Hi everyone! The strawberry season has begun! So today I’m going to share with you another recipe of Fraisier. This is one of my favorite Cake because it is very easy to make and sooo light and tasty ? There is also a lot of options when it comes to the taste or the look. For this one, I’ve decided to reproduce the look of Yann Couvreur’s Fraisier. He is a very famous French pastry Chef and I love his design which is very original. So the Fraisier is made up of 2 layers of sponge cake, a smooth vanilla Diplomat cream, and fresh strawberries! ?
You can make the custard cream (for the diplomat cream) and the sponge cake a day before the assembly. After the assembly, I also suggest you to keep the cake in the fridge overnight.
For a 28cm in diameter and 6,5cm high Fraisier:
Sponge Cake:
- 8 eggs
- 240g of sugar
- 240g of flour
Diplomat Cream:
- 600mL of full liquid cream
- 600mL of semi-skimmed milk
- 106g of egg yolks ( =5,3 eggs)
- 27,2g of corn starch
- 27,2g of flour
- 132g of sugar (or honey)
- 40g of butter
- 2 vanilla beans
- 5 tsp of vanilla extract
- 2 vanilla sugar sachet
- 16g of powdered gelatin (or sheets)
Syrup:
- 100mL of water
- 3 ripe strawberries
- 20g of sugar
- 1,5 tsp of vanilla extract
Filling and topping:
- 150mL of full liquid cream
- 15g of icing sugar
- 1kg of strawberries (400g for the inside, 300g for the edges, and 300g for the top)
Let’s start with the custard cream: (to make a day ahead)
1. Bring to boil the milk with the vanilla beans and half of the vanilla extract (2,5 tsp). Turn off the heat, cover and let it infuse at least 1h (for more flavor you can let it infuse overnight).
2. Hydrate the gelatin in 6 times its weight in cold water. Let it sit for 10min.
3. In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar and the vanilla sugar until it slightly whitens.
4. Add the corn starch and the flour. Whisk.
5. Bring to boil the infused milk and pour it in 3 times over the egg mixture. Whisk perfectly between each addition.
6. Bring back everything to the pan and cook over medium heat, while stirring, until it thickens.
7. Off the heat, add the hydrated gelatin and the cold butter.
8. Pour the cream into a wide dish and cover with cling film (it must touch the surface).
9. Refrigerate overnight.
For the sponge cake:
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C fan-assisted.
2. In a bowl, crack the eggs and add the sugar. Whisk at high speed for 10-15min until the mixture triples in size. When you lift the dough, it should form a ribbon that stays on the surface a bit.
3. Add the sifted flour in 3 times and incorporate it by lifting the dough from the inside to the outside using a spatula. Make sure to scrap the bottom of the bowl because the flour tends to stay there. Also make sure there are no pockets of flour left.
4. Pour the mixture into a 26cm mold.
5. Cook for 20min. The surface must have a nice golden color. Let it cool down before unmolding.
6. If you make it a day ahead, wrap it with some aluminum foil so it doesn’t get dry.
Now, for the diplomat cream:
1. Whip the liquid cream by increasing the speed gradually. The cream must form soft peaks, it should not be too firm.
2. Take the custard cream out of the fridge, add the other half of vanilla extract (2,5 tsp) and whip it for a few seconds to make it lighter.
3. Add a third of the whipped cream to the custard cream and whisk vigorously.
4. Add half of the whipped cream to the custard cream, and this time, incorporate it gently using a spatula. When it is perfectly incorporated, add the rest of the whipped cream.
5. Place the cream in a pastry bag with no tip and refrigerate.
For the syrup:
1. Mash the ripe strawberries and place them in a saucepan with the water, sugar and vanilla extract. Bring to boil.
2. Keep aside until use.
It’s time to assemble!
1. Wrap the bottom of your 28cm mold with cling film. Place inside a strip of rhodoid (or plastic sheet).
2. Divide the sponge cake in half. Make sure the diameter is 26cm and the height is ~1-1,5cm.
3. Cut 300g of strawberries into thin slices (~2-3mm thick).
4. Align those slices on the edges into 3 rows. Then, align 2 rows at the bottom. You can fill the gaps with small pieces of strawberries.
5. Cover with diplomat cream until it reaches half of the first row.
6. Add a layer of sponge cake and soak it with syrup.
7. Cover with some cream.
8. Cut 400g of strawberries into small cubes and add them on top of the cream.
9. Cover with the rest of the cream.
10. Finish by placing the second layer of sponge cake and soak it.
11. Refrigerate the cake overnight to make sure it holds perfectly.
12. Gently unmold the cake on your serving dish.
For the topping:
1. Whisk the liquid cream by increasing the speed gradually. Add the icing sugar at the end when the cream begins to thicken. It must be firm enough to stick to the whisks.
2. Place the cream in a pastry bag fitted with an open star tip.
3. Cut 300g of strawberries in half. Try to choose the smallest.
4. Align those strawberries at the center of the cake. For the first row, the tip of the strawberries is pointed inward and for the second and third rows, the tip is outward.
5. Pipe some whipped cream around those strawberries and fill the gaps. If you have some syrup left, brush the top of the strawberries to give them a nice shine.
Your delicious Fraisier is ready! Enjoy!
Don’t forget to write an email to partage@justonemorecake.com to share your pictures of the recipe and your opinions! I will add them at the bottom of this article.
