Strawberry-Mascarpone Cake

The always favorite pair of strawberry and chocolate come together again in this cake. A chocolate cake is topped with a fruity strawberry mascarpone cream, topped with beautiful fresh strawberries and a strawberry sauce, which oozes down the cake. Mmmmm .... a real summer delight.

Cherry-Mascarpone Cake

Happy Valentine's Day to you all! This cake combines two of my Valentine's Day favorites:  chocolate and cherries. It's not difficult to make, but still looks very special. It also comes in a small size, which makes for a perfect Valentine's Dessert for you and your sweetheart.

Strawberry Yoghurt Cake with Matcha Sponge

I was surprised to see that local strawberries are still available. I had this cake on my to-do list for some time, and even it is more a summer cake I went ahead and made it.

The sponge cake is flavored with matcha tea, which works well with the strawberries. I would probably use more matcha the next time, since the taste didn't come through very much. The yoghurt mousse is nice and refreshing and not too sweet. So, a really nice cake, for the last days of summer.

Raspberry Chocolate Mousse Cake

Today's cake is a real taste sensation, no less. You probably had chocolate raspberry truffles before; they are one of my favorites. Raspberry and chocolate together is just heavenly. This cake tastes like a big version of it.

The recipe also uses a yoghurt mousse, which creates a delicate balance in the acidity of the yoghurt, the sweetness of the chocolate, and the tartness of the raspberry. Since the berries looked so fresh and full of life, I also think that this cakes accentuates these beautiful little jewels.

Piping the mousse took a bit of skill and lots of patience. I am still not yet fully satisfied with the results. Another thing that you need to keep in mind, is that the cake might take a while in the fridge to set, especially on a hot sunny day. I served it a little too early and the first couple slices went out of shape a little. After putting it back in the fridge, the rest was fine.

My first fondant covered birthday cake

My cute little niece just turned 6 years old, and when I was asking her what birthday cake she would like she replied with a "wedding cake". What she meant was a 2 or 3 tier fondant covered and decorated cake. I have never worked with fondant before, but this was the chance to finally try it out.

I ordered ready to roll out fondant in the requested colors pink and purple plus some extra white one. I needed more than I thought, so I was glad I had the extra white fondant. I was a little afraid that it would be hard to roll out and very sticky, but it was really easy. I just used my regular wooden roll and a plastic mat. No need for special tools. You just need to make sure to dust the fondant with some powdered sugar. It is also important to kneed the fondant very well before rolling it out.

The covering of the cake was a little more difficult. I have done that with marzipan before, but the fondant is really delicate and rips easily. It has to be rolled out big enough, but not too large or you will end up with too many folds, which have to be smoothed.

For the cake flavors I choose a chocolate cake with chocolate buttercream for the top tier from "The Complete Magnolia Bakery Cookbook". For the lower tier I made a vanilla cake layered with strawberry buttercream and fresh strawberries. If you make a fondant covered cake it is important to know that it is best to make a buttercream cake. If you make a cake filled with whipped cream, you have to make sure the filling doesn't touch the fondant, since it will made it melt. A buttercream cake is also a lot more stable and easier to tier up. To stable it I put 4 lollypop sticks in the middle of the cake before putting the second layer on.

For decoration I cut out some fondant flowers and hearts, which I attached with some royal icing. On top I put some Marshmallow Fairy sticks, which I saw on Yummy Mummy. They are a really cute idea, for all fairy and princess loving girls. I made some extra, so each child had one. For the marshmallows I used the recipe from David Lebovitz though. It was also the first time I made marshmallows, it is a little messy, but otherwise pretty easy. And they taste so much better than store bought ones.

It really requires some practice to make a cake like this, but it was a good exercise and the cake was well received. So, again Happy Birthday little girl, you grow up so fast!

Mango Chocolate Mousse Cake

This is the second cake I made for my Mom's birthday. At a German birthday party you usually can not have too many cakes. So, she even made another one herself. I wanted to make a mango-chocolate cake since I ate one in Vienna last year.

I made a decorative joconde to wrap around the cake, but I think next time I would do it without. The whole cake got a little bigger than I wanted it to be. It was really huge.

