Image is for illustrative purposes only.
This is a light, gelatine-set strawberry cream: strawberry purée sharpened with a pinch of citric acid, set with bloomed gelatine, lightened with whipped thickened cream and finished with a meringue so it stays soft and airy rather than dense. The colour is a natural pale pink and the texture is close to a mousse, but firm enough to hold a clean cut edge.
I use a cream like this as a filling between sponge layers, as a mousse layer inside a ring, or piped into small dessert glasses. It sets in the refrigerator in a few hours, slices cleanly, and takes a fruit glaze or fresh strawberries on top very well.
Ingredients
The weights in the recipe table below will yield the following 'weight per unit' and 'number of units'. If you would like to change the recipe to cater to a different 'weight per unit' and/or 'number of units',
you can use the Recipe Calculator Tool below the ingredients table.
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Weight Per Unit: 2143
Number of Units: 1
Unit Size: 24 cm cake ring, about 4 cm deep
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WEIGHT
(grams)
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ALTERNATIVE METRIC
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INGREDIENT
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IMAGE
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CONDITION
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A
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225 |
7.9 ounces
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Strawberry Puree
Strawberry purée is simply strawberries blended smooth and sieved to remove the seeds, sold frozen in tubs or made at home from fresh or thawed frozen berries. It is usually unsweetened, so the sugar in the recipe does the sweetening.
unsweetened
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thawed |
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B
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2.5 |
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Citric Acid
Citric acid is the natural acid found in lemons and other citrus fruit, sold as fine white crystals or powder. A small pinch sharpens the flavour of sugar syrups and helps stop them crystallising during storage.
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C
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40 |
1.4 ounces
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Gelatin
Gelatin or gelatine (from Latin: gelatus meaning "stiff", "frozen") is a translucent, colourless, brittle (when dry), flavourless foodstuff, derived from collagen obtained from various animal by-products. It is commonly used as a gelling agent in food, pharmaceuticals, photography, and cosmetic manufacturing. Substances containing gelatin or functioning in a similar way are called gelatinous. Gelatin is an irreversibly hydrolyzed form of collagen. It is found in most gummy candy as well as other products such as marshmallows, gelatin dessert, and some ice cream, dip and yogurt. Household gelatin comes in the form of sheets, granules, or powder. Instant types can be added to the food as they are; others need to be soaked in water beforehand.
powdered
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D
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175 |
0.7 cup
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Water
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cold |
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E
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1400 |
5.9 cups
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Thickened Cream
Cream is used as an ingredient in many foods, including ice cream, many sauces, soups, stews, puddings, and some custard bases, and is also used for cakes. Perfect for pouring, baking, whipping or adding the indulgent touch to your favourite recipes.
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cold |
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F
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175 |
6.2 ounces
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Sugar
Sugar is the generalized name for sweet, short-chain, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. They are carbohydrates, composed of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. There are various types of sugar derived from different sources. Simple sugars are called monosaccharides and include glucose (also known as dextrose), fructose and galactose. The table or granulated sugar most customarily used as food is sucrose, a disaccharide. (In the body, sucrose hydrolyses into fructose and glucose.) Other disaccharides include maltose and lactose. Longer chains of sugars are called oligosaccharides. Chemically-different substances may also have a sweet taste, but are not classified as sugars. Some are used as lower-calorie food substitutes for sugar described as artificial sweeteners.
caster
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G
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125 |
4.2 Egg Whites
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Egg White
Egg white is the common name for the clear liquid (also called the albumen or the glair/glaire) contained within an egg. In chickens it is formed from the layers of secretions of the anterior section of the hen's oviduct during the passage of the egg. It forms around fertilized or unfertilized egg yolks. The primary natural purpose of egg white is to protect the yolk and provide additional nutrition for the growth of the embryo (when fertilized). Egg white consists primarily of about 90% water into which is dissolved 10% proteins (including albumins, mucoproteins, and globulins). Unlike the yolk, which is high in lipids (fats), egg white contains almost no fat, and carbohydrate content is less than 1%. Egg whites contain just over 50% of the protein in the egg. Egg white has many uses in food (e.g. mousse) and also many other uses (e.g. in the preparation of vaccines such as those for influenza).
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room temperature |
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2142
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Recipe Calculator Tool
Using this tool, you can alter this recipe for your own requirements. Use the two fields below to generate new weights for the ingredients above.
STEP 1. Enter your Custom Weight Per Unit
The 'Custom Weight Per Unit' is already loaded with the weight per unit for this recipe but can be changed if required. If all you wish to do is change the number of units (or servings), just leave the current weight per unit.
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STEP 3. Click Calculate
The new weights for your adjusted recipe will be displayed in the table above.
Method
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STEP
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ACTION
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DETAIL
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CONDITION
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1 |
Prepare |
Have all the bowls, the whisk and a cake ring or moulds ready before you start, as the mixture sets quickly once the gelatine goes in. |
Everything within reach |
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2 |
Mix |
Stir A and B (strawberry purée and citric acid) together in a bowl until the acid is dissolved. |
Smooth, no gritty crystals left |
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3 |
Bloom |
Sprinkle C (gelatine powder) over D (cold water) and leave to stand. |
Gelatine swollen and spongy, no dry powder |
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4 |
Boil |
Bring the bloomed gelatine and water just to the boil, then pour it into the strawberry purée and mix well. |
Gelatine completely dissolved and clear; purée evenly blended |
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5 |
Whip |
Whip E (thickened cream) in a cold bowl. |
Soft peaks only, still glossy and pourable |
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6 |
Combine |
Add the whipped cream to the strawberry mixture and mix through. |
Even pink colour throughout |
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7 |
Whip |
Warm F and G (caster sugar and egg white) together over a bowl of hot water, stirring, until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is warm to the touch, then whip to a meringue. |
Smooth between the fingers, whipped to soft, glossy peaks |
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8 |
Fold |
Fold the meringue through the strawberry cream in two or three additions, working lightly. |
No streaks of meringue, mixture light and mousse-like |
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9 |
Fill |
Pour or pipe the cream straight into a lined cake ring, between sponge layers or into serving glasses and level the top. |
Filled before the gelatine begins to set |
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10 |
Set |
Refrigerate until firm. |
At least 4 hours; the surface springs back and holds a clean cut |
Important Notes
At this size the recipe makes about 2.1 kg of finished cream, enough for one 24 cm ring about 4 cm deep, or to fill and layer two smaller cakes. Keep it refrigerated and use within two to three days; it is a fresh cream and fruit filling, so do not leave it at room temperature. If you would like a stronger pink, a very small amount of red colour can be mixed into the purée before the cream goes in. The meringue is warmed so the sugar dissolves and the egg white is heated through; whip it straight away while warm for the best volume. Freezing is possible for a set, ring-moulded cake, but thaw it slowly in the refrigerator.
Tools & Arrangements
Electric mixer or hand beaters, two or three mixing bowls, small saucepan, whisk, rubber spatula, sieve for the purée, cake ring or moulds, baking paper or acetate for lining, palette knife.
