Today my little blog is turning one year old. I can't believe how fast the last year passed. It's been very rewarding to share my photographs and baking with all of you. It is always encouraging to read all the nice comments and I really appreciate them.
I made a few updates to the site, I hope you all like it. For the future I hope to post more frequently with more pictures. Now, being back with my family in Germany I have a lot more people to bake for. They are already complaining about their expanding waistlines.
For this special anniversary I made, of course, a berry cake. It has a sponge base, a creamy white chocolate and mascarpone cream and is topped with lots of fresh mixed berries. The prefect summer cake.
Mixed Berries and White Chocolate Cake
(adapted from essen & trinken Magazine)
For the sponge cake:
2 eggs
50 g sugar
1 pinch of salt
50 g flour
2 tbsp. ground almonds
3 ladyfingers
3 tbsp. apricot jam
For the cream:
180 g white chocolate, chopped
2 sheets gelantine
1 egg
250 g mascarpone
200 ml whipping cream
2 cl Grand Marnier
For the topping:
70 g sugar
50 ml fresh pressed orange juice
2 tbsp. fresh pressed lemon juice
500 g mixed berries (raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, currants)
For the sponge cake base first preheat the oven to 180° Celsius (350°F), and line a 24 cm (9-inch) spring-form with parchment paper. Beat together the eggs, sugar and salt for about 5-8 minutes until thick and creamy. Fold in the flour and ground almonds. Fill the dough in the prepared pan and smooth the top. Break the ladyfingers in small 1 cm pieces (about an inch) and press them in the dough.
Bake for about 15-20 minutes. Let cool in the form. Remove the parchment paper and put on a plate. Warm up the apricot jam and spread on top of the cake. Put a cake ring around the base.
For the cream topping melt the white chocolate in a double boiler. Soak the gelantine in cold water. Mix the egg with 1 tbsp of water and beat over a water bath (double boiler) until foamy. Stir in the melted chocolate. Melt the wet gelantine in a small saucepan and quickly stir in the chocolate-egg mixture. Let cool slightly, then stir in the mascarpone. Beat the whipping cream until stiff peaks form and fold into the cream. Fill the cream onto the cake base inside the ring and put in the refrigerator for at least 5-6 hours.
In the meantime boil the sugar together with the orange and lemon juices until the sugar dissolves and you have a syrup. Let cool. Shortly before serving clean the berries. Take the ring off the cake and arrange the berries on top. Drizzle the syrup on top and serve.
Bake for about 15-20 minutes. Let cool in the form. Remove the parchment paper and put on a plate. Warm up the apricot jam and spread on top of the cake. Put a cake ring around the base.
For the cream topping melt the white chocolate in a double boiler. Soak the gelantine in cold water. Mix the egg with 1 tbsp of water and beat over a water bath (double boiler) until foamy. Stir in the melted chocolate. Melt the wet gelantine in a small saucepan and quickly stir in the chocolate-egg mixture. Let cool slightly, then stir in the mascarpone. Beat the whipping cream until stiff peaks form and fold into the cream. Fill the cream onto the cake base inside the ring and put in the refrigerator for at least 5-6 hours.
In the meantime boil the sugar together with the orange and lemon juices until the sugar dissolves and you have a syrup. Let cool. Shortly before serving clean the berries. Take the ring off the cake and arrange the berries on top. Drizzle the syrup on top and serve.
Enjoy and Guten Appetit!