The cake still tasted delicious. I especially liked the chocolate mousse. I don't know if it was the use of the immersion blender, but it had a really nice consistency. Instead of the mango mousse, which was also very good, I want to try a passion fruit mousse next time. I think the tartness of passion fruit would go very well together with the chocolate mousse.

It takes some time and several steps to make this cake. Plan accordingly, since you have a few cooling cycles. I would recommend you bake the joconde (if using) and sponge the day before, and also make the chocolate mousse. Then you can start to assemble the cake. This way it has enough time to set overnight. The next day, when you serve the cake you have just the mango mousse and glaze to make.

Lemon Celebration Cake for my 100th post!

This is my 100th post! I can't believe I have written so many already, and it makes me a little proud that I stayed put. It is very rewarding to have you, my readers here and sharing my little baking and photography adventures. I am also very happy each time I see one of my picture showing up on sites like pinterest or other sites and see my work is recognized. So, for celebrating this occasion a great cake is in order.

But this is not the only special occasion. I made this cake for my Mom, who had a special birthday last Wednesday. She is a great baker herself, and I learned a lot from her. I have a picture from me as a toddler standing in the kitchen and helping her bake. Well, I was just licking the whisk, but I definitely inherited the baking gene from her.

I wanted to make a cake which I could decorate with a colorful bunting. This is such a cute trend, and I wanted to make it for some time now. My cousin gave me some beautiful fabric scraps from her sewing projects. I cut double triangles and glued them together over a ribbon band. Then I attached it on two tall lollipop sticks with a knot. Really easy!

For the cake I chose to make a four layer lemon cake. The cake is filled with a silky lemon cream and creamy caramel. The frosting is made from lemon cream and mascarpone, and is so delicious, that you could eat it with a spoon. There a quite a few components to be done, but everything can be made in advance. I made the cake and fillings the day before and just made the frosting on the day when I served it.

I found that beautiful petal frosting technique at "La Receta de la Felicidad", where you can also find detailed pictures on how to do it.

Strawberry-Raspberry Charlotte

Unfortunately the strawberry season is slowly coming to an end, at least for the local strawberries, and they are of course the sweetest. The you-pick farms around here are already closed some weeks ago, so I was pleasantly surprised to see some really nice local strawberries at the supermarket. This summer hasn't been very nice in Germany and this means fall is approaching very fast

So, there had to be one last strawberry cake for the summer. I made a Charlotte. A Charlotte is made of rolled up sponge cake slices filled with a creamy mousse or custard. It can be made into a cupola like this one, or in a regular round cake shape, in which case it is often done with ladyfinger.

The filling I used here is a strawberry mousse with some added strawberry pieces and raspberries. Strawberry jam was also used in the sponge rolls. Don't let the end of the strawberry season stop you from making this cake. You can also make it with other berries or fruit. Try blackberries and blueberries or peach and mango, and I think they should also be very tasty.

Sour Cherry-Pistachio Mousse Cakes

Sour cherries are very precious, because their season is rather short and they spoil quickly if not picked in time. But the good thing is that they are perfect for canning and that way can be used as cake filling or fruit compote all year round. I prefer sour cherries for cakes and canning since I think sweet cherries taste a little bland if cooked.

These little cakes I made for you today combine the tartness of sour cherries with a creamy and delicious pistachio mousse, all on top of a light sponge cake. The pistachio mousse is so good that it could be served on its own.

I also wanna take this opportunity to congratulate my mother-in-law on her birthday today. Unfortunately she is too far away to try the cakes herself. Happy birthday, 生日快樂 Ann.

Daring Bakers: Fraisier - Strawberry Bavarian Cake

I have to say this has to be the most delicious Daring Bakers Challenge so far. What's not to love about the the combination of strawberries, cream and a soft spongy cake. But all the components of this recipe were exceptionally delicious. No wonder it comes from one of my favorite baking books, Tartine. The cake is not only tasty it is also a showstopper and would impress your guests at any party.

I changed the instructions for the pastry cream a little bit since I found it had a few unnecessary steps. I also used strawberry preserves instead of the syrup. The chiffon cake by itself was already very good, and could be used as a base for many different fillings. I was lucky to be able to pick my own strawberries for the cake, for the last time this year since the season is now over. I am planning to make the cake with other fruits soon, maybe with blackberries, but I think it would be good with all kinds of fruits.

