Makes: About 8 servings
Time: About 15 minutes, plus time to chill
This Italian dessert (which translates as “English Soup”) gets its name from its similarity to a classic English trifle (page 332) and the fact that the ladyfingers layered throughout are dunked in liquid (that’s the “zuppa” part). Each layer gets a different topping (vanilla pastry cream, chocolate pastry cream, and whipped cream), so there’s a nice variety. But feel free to play around with the flavors of each, adding lemon zest to the vanilla cream, almond extract to the whipped cream, and so forth.
1. Combine the simple syrup and rum in a bowl. One by one, dip 12 ladyfingers (both sides) in the mixture and lay them in the bottom of a trifle dish, large deep bowl, or baking dish, breaking them to fit if necessary.
2. Spread the vanilla pastry cream over the top, then top with a second layer of ladyfingers dipped in the syrup-rum mixture. Top that layer with the chocolate pastry cream and the final layer of rum-dipped ladyfingers with the whipped cream. Cover and refrigerate for a few hours before serving, preferably overnight. Sprinkle with the almonds if you’re using them and serve.