Easy Holiday Trifle

Put the dried apricots into a saucepan with the water, and add the sugar and juices from the lemon and tangerine or orange.  Bruise the cardamom pods with the back of a knife to release the seeds, and add to the pan, giving a stir as you do so. Bring to the boil, then turn the heat down and simmer for 30 minutes.  Or, if it makes life easier, you can just bring the pan to the boil, turn it off immediately and let the pan stand, cooling, overnight.

Drain the apricots (discarding the cardamom seeds and husks as much as possible) and put the cooking liquid back into the saucepan, then boil over a high heat for 15 to 20 minutes to reduce to a syrupy consistency.  I stop when I’ve reduced the liquid to about 1-1/2 cups.  Leave to cool slightly before you go on to the next stage.

Cut the pandoro into 1-1/2 inch slices; this should give you about 8 long, strippy slices in total.  Line a wide and not-too-deep glass bowl with four of the slices of pandoro, and then spread half of the warm apricots over the cake.  Pour half of the syrupy liquid over the pandoro and apricot base.

Do the same thing with the other slices, except lay them the opposite way in the bowl so that the dish is evenly covered in pandoro. Add the remaining half of the apricots and then the syrup, and leave to one side to let the cake absorb the liquid. I like to leave this overnight or for a day, covered with plastic wrap in the fridge.

To make the trifle topping, whisk the heavy cream until soft peaks form — be careful not to overwhip it — and then add the yogurt and beat or stir together just to combine. It should be soft and light enough to spread easily over the top of the trifle in a not-too-thick layer.

Drizzle the honey over the top with a teaspoon. Chop the pistachios into splinters and mix them with the slivered almonds, then scatter both over the top of the trifle.