Earl Grey Mousse Cake

 

.. to celebrate Billie Joe's birthday, not intentionally of course. I feel that I haven't been making any updates with real substances, but it doesn't mean I haven't been baking! In fact, I have just completed the February Daring Baker challenge, but I am not allowed to post it on my blog until the 27th (Daring Baker rule). So to keep this blog alive, I decided to take on a different challenge on my own before the big reveal on the 27th. I chose Tartelette/Veronica's Mousse Cake recipe with a variation on the flavor. I'm not a big fan of caramel as the original recipe asks for, so I decided on my favorite flavor-- earl grey tea. Earl grey is such a versatile flavor and works particularly well with pretty much any desserts that has a milky flavor. This is also my first time making mousse. The only time I had mousse was at my 19th birthday in Taiwan when my aunt made me mango mousse cake. It was beautiful and delicious, so I know sooner or later I will have to tackle this challenge as well. 

 Earl Grey Mousse Cake                                                                                                        

(from Tartlette/Veronica)

There are three parts to this cake: Genoise, mousse, and glaze

Genoise

6 eggs
1 egg white
5 oz sugar
½ tsp salt
3 oz cake flour
3 oz flour
2.5 oz melted unsalted butter

Heat the eggs, egg white, sugar and salt to 110F over flame. Whip until cooled. Sift flour over. Fold. Add the melted butter and fold being careful not to deflate the batter. Divide over 1/3 sheet pans and bake at 400F for 7 minutes.

Bavarian Cream

4 egg yolks
¼ cup sugar
1 cup whole milk
1 earl grey tea bag
1 tbs. powdered gelatin, sprinkled over 3 tbs. water
1 cup heavy cream

In a large bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar until very pale. In the meantime, in a large saucepan set over medium heat, bring the milk and earl grey teabag to a boil. Slowly pour the milk over the yolks, whisking constantly. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan over medium low heat and cook until the cream coats the back of a spoon. (as if making crème anglaise). Add the softened gelatin and stir until melted completely into the cream. Let cool to room temperature. Meanwhile whip the heavy cream to a stiff peak, then mix the whipped cream into the Bavarian cream before the cream is set.


Assembling the Mousse Cake

Cut the genoise to fit the dimensions of your pan. Line your pan with saran wrap making sure you have enough overhang on all sides so you can lift the cake out. Lay the first sheet of genoise, cover with half the caramel mousse. Lay the other layer and top with the remaining mousse. Smooth with a spatula. Chill until set before decorating and adding the glaze.

Clear glaze

¼ cup water
Juice of half a lemon
2 tbs sugar
1 tsp gelatin dissolved in 1 tbs. of water
Bring the water, lemon juice and sugar to boil. Add the gelatin until dissolved. When cool, pour over the caramel cake.

Serving:
Lift the cake out of the pan and cut in 2.25 inch squares.

Genoise is a type of cake from Genoa, Italy and it's supposed to great for layering and soaking in moisture from other layers. This is the first time I made and tasted genoise, I can't say I'm impressed because I like cakes more dense and moist. The whole thing tasted a little dry, but would probably be great with a good cup of cappuccino. I love making the glaze though, it settled quickly and tasted just like jelly.