This Berry Mousse Cake is an easier take on a classic Charlotte Russe cake. Layers of soft Genoise sponge cakes are topped with homemade berry jam and filled with a mixed berry mousse filling.
Yield: 12 Servings
Ingredients
Mousse Filling
1 ¼ teaspoons unflavored gelatin powder
2 tablespoons water
3 large egg yolks
2 teaspoons corn starch
1 pound (3 and 1/4 cups) fresh or thawed frozen berries – raspberries, blackberries, blueberries
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Pinch of salt
1 ¾ cups heavy cream
Berry Jam
1/2 teaspoon unflavored gelatin powder
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 cup seedless mixed berry jam (or any fruit jam of preference)
Genoise Cake
1 ¼ cups cake flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
5 large eggs, room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Mousse Filling – Part 1
In a large bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over the water and set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks and cornstarch until combined.
In a medium saucepan, combine the fruit, sugar, butter, and salt. Mash with a whisk and stir until no dry sugar remains. Cook over medium heat, whisking frequently until the mixture is simmering and the fruit is almost completely broken down – about 4 to 6 minutes.
Remove the fruit mixture from the heat. While whisking constantly, slowly stream about half of the fruit into the egg yolk mixture. Whisking constantly, return the tempered mixture back to the saucepan. Return the saucepan to medium heat and continue to whisk and cook until the mixture thickens and bubbles – about 1 minute.
Strain the curd through a fine-mesh strainer set over the bowl with the gelatin. Press through the strainer with a spatula until only the seeds remain. Scrape the underside of the strainer to make sure all of the curd is in the bowl. Discard the seeds. Stir the curd with the gelatin until the gelatin is dissolved.
Set aside, stirring o