On 10 August, it was my birthday! We celebrated it with the family the next day and I needed to find a cake recipe for the occasion. On holiday, I’d gone through the Fou de Pâtisserie and Pâtisserie et compagnie magazines from cover to cover (to each their own summer reading! ^^). I’d already spotted Patrick Berger’s arc-en-ciel and the occasion was perfect: seasonal fruit, a vanilla mousse and a pretty glaze.
I’m really pleased with the result! The mirror glaze is a success even if the colour is a bit too pink for my taste (even though I used “strawberry red” and “cherry red” colourings). For the decoration, I took my inspiration from Patrick Berger’s entremets.
Taste-wise, everyone loved it! My other half, who’s used to eating my pastries (poor thing!!), thought it was one of the best I’ve ever made. Light on the palate, not too sweet, a lovely red berry flavour (I’d bought delicious Mara des bois strawberries and fresh raspberries) that pairs wonderfully with vanilla. I was delighted to see everyone enjoying it!
And because you do have to nitpick, I found this entremets lacked crunch. The pâte sablée was rather damp, it had lost all its crunch after freezing/defrosting. If I had to make this entremets again, I would probably make a few changes to the base of the cake (perhaps a breton shortbread instead of the pâte sablée, or an additional white chocolate crunchy layer?). Something to think about for next time, then.
All the same, this entremets is delicious and I really recommend you try this recipe! It’s a little long and may seem difficult, but you just need to follow the steps of the recipe carefully and plan ahead to lighten the workload. Example of a schedule:
- D-3: pâte sablée + red berry confit
- D-2: mirror glaze + macaronnade
- D-1: vanilla mousse + assembly
- D-day: glazing + decoration
The vanilla mousse proportions were insufficient for a 20 cm diameter mould. I had to quickly make another mousse, which explains the line you can see on the cut of the cake. Here I’m giving you the doubled proportions so that you have enough.
Ingredients & method
7 components · Full recipe
Pink Mirror Glaze (can be made in advance)
Ingredients
- 75 g (2.6 oz) water
- 150 g (5.3 oz) sugar
- 150 g (5.3 oz) glucose
- 100 g (3.5 oz) unsweetened condensed milk
- 150 g (5.3 oz) white chocolate
- 10 g (0.4 oz) gelatine
- 60 g (2.1 oz) water (to rehydrate the gelatine)
- a mix of pink and red food colouring
Method
1
Rehydrate the gelatine in the water.
2
In a saucepan, combine the water, sugar and glucose and heat to 103°C / 217°F.
3
Meanwhile, in a tall jug, combine the white chocolate cut into pieces, the unsweetened condensed milk, the rehydrated gelatine and the food colouring.
4
When the water/sugar/glucose mixture reaches 103°C / 217°F, pour it into the jug then blend with a hand blender to smooth the glaze, being careful not to incorporate air or you will end up with unsightly air bubbles.
5
If necessary, strain the mixture through a sieve and refrigerate.
6
Ideally, make the glaze the day before (or in advance) and reheat it in the microwave before use.
Sweet Pastry (make the day before)
Ingredients
- 25 g (0.9 oz) soft butter
- 15 g (0.5 oz) caster sugar
- 15 g (0.5 oz) ground almonds
- 10 g (0.4 oz) trimoline (or honey)
- 75 g (2.6 oz) eggs
- 30 g (1.1 oz) flour
- 1 g (0 oz) baking powder
Method
1
Mix the butter, sugar and ground almonds together.
2
Add the trimoline, then the eggs, flour and finally the baking powder.
3
Pour into an 18 cm (7.1 in) diameter ring and leave to rest for 4 hours, then bake for 10 minutes at 160°C / 325°F.
4
Leave to cool on a wire rack.
Red Berry Confit (make the day before)
Ingredients
- 20 g (0.7 oz) strawberry purée
- 20 g (0.7 oz) raspberry purée
- 72 g (2.5 oz) caster sugar
- 10 g (0.4 oz) pectin
- 125 g (4.4 oz) strawberries
- 125 g (4.4 oz) raspberries
Method
1
Gently warm the fruit purées, then add the remaining ingredients and bring to the boil.
2
Pour into a dish, cover with cling film touching the surface and leave to cool.
3
Once cooled, mix the red berry confit with a whisk, then spread it over the sweet pastry disc placed inside an 18 cm (7.1 in) diameter ring. Freeze overnight.
Macaronade
Ingredients
- 50 g (1.8 oz) egg whites
- 12 g (0.4 oz) sugar
- 25 g (0.9 oz) ground almonds
- 25 g (0.9 oz) ground hazelnuts
- 50 g (1.8 oz) sugar
- 10 g (0.4 oz) flour
Method
1
Preheat the oven to 170°C / 340°F.
2
Whisk the egg whites to stiff peaks, then firm them up with the sugar.
3
Gently fold in the ground nuts, sugar and flour.
4
Pour into an 18 cm (7.1 in) diameter tin and bake for 8 minutes.
5
Leave to cool on a wire rack.
Vanilla Bavarian Mousse
Ingredients
- 150 g (5.3 oz) milk
- 2 vanilla pods
- 140 g (4.9 oz) egg yolks
- 140 g (4.9 oz) sugar
- 8 g (0.3 oz) gelatine leaves
- 450 g (15.9 oz) whipping cream (full-fat)
Method
1
Soak the gelatine leaves in very cold water.
2
Whisk the egg yolks with the sugar.
3
Heat the milk in a saucepan with the split and scraped vanilla pods and bring to the boil.
4
When the milk is hot, pour it over the egg yolk and sugar mixture, stir well and return to the heat.
5
Cook, stirring constantly with a spatula, until the temperature reaches 85°C / 185°F. Take care not to let the cream boil.
6
Remove from the heat and add the well-drained gelatine.
7
Once the mixture has cooled to 40°C / 104°F, fold in the whipped cream in several additions and stir. Set aside.
Assembly
Ingredients
- None
Method
1
Line the inside of a 20 cm (7.9 in) ring with an acetate strip and place the frozen sweet pastry and red berry disc at the centre.
2
Pour in half the vanilla mousse and place in the freezer for 5 to 10 minutes to allow the mousse to set slightly.
3
Place the macaronade on top and pour in the remaining vanilla mousse. Smooth with an angled spatula and freeze the entremet overnight.
Decoration
Ingredients
- a few red berries
- macaron shells and filled macarons
- mint leaves
Method
1
Remove the entremet from the freezer and unmould.
2
Place the frozen entremet on a wire rack set over a plate or dish to catch the excess glaze.
3
Warm the mirror glaze in the microwave to approximately 30°C / 86°F and pour gently to coat the entremet completely.
4
Remove the entremet from the rack and place on a serving dish.
5
Decorate as you wish. I placed macaron shells around the entremet along with strawberry macarons and red berries on top.
6
Leave to thaw in the refrigerator. Allow approximately 5 to 6 hours for defrosting.
Gallery
