Angel Food Cake Dessert Trifle with Cherries

Angel Food Cake Dessert Trifle with Cherries is a perfectly light and refreshing dessert recipe that tastes great any time of the year.

Luscious Cool Whip mixes with cream cheese and powdered sugar to create a creamy layer that separates sweet angel food cake and smooth cherry pie filling.

If you like this recipe you may also enjoy our Strawberry Jello Pretzel Salad.

Easy Trifle Recipe

The cool whip, cream cheese and confectioners sugar mix together to become the heavenly part of the dish.  Light and sweet like we imagine an idylic life on a cloud would be like. This no-bake dessert is one of the best!

Also known as Heavenly Cherry Angel Food Trifle this is one of the classic dessert recipes in my mom’s personal handwritten recipe book. 

Cool Whip desserts with fruit can be irresistible like our No-Bake Pineapple Pretzel Salad and our Banana Split Cake.  Cherry pie filling is our favorite sweet fruit accent to the angel food cake, but other flavors of pie filling would taste great too.

An easy trifle cake recipe can make such a beautiful presentation for holiday meals, picnics or potlucks.   We love the light, sweet flavors in this angel food cake trifle as is.  It can be dressed up by adding 1/4 cup cherry liqueur and 1/2 cup toasted, chopped pecans if you like those flavors.

Purchasing a prepared angel food cake is super easy.  If you prefer to make a box mix or a homemade angel food cake that is fine too.  I was tempted to try using heavy whipping cream to make my own whipped cream, but cool whip is so much easier.  Using a can of whipped cream is a happy medium and you can make fun decorations on top if you’d like!

I typically think of enjoying an easy trifle dessert like this around the 4th of July, but the first time we made this was for our Christmas Eve holiday meal.  It is truly an easy and versatile dessert that is delicious at any time of the year!

Here’s an article with more great Christmas trifle recipe ideas.

Ingredients Needed to Make This Trifle Cake:

• Angel Food Cake
• Cool Whip
• Cream Cheese
• Confectioners Sugar
• Cherry Pie Filling
• Cherry Liqueur, optional
• Toasted Pecans, optional

Tips for Making a Trifle with Angel Food Cake

• Make sure the cream cheese is softened of the heavenly creamy layer will be lumpy
• Thaw whipped topping before mixing
• Whipped topping can be substituted for a can of whipped cream or heavy whipping cream can be mixed up
• Angel food cake can be purchased, made from a box mix or homemade
• I like to cut angel food cake into bite sized cubes and then cut those cubes in half
• Smaller cubes allow for more flavors to mix in every bite
• Other flavors of pie filling may be substituted
• If you don’t have a trifle dish ingredients can be mixed together and served in a bowl or pan of an appropriate size

How to Make Angel Food Cake Trifle

1. If using liqueur sprinkle over cake cubes before layering the trifle.
2. Mix confectioners sugar and cream cheese. Beat until well blended.
3. Reserve 2 tablespoons of Cool Whip and fold remainder into creamed mixture.
4. In a trifle dish make two or three layers of cake cubes, creamed mixture and cherry pie filling.
5. Garnish with reserved whipped cream.
6. Chill for 3 hours before serving and enjoy within 1-2 days for maximum quality.

Other Delicious Fruit Desserts with Cool Whip

• Watergate Salad
• Orange Cake with Pineapple Icing
• Easy Banana Cream Delight
• Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cake
• Banana Creamer

Printable Angel Food Cake Dessert Trifle with Cherries Recipe