If you haven't tried basil in pastry, you really should! It tastes amazing and especially in combination with pistachio and white chocolate. It results in a very fresh cake with a special twist!
Happy baking <3
Amount:
8-10 people
Ingredients:
Day 1
Pistachio Cake:
40 g white chocolate
80 g caster sugar
2 eggs
20 g almond flour
60 g pistachio flour
Lime zest of 1/2 organic lime
A pinch of salt
Day 1
Pistachio Croustillant:
80 g roasted pistachio nuts without shell
100 g caster sugar
60 g white chocolate
2 1/2 (2,5) tbsp Dulce de Leche with sea salt / caramel sauce with sea salt (can be bought or made yourself)
Day 1
Lime Ganache:
170 g white chocolate
70 ml heavy cream
5 tbsp lime juice
Lime zest of 1 organic lime
Day 2
Basil Mousse with White Chocolate:
2 gelatine leafs (1 sheet = 1,75 g, bloom value 240)
145 g white chocolate
65 ml lime juice
65 ml heavy cream
200 ml lightly whipped heavy cream
20-25 medium/large fresh basil leaves
Day 3
Glaze:
6 gelatine leafs (1 sheet = 1,75 g, bloom value 240)
150 g white chocolate
100 ml heavy cream
50 ml water
150 g caster sugar
150 g glucose syrup
White food colouring paste
Day 3
Chocolate Spirals and Chocolate Rings:
350 g white chocolate
Green and blue food colouring powder
Flowers and a little glucose syrup
Instructions:
Pistachio Cake:
Roast the pistachio nuts approx. 5-7 min. at 175°C. Let them cool and blend them to flour in a food processor
Carefully melt the chocolate (possibly in a bowl over a pan of simmering water / bain-marie) and put the chocolate aside in a bowl
Divide the eggs with the egg yolks in one bowl and the egg whites in another bowl
Whisk egg yolks and sugar to a light and airy consistency
Whip the egg whites to soft peaks
Mix chocolate, almond flour, pistachio flour, lime zest and salt in the egg yolks/sugar mixture. The consistency of the dough will be thick/chewy
Carefully fold the egg whites into the dough until the dough has a more liquid and even consistency
Pour the dough in a springform or pastry ring (16 cm diameter) with parchment paper
Bake the cake for approx. 14-17 min. at 175°C until lightly golden
Let the cake cool. Place it in a clean pastry ring (16 cm diameter) lined with plastic sheet at the sides and parchment paper at the bottom
Pistachio Croustillant:
Roast the pistachio nuts approx. 5-7 min. at 175°C
Carefully melt sugar to a golden caramel in a little saucepan. Add immediately the pistachio nuts and pour the caramelized nuts onto a piece of parchment paper. Let them cool
Blend 2/3 of the nuts to pistachio flour in a food processer. Chop the rest of the nuts finely
Carefully melt the chocolate (possibly in a bowl over a pan of simmering water / bain-marie) and put the chocolate aside in a bowl
Mix pistachio flour, chopped pistachio nuts and Dulce de Leche with sea salt in the chocolate mixture
Spread the croustillant over the pistachio cake
Let the cake set in the freezer while preparing the next layer
Lime Ganache:
Carefully melt the white chocolate (possibly in a bowl over a pan of simmering water / bain-marie) and put the chocolate aside in a bowl
Heat the heavy cream almost to a boil and remove it from heat
Pour the hot cream over the chocolate while stirring in the middle of the bowl with a rubber spatula
Stir in the lime juice and lime zest
Pour the ganache over the crunch layer and freeze the cake overnight. It needs to be fully set before the mousse can be added
Basil Mousse:
Soak gelatine in cold water for 5-10 min
Carefully melt the chocolate (possibly in a bowl over a pan of simmering water / bain-marie) and put the chocolate aside in a bowl
Heat 65 ml heavy cream and lime juice almost to a boil and remove it from the heat. Whip the gelatine in the cream
Pour the hot cream over the chocolate while you stir in the middle of the bowl with a rubber spatula
Grind fresh basil leaves to a fine purée in a mortar grinder and mix the basil purée in the chocolate mixture
Let it cool until lukewarm
Whip 200 ml heavy cream to soft peaks and gently fold the cream into the lukewarm chocolate mixture (if it is too hot it can separate the cream)
Prepare a 18 cm diameter silicone mould (I've used a Silikomart Universo mould) with a plastic sheet as the cake will be higher than the mould. Make sure to place the plastic sheet at the bottom of the mould / the bottom that faces upwards
Pour the mousse in the mould
Gently press the frozen cake down in the basil mousse with the lime ganache facing downwards
Freeze the cake overnight
Glaze:
Soak gelatine in cold water for 5-10 min
Chop chocolate finely and put it in a large plastic pitcher
Heat sugar, water, heavy cream and glucose syrup in a saucepan almost to a boil and remove from the heat. Whip the gelatine in the mixture
Pour the cream over the chocolate in the pitcher and hand blend (place the hand blender at an angle when blending to avoid air bubbles). Add white food colouring paste
Cover the surface with cling film and cool the glaze down to 34°C-35C°
Take the cake out of the freezer right before you are ready to glaze. Place it on a baking rack with parchment paper underneath
Pour the glaze over the frozen cake. Use two palet knives to remove the glaze excess from the bottom of the cake
Place the cake on a plate and let it thaw in the fridge for approx. 6 hours
Chocolate Spirals and Chocolate Rings:
Cut three pieces of plastic sheets and put them on the kitchen table:
Chocolate Spiral 1: 59 cm x 10 cm
Chocolate Spiral 2: 59 cm x 10 cm
Chocolate Rings: 46 cm x 5 cm
Chocolate Spirals:
Put two pastry rings (2 x 18 cm diameter) in the fridge
Cut two spirals of acetate baking sheet/plastic sheet in the following measures: 59 cm x 10 cm and 59 cm x 10 cm
Temper all the chocolate and add green and a little blue food colouring powder to obtain a mint green colour
Pour the chocolate over the two plastic sheets, even the surface with a small palette knife, release the plastic sheets from the table and run the fingers along the sides of the plastic sheets to remove chocolate leftovers. Leave it on the kitchen table until it is almost set
Place the spirals around the cold pastry rings and put them back in the fridge
When the chocolate has set, remove the plastic sheets
Gently place the spirals around the cake
Chocolate Rings:
Put a pastry ring (14 cm diameter) in the fridge
Use the tempered chocolate from before
Pour the chocolate over the plastic sheet and even the surface with a small palette knife
Run a chocolate scraper over the plastic sheet so you get long grooves
Leave the plastic sheet on the kitchen table until it is almost set
Place the plastic sheet around the cold pastry ring (with the chocolate facing inwards) and put it back in the fridge
When the chocolate has set, remove the rings from the pastry ring and place a few on top of the cake
Decorate with flowers fastened with a little amount of glucose syrup
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