Flowers in the water is the name that I myself have given to this cake. It is a layer cake with almond and Amaretto flavour, filled with mascarpone cream and blackberries and covered with Swiss vanilla meringue buttercream. You can see the magic of this cake clearly and it is the water that floods all those violas. The water is made with lemon-flavored jelly and some food coloring. And I guess it goes without saying that I made this cake to celebrate my birthday which is today!
Flowers in the water is a cake that represents failure but also represents “never give up” and “fight to the end.” At first glance it may seem that the result of this cake is intentional, but since I am not ashamed to admit that it went wrong, I am going to confess that this is not how it should have turned out. The cake should be completely covered in jelly without the top “poking out” like it does. Or at least, that was my plan. But the process failed.
As it is not an easy technique to do, I put all my knowledge of fluid dynamics into practice, but it went wrong. Don’t worry, because from my failure I have learned the correct way to do it, and although I have not had the opportunity to put it into practice I am still convinced that it will work and I share it with you in the step by step of the recipe. And as you can already deduce, somehow part of the jelly that had to cover the entire cake was spilled.
But instead of giving up and not presenting the cake here, I decided to give the concept a spin, add the pieces of chopped jelly on the margins and simulate the waves in the water touching the rocks where those beautiful flowers are. I know it’s weird, but in the end I was happy with the result. Previous disapointment for the failure of my initial plan …
The complete process of creating the cake is shared on video on Instagram. You can go see it there because WordPress won’t let me upload videos to the blog, or at least I can’t find a way. As for the cream of the filling, I have used my infallible cream and mascarpone cream to which I have added a little blackberry jam for flavor and color. I have also used Swiss meringue buttercream in many other cakes. Anyway, I have collected everything in the recipe box. The process is long and it takes at least 2 days to make the whole cake, taking into account the cooling times. But you see the most beautiful Wow effect that is achieved, so it is worth every minute invested!
If you have tried this recipe, leave me a comment so I know if you liked it! You can also upload a photo to Instagram using the hashtag #caudesucre and tag @caudesucre so you can see them. I love to read you and see your creations !!
Sweet dreams,
Flowers in the water - and Happy Birthday to me!
(1 votos, promedio: 5.00 de 5)
Loading...This layer cake of almond and Amaretto flavour, filled with mascarpone cream and blackberries and topped with Swiss vanilla meringue buttercream. You can see the magic of this cake clearly and it is the water that floods all those violas. The water is made with lemon-flavored gelatin and food coloring.
Ingredients
- CAKE LAYERS:
- 120 g butter (at room temperature)
- 300g sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1/4 tsp of salt
- 1 tsp bitter almond extract
- 200 g flour
- 80 g almond flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 180 ml milk
- 60 ml Amaretto liqueur
- BLACKBERRIE CREAM:
- 250 g mascarpone
- 200 ml whipping cream (very cold)
- 50 g blackberry jam
- BUTTERCREAM:
- 4 egg whites
- 1 pinch of salt
- 200 g sugar
- 60 ml water
- 220 g butter (at room temperature)
- JELLY:
- 1 liter water
- 12 jelly sheets
- The juice of 1 lemon
- 50g sugar
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 170ºC and grease three 16 cm diameter baking pans.
To prepare the cake, in the stand mixer bowl with the paddle attachment mix the butter with the sugar for about 5 minutes, until the mixture is fluffy and whitish. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating 30 seconds for each one of them. Add the vanilla extract, mixing until just incorporated.
Sift the flour with the baking powder and the almond flour. Add the dry ingredients, milk and amaretto to the cake alternating and mixing between additions, always starting and ending with the dry ingredients.
Distribute the batter evenly in the pans. Bake for about 35 minutes or until when poking the cakes with a toothpick, it comes out dry. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on a rack before unmolding.
To make the filling cream, mix the mascarpone using the whisk until creamy, about 1 minute. Add the heavy cream that should be very cold and whip at high speed until it thickens, about 2 minutes. Add the jam and mix until the cream is a uniform color. Reserve the cream in the fridge until it's time to use it.
To prepare the Swiss meringue buttercream, you must first prepare the meringue. To do this, heat the sugar with the water in a saucepan. Insert a kitchen thermometer to monitor the temperature of the syrup.
Meanwhile, whip the egg whites in the bowl of the mixer with the salt and vinegar at low speed, so that they get foamy, but without whipping them completely. When the temperature of the thermometer reaches 100ºC, increase the speed of the mixer to medium-high.
When the temperature of the syrup reaches 118ºC, remove it from the heat and without stopping the mixer, pour into the whites very slowly and in the form of a thread while you continue mixing the whites at medium-high speed. Be very careful and don't pour the syrup on the moving rods or it may splatter and burn you.
Keep mixing on high speed for about 10 more minutes, until the meringue is cool. Before adding the butter make sure the bowl is cold, if necessary wait 5 or 10 more minutes for the meringue to cool.
Add the butter little by little in pieces while you continue mixing at medium speed until everything has been integrated, add the vanilla extract and at that moment increase the speed of the mixer and beat the mixture for 5 more minutes. There is a moment when it seems that it splits, but in the last minute of mixing it takes the necessary consistency, do not panic.
We have everything ready to start assembling the cake. Cut the cake layers to level them if necessary. Place a layer of sponge cake as a base, spread it with a little blackberry jam and cover with ⅓ of the blackberry cream. Cover with a second layer of sponge cake.
Repeat this step until you have all 3 layers done. Now is the time to frost the cake with the buttercream.
First we will give a very thin layer, cover the crumbs and let it cool in the fridge for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes you can give it a second layer of buttercream and cover it completely. Decorate with the fresh flowers and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
Meanwhile you can prepare the jelly. Put the water with the lemon and the sugar to heat in a saucepan without letting it boil. Hydrate the jelly sheets in cold water. Drain the jelly sheets and add them to the hot water, mixing until dissolved. Add some aquamarine food coloring or mix blue and green. Be careful not to use too much, always add very little and add as you see the intensity.
Let the jelly cool completely to room temperature before using it.
To put the jelly around the cake, place the cake on a sheet of cling film. Wrap the cake with an acetate ring that is at least 3 cm higher than the cake and seal the side opening well with tape. Finally, place a cake ring on the base and adjust it to fit the acetate ring. Wrap the excess film, covering the cake ring well, so that the entire bottom edge is well sealed so that the liquid cannot escape.
The trick so that what happened to me does not happen to you is to add the jelly in steps and not all at once. Add a little jelly so that the level reaches about 3 cm. Refrigerate the cake until the first layer of jelly hardens, at least 2 hours. Repeat the step filling half the height of the cake and chill again until set. When it has hardened, pour in the rest of the jelly and let the whole cake solidify in the fridge for at least 4 hours.
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