced sourdough, approx 22 ounces)
    • 2 ½ cups unsweetened non-dairy milk - (I used plain soy)
    • ¼ cup sugar
    • 2 Tbsp maple syrup
    • 3 Tbsp corn starch
    • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
    • 1 tsp vanilla extract

    French toast crumble topping:

    • ¼ cup coconut sugar or brown sugar
    • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
    • 2 Tbsp vegan butter
    • 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour

    Blueberry sauce:

    • ⅓ cup water
    • ⅓ cup sugar
    • 1 ½ Tbsp corn starch
    • 2 cups blueberries, frozen or fresh
    • 2 tsp fresh lemon juice or 1 tsp apple cider vinegar

    Garnish:

    • fresh berries of choice
    • coconut whipped cream or other non-dairy whipped topping
    • powdered sugar
    • chopped nuts or dried coconut
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions
     

    Make the pudding:

    • In a sauce pan over medium heat whisk together milk, maple syrup, and corn starch. Cook for about one minute to bring up to temp. Stirring frequently, reduce heat to low and cook until thickened, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in the vanilla. Chill uncovered for at least 2 hours. If making in advance, cover once cool.

    Make the blueberry sauce:

    • In a small sauce pan over medium-high heat, whisk together water and sugar until sugar is dissolved. Whisk in vinegar/lemon juice and corn starch. Add the blueberries. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, stirring occasionally, cook for about 10 minutes or until thickened. Set aside to cool. If making a day in advance, refrigerate until ready to use.

    Make the French toast:

    • Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line two 9 inch cake pans with parchment. 
    • Blend or whisk together the batter ingredients. Transfer batter to a large, shallow dish. Place bread slices in the batter, leaving them just long enough to saturate. Tear or cut bread as needed to fill each pan. If using pre-sliced sandwich bread, versus thicker pieces you sliced yourself, you'll need to make two layers in each pan. Fit torn bread together like a puzzle; this doesn't have to be perfect (see images). Pour any remaining batter over the bread in each pan. 
    • In a small bowl, thoroughly combine all ingredients for the crumble topping. Sprinkle over both pans. Bake French toast 15 - 20 minutes or until the center is hot. Let sit 10 minutes, then remove from pans and let cool to room temperature.
      Vegan French Toast Trifle-4

    Assemble the trifle:

    • Cut the French toast cakes into large cubes. In a trifle dish or large glass bowl, add a layer of french toast, then blueberry sauce, then pudding. Repeat - bread, sauce, pudding. Garnish as desired and serve. 

    Notes

    Individual components of the trifle can be made a day in advance and assembled just before serving. Once assembled, the trifle is best consumed within a few hours. Refrigerate leftovers for up to 2 days.

    Estimated Nutrition (per serving)

    Calories: 360kcalCarbohydrates: 53gProtein: 8gFat: 12.5gSaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 240mgFiber: 5gSugar: 26gVitamin A: 0IUVitamin C: 1.7mgCalcium: 60mgIron: 2.9mg

    Nutrition information is an estimate and will vary depending on the exact amounts and specific products and ingredients used. We calculate this information using the online calculator cronometer.com.

    Did you try the recipe?I LOVE hearing from you! Comment below to let us know.
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    Lori Rasmussen, Owner/Creator

    Hi, I'm Lori. Welcome to My Quiet Kitchen where I share easy vegan recipes with a healthier twist. Many are special diet-friendly or easily adapted. I also have a passion for veganizing classic desserts, and sometimes even those get a healthy-ish makeover.

    Learn more about me →

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