Image is for illustrative purposes only.
This is a bright, tangy passion fruit mirror glaze for pouring over frozen mousse cakes and entremets. It sets to a soft, shiny, jelly-like film that follows every curve of the cake and gives that clean, glassy finish you see on patisserie counters, with a sharp tropical flavour that cuts through rich creams and mousses.
The glaze is built on passion fruit purée, sugar and glucose, thickened with a little modified starch and set with gelatine, then sharpened with citric acid. Poured at around 30 to 35°C over a frozen cake, it flows into a thin, even coat that stays glossy and does not crack when the cake is cut. It suits anything creamy and pale underneath: white chocolate mousse, yogurt cream, cheesecake or a coconut mousse.
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.
Note: The Recipe Calculator Tool is available to subscribers.
Weight Per Unit: 1520
Number of Units: 1
Unit Size: batch of about 1.5 kg, enough to glaze three to four 20-24 cm mousse cakes
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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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400 |
14.1 ounces
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Passion Fruit Puree
Passion fruit puree is the strained pulp and juice of passion fruit, usually sold frozen in tubs and sometimes lightly sweetened. It has an intense tropical aroma and a high natural acidity, which is what gives this glaze its sharp flavour.
frozen
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thawed |
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B
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400 |
1.7 cups
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Water
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C
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400 |
14.1 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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D
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180 |
6.3 ounces
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Glucose Syrup
Glucose syrup, also known as confectioner's glucose, is a syrup made from the hydrolysis of starch. Glucose is a sugar. Maize (corn) is commonly used as the source of the starch in the US, in which case the syrup is called "corn syrup", but glucose syrup is also made from potatoes and wheat, and less often from barley, rice and cassava.
Glucose syrup containing over 90% glucose is used in industrial fermentation, but syrups used in confectionery contain varying amounts of glucose, maltose and higher oligosaccharides, depending on the grade, and can typically contain 10% to 43% glucose. Glucose syrup is used in foods to sweeten, soften texture and add volume. By converting some of the glucose in corn syrup into fructose (using an enzymatic process), a sweeter product, high fructose corn syrup can be produced.
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E
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30 |
1.1 ounce
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Modified Starch
Modified starch is a corn or tapioca starch that has been treated so it thickens smoothly and stays stable when acid, sugar and freezing are involved. In a glaze it gives body and shine without becoming cloudy or watery; plain corn starch can be used instead, though the set will be a little softer.
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F
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30 |
1.1 ounce
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Icing Sugar Mixture
Icing sugar mixture, also known as confectioners' sugar or powdered sugar, is pulverised granulated sugar crushed together with a small amount (about three percent) of cornflour. This icing sugar is great to use when making icing for kids' birthday cakes or dusting sweet treats.
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G
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28 |
1 ounce
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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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H
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40 |
1.4 fluid_ounces
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Water
for blooming the gelatine
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cold |
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I
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12 |
0.4 ounce
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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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1520
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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.
STEP 2. Enter your Custom Number of Units
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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 |
Sprinkle G (gelatine powder) over H (cold water) in a small bowl and stir once. Leave it to stand while you make the glaze. |
Gelatine swollen and spongy, no dry grains left |
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2 |
Mix |
In a separate small bowl, whisk E and F (modified starch and icing sugar mixture) together dry, then whisk in a few spoonfuls of A (passion fruit puree) to make a smooth slurry. |
Completely lump free |
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3 |
Heat |
Put the remaining A, B, C and D (passion fruit puree, water, caster sugar and glucose syrup) in a saucepan and bring to the boil over medium heat, stirring so the sugar dissolves. |
Sugar fully dissolved and the mixture boiling |
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4 |
Thicken |
Whisk the starch slurry into the boiling liquid and keep whisking for about 1 minute. |
Glaze thickens slightly and turns clear and glossy |
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5 |
Dissolve |
Take the pan off the heat, add the bloomed G (gelatine) and stir until it has melted, then stir in I (citric acid). |
No specks of gelatine visible |
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6 |
Strain |
Pour the glaze through a fine sieve into a jug. If it is foamy, press the surface with plastic wrap or skim the bubbles off. |
Smooth, bubble-free and evenly coloured |
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7 |
Cool |
Cover the surface with plastic wrap touching the glaze and let it cool to 30-35°C (86-95°F). |
Thick enough to coat the back of a spoon but still pourable |
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8 |
Glaze |
Stand the frozen mousse cake on a rack over a clean tray and pour the glaze over the centre in one steady movement, letting it run down and cover the sides. |
Cake fully coated in one pass; do not go back over it |
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9 |
Set |
Let the drips stop, trim the bottom edge with a small knife and lift the cake onto its board. Transfer to the fridge to defrost. |
Glaze set to a firm, shiny film |
Important Notes
This batch makes about 1.5 kg of glaze, enough for three to four 20-24 cm mousse cakes. A mirror glaze only works over a cake that is frozen solid; a cold or soft cake will melt the glaze and it will slide off in patches.
Pour at 30-35°C. Hotter than that and the coat will be too thin and streaky, cooler and it will be thick and lumpy. Collect the run-off from the tray, strain it and keep it for the next cake.
Store the glaze in a covered container in the fridge for up to a week, or freeze it. To reuse, warm it gently in the microwave in short bursts or over a water bath, stir without beating air into it, and bring it back to 30-35°C. If you use plain corn starch in place of the modified starch, the glaze will still work but will be a little softer set.
Tools & Arrangements
Medium saucepan, whisk, digital thermometer, fine sieve, heatproof pouring jug, small bowls, plastic wrap, cooling rack and a clean flat tray to catch the run-off, small palette knife.
