Earlier this year I travelled to France to celebrate my 29th birthday. While on the plane I had the brilliant idea to make my very own birthday cake so as we took off for the six and something hours plane ride, I started going through older editions of Fou de Pâtisserie, a French pastry magazine where I found this cake. I wanted something exotic like it often is the case in the colder months of the year, light and refreshing, not too sweet, the kind of cake that you’d particularly enjoy after a heavy meal. This cake’s flavor profile was perfect: fresh pineapple, mango gel, passion fruit mousse, lemon crémeux and coconut marshmallow I mean… right? Well, while the thought was great, it did not go quite as well as I’d imagined. I first ran into problems considering the quantities given in the recipe with no clear indication of the size of the ring used prior to assembling the cake. I divided the quantities by two and ended up with too much of this and not enough of that. The glaze was almost transparent which was not the intended result and though everything tasted great, it was also very unbalanced. Everyone ate it anyway, myself included, it was still good but I knew (even then, a couple of champagne glasses in) that it could be so much better. So I made it again. This time I readjusted the proportion of each layer so it is harmonious, delicious and probably closer to what what intended by Angelina Paris.

The insert

Start by preparing what we call the ‘insert’. It is the inside of the cake made of three successive layers: the fruits, the mango gel and the lime crémeux. This insert will need to be frozen in order to assemble the cake. To make this cake we will need bands of 5x22cm (for each element). I recalculated the recipe for a cake square ring of 20cm and cut the needed bands in the diagonal. If you have a cake ring large enough it will work too but you will need to calculate its volume in order to get the proper thickness for each layer.

The fruits

Peel and cut half the pineapple and one mango in cubes of about 5mm. Place them on paper towels in order to dry them out as much as possible. This is to make sure that has much water has been taken out. In a professional setting, we use rapid freezing which are freezers that are much colder than our home freezers. This allow for the water molecules to turn into ice faster hence preventing them to leak out once defrosted. The only way to prevent water from leaking after slow freezing at home is to get that excess water out of the fruits. Don’t neglect this step or the fruits will leak water out later on.

Mix the fruits together and place them in a single layer in the cake ring. Try not to have any holes in between the fruits. The cake ring should be placed on a baking tray lined with a guitar sheet (or parchment paper) that fits in the freezer. Place in the freezer until the fruits are frozen.

The mango gel

In a saucepan, bring 500g of mango puree, 110g of lime juice, 20g of sugar and 3g of lime zest to a soft boil. Meanwhile in a small bowl, combine 25g of sugar and 11g of NH pectin.

Once the mango puree is at a boil, sprinkle in the pectin and sugar mix and whisk. Bring everything back to a boil and boil for 2 minutes while stirring consistently. Make sure the mango gel is smooth and that the pectin has dissolved properly.

Pour the mango gel directly in the cake ring on top of the fruits and place back in the freezer until set (at least 1 hour).

The lime crémeux

Rehydrate 4g of gelatin in 20g of cold water.

In a medium saucepan, bring 60g of lemon juice, 60g of lime juice and 16g of lemon zest to a shy boil.

Meanwhile whisk together 160g of egg yolks and 45g of sugar making sure the sugar is dissolved.

Pour the lemon and lime juice onto the egg/sugar mixture while whisking. Whisk until combined then transfer everything back into the saucepan. Cook the cream to 82C (180F).

Melt the gelatin in the microwave 10 to 15 seconds and add it to the cream. Then using a hand mixer, mix the cream. This will ensure that the gelatin and perfectly spread out in the cream and that the cream in smooth.

Add 120g of white chocolate and 290g of butter. Keep everything in the saucepan in case these last ingredients have a hard time melting you’ll be able to gently warm everything back up.

Whisk well until everything is melted then using the hand mixer, mix the cream a second time. This will help create a good emulsion thus stabilizing the cream.

Spread the lime crémeux directly onto the fruits and the mango gel. Making sure beforehand that the mango get is set. Then place the tray back in the freezer for at least 2 hours.

The crunchy layer

Everything in this layer is homemade. I have a great recipe for the crispy wafers here. This is often used in cakes like this for the purpose of adding a crispy texture to an otherwise very creamy cake. Alternatively you can buy crepes gavotte online.

The crumble

Preheat the oven to 350F (180C). Soften 30g of butter to get a creamy consistency (it shouldn’t be melted). Add 60g of sugar and whisk.

Add 30g of almond flour and whisk. Add 30g of flour and using the tips of your fingers incorporate the flour to the mixture.

Place the crumble onto a baking tray lined with a silicon mat or a piece of parchment paper and bake 20 minutes at 350F (180C) or until golden. Set aside.

In a medium sized bowl, combine the crumble, 33g of crispy wafers and 25g of unsweetened coconut shreds.

Add 50g of melted white chocolate, 25g of melted cocoa butter and 4g of grape seed oil and using a rubber spatula mix gently.

Transfer onto a baking tray lined with a guitar sheet or parchment paper and using an offset spatula spread out the mixture to about 4mm (1/8 inch).

Place in the freezer until completely set. Once set, cut out one band of 22x5cm (9×2 inches).

The Madeleine

In a saucepan combine 40g of milk, 80g of butter, 19g of honey and 6g of lime zest. Meanwhile, in a medium sized bowl whisk together 90g. of eggs and 80g of sugar. When the butter is melted, pour it onto the egg/sugar mixture and whisk.

Add the flour and whisk until combined.

Pour the Madeleine batter into the greased and floured cake ring. Bake at 350F (180C) 25 minutes or until golden.

At this point you should have three bands of 5×22 cm: one of the insert, one of the crunchy layer and one of the Madeleine cake. In the picture below you will notice that the insert was a little thin. I took this picture during my first trial, I did not know what to expect in terms of quantity. I have since double the recipe for the insert, so yours will be about twice thicker.

The passion fruit mousse

This mousse is a combination of three things: the passion fruit puree, an Italian meringue and whipped cream. Before you go ahead and make it, you need to have all of the other elements of the cake ready to be assembled. Once the mousse is made it will not be able to wait, assembly will have to follow immediately.

The whipped cream

In the bowl of your stand mixer, start by whipping up 165g of heavy cream to soft peaks. Transfer in a bowl and reserve in the fridge.

The puree

Rehydrate 12.5g of gelatin in 62.5g of cold water. Meanwhile, in a saucepan, warm up 200g of passion fruit puree. Away from the heat source, add the gelatin and whisk energetically making sure the gelatin is completely dissolved and that the puree is smooth.

The Italian meringue

In a small saucepan combine 100g of sugar and 15g of water. Make sure the sugar is entirely humidified. Cook this sugar syrup to 249.8F (121C).

Meanwhile in the bowl of your stand mixer, start whisking 50g of egg whites.

When the syrup reaches the right temperature, lowed the speed of the stand mixer and pour the cooked sugar in the bowl. Once the syrup is in send the stand mixer to full speed. Let it whisk until the bowl no longer feels hot to the touch.

Combining

Making sure the puree is cool (no more than 40C) add the Italian meringue (less 1/3 cup) and using the whisk or a rubber spatula gently combine.

Add 1/3 of the whipped cream.

Proceed the same way with the remaining of the whipped cream.

The assembly

The glaze