Strawberry, Madeira and lemon curd trifle

For the meringue, preheat the oven to 110°C. Line a baking tray with baking paper or a silicone mat and set aside until needed. Place the egg whites in a metal bowl with a pinch of salt. (The bowl must be scrupulously clean and dry or the whites won’t reach full volume.) Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites, slowly at first, in order to break them down. Once they start to froth a little, increase the speed and beat until stiff peaks form. Add the castor sugar, 1 tablespoonful at a time, beating after each addition, until all of the castor sugar has been added. Spoon the meringue in single dollops into the prepared baking tin, place the tin in the oven and bake, 1 hour. Remove the tin from the oven and allow to cool, 1 hour.

For the trifle, make the jelly according to packaging instructions and pour into a large trifle dessert bowl. Refrigerate to set completely, about 3 hours, while you prepare the rest of the layers.

Whisk the fresh cream in a large bowl until it just starts forming soft peaks. Fold in the lemon curd and vanilla seeds, and place in the fridge until you are ready to assemble the trifle.

Once the strawberry jelly has set, remove the whipped cream mixture from the fridge, spoon ½ of the cream mixture over the jelly and place the Madeira slices or shapes on top of the cream mixture. Drizzle the lemon liqueur over the Madeira slices or shapes.

Crush the meringues and sprinkle them over, followed by the remaining whipped cream mixture and then the remaining crushed meringue. Decorate with strawberries and mint leaves, and serve.