Jana of Cherry Tea Cakes was our July Daring Bakers’ host and she challenges us to make Fresh Frasiers inspired by recipes written by Elisabeth M. Prueitt and Chad Robertson in the beautiful cookbook Tartine.

Raspberry Mousse Cake

This is a truly spectacular cake, and is perfect for any special occasion. Well, mine was just that we had picked a lot of raspberries, which became ripe this week, so I made it for a nice family gathering in the afternoon. But sometimes it's those little moments you share with people you love that are the nicest.

This is definitely a cake for the summer when raspberries are in season. For the filling you could replace fresh raspberries with frozen ones, but for the topping you should use the fresh ones. It takes some planning to put the cake together, but all the components are easy to make. Just take into account that the cake needs a few hours to cool in between and before serving. Both doughs can be baked the day before you assemble it.

Chestnut Mousse Cake

It's already been 6 month since we got married, and one year since we moved to Germany. Time really flies, and so a special cake was in order. I remembered our little honeymoon in Vienna, and the delicious chestnut mousse cake (Maroni-Obers Torte) we have been eating there.

It wasn't easy to find a recipe for it, but I managed to find a website which is a great source of inspiration for Austrian desserts. The recipes are not very straightforward and you have to do a lot of calculations yourself, but it lists a lot of great basic recipes for fillings and doughs. It is probably more catered to professionals.

The cake consists of several elements, so you have to plan ahead. The cake base and the chocolate mousse can be made a day in advance. For the chestnut mousse you have to consider several hours of cooling time, but otherwise it is not to difficult to make.

If you use canned chestnut puree, and end up having a little less than what the recipe asked for, you can skim a little on the vermicelli. The can that I had was 20 g short for example. There is no need to open another can just for a few extra grams.

Daring Bakers: Biscuit Joconde Imprime with Apple, Lemon and White Chocolate-Rosemary Entremets

This month for the Daring Bakers we made a special french dessert. It is called a Biscuit Joconde Imprime Entremets. When I was first reading it I had no idea what it is, but a look at the pictures clarified it. I always admired these kind of desserts and wanted to make it for a long time. It makes a great presentation for a cake, and looks very elegant. I will definitely make them again, since you can get really creative with the flavor combination.

A Biscuit Joconde is a kind of sponge cake which is flexible and can be wrapped around a cake. The impreme means that a pattern is printed on the biscuit. This is done buy using a different color of dough first, letting it cool, and then apply the Joconde dough, before baking. An Entremet is a cake which consists of several layers. This is where the Joconde is wrapped around.

My Entremet consisted of the following layers: First a layer of sauteed apples cooked in wine and calvados, spiced with some vanilla, which was then thickened with corn starch. Next I added a layer of lemon curd. After cooling I made a layer of White Chocolate Mousse with a hint of Rosemary, which matched good with the apples. The top layer was a glaze of mango puree, which gave a beautiful color.

Unfortunately my Biscuit Joconde got a little dark. It is very important to closely watch it in the oven, as it browns very fast. The recipe makes a whole big sheet, so you can freeze some for another cake.

The January 2011 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Astheroshe of the blog accro. She chose to challenge everyone to make a Biscuit Joconde Imprime to wrap around an Entremets dessert.

A Berry Lovely Cake for my first Blog Anniversary

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.

Chocolate-Pear Cake

Today is the First Advent. Advent is celebrated in many European countries. It marks the four Sundays before Christmas. Each Sunday you light up one more candle. In Germany many people will have a wreath with four candles or some other kind of Christmas arrangement. I made my own wreath this year, and since I couldn't find candle holders to stick in the wreath, I used some nails, and it worked perfectly.

Advent is also the time when we usually start our Christmas baking. My Mom always makes endless creations of beautiful Christmas cookies. So for the time until Christmas I have lots of Christmas related baking for you. Make sure you come back often.

I am starting with a cake today. This is a very elegant and tasty chocolate cake which would be perfect for a Christmas dessert or like we usually have it in the afternoon with a cup of tea. It's a chocolate sponge topped with a chocolate cream and poached pears and then covered with chocolate ganache. Yumm! I was first hesitating when I read that it is baked twice, because I thought the cream would harden to much, but it tasted absolutely wonderful. I found the recipe from Lindt, and they certainly know what to do with chocolate.