Berries Patisserie Cake



I love colours and thought different berries would produce a wonderful combination, thus the birth of this design 2 years ago!  Isn't it pretty?  ;)

 

This is how the interior looks like.  Strawberry shortcake using vanilla sponge, covered with chantilly cream.  This is an extremely appealing cake with the patisserie look, and it is not difficult to make. :)

 

Berris Patisserie Cake

 

8" Sponge Cake :

4             Egg

110g       Sugar

70g         Flour

20g         Corn Flour

30g         Butter

20ml       Milk

 

Simple Syrup

 

Chantilly Cream :

1 1/2 cups       Whipping Cream        

3 tbsp              Powdered Sugar  

2 tsp                Vanilla Extract

 

Decorations :

250g            Raspberries

250g            Blackberries

250g            Blueberries

250g            Strawberries, sliced

24 pieces     Sponge Fingers

 

Directions :

1. Preheat your oven to 190°C.
2. Line an 8" round pan with parchment paper - on the base and sides.  Line the sides higher as the cake will rise higher than the pan. 
3. Sift the cake flour and corn flour.
4. Warm the milk and melt the butter, set aside to cool.
5. Mix the eggs and sugar in a large bowl over a double boiler till it is slightly warm, around 38-40°C.
6. Remove the egg mixture from the double boiler and beat it up using a mixer till very light and fluffy.  You will notice that the colour changes to almost white.
7. Fold in the sifted flours, add in the warm milk and melted butter.
8. Do not overmix the batter as it will lose its foamy consistency, resulting in a cake that will not rise.
9. Pour the cake batter into the cake pan and bake for approximately 25 minutes.

Assembly :

1. Once the cake is done, cool it for 15 minutes before slicing it in half horizontally - makes 2 pieces.
2. Whip the whipping cream, sugar and vanilla extra till stiff peak.
3. Put a piece of cake on a board and brush the top with simple syrup.
4. Cover it with a layer of Chantilly cream before topping it with sliced strawberries, then cover it with another layer of Chantilly cream. 
5. Put the 2nd piece of cake on top and cover the whole cake with Chantilly cream.
6. Line the finger sponges around the cake and tie it together with a pretty ribbon.
7. Pour all your berries on top of the cake and refrigerate the cake for at least 4 hours before serving. 

Quick Dinner Roll

I have always been looking out for a quick, easy and soft bread recipe without the addition of bread improver, which s a type of food additive that increase the speed of dough rising, and used in factory baking and most bakeries.  However, I prefer not to use bread improver as longer fermentation will produce a greater depth of flavour.

I found a 30 minutes quick bread recipe from www.allreceipes.com, and adapted the recipe to suit my taste. :)  For me, the whole process of making this dinner roll takes around 45 mins to an hour as I added a resting period before baking, which I think is important in order to produce a softer texture roll.

Quick Dinner Roll

Ingredients

256g           Bread Flour
120g           Cake Flour
½ cup        Whipping Cream (can replace with milk)
½ cup        Milk
80g             Butter
2 tbsp         Instant Yeast
¼ cup        Warm Water
65g              Sugar
1 tsp            Salt
1                   Egg
½ cup         Cranberries (optional)
½ cup         Raisins (optional)
 
Directions

1. Heat oven to 200°C.
2. Bloom the instant yeast in warm water for around 5 mins.
3. Sift the bread flour and cake flour together, then put into a mixer bowl.
4. Add stir in salt, then cranberries and raisins.
5. Combine heavy cream, milk, butter and sugar in a saucepan and heat till butter dissolves.
6. Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture.  Add in egg, instant yeast mixture and warm cream mixture.
7. Mix the batter with the hook attachment till it forms a soft and smooth dough, around 5 mins.
8. Form dough into 25 balls of 40g each and place in a greased 9 x 13 pan and allow to rest for 15 mins.
9. Bake for 5-8 mins till the bread turn golden brown.
10. Brush the bread with butter immediately.