mousse cake (cherryleader)

White chocolate mousse cake with little red gems

Adapted from Gorgeous Cakes of Annie Bell

Mousse and Fruit
400 ml double cream
250g white chocolate, broken into pieces
1 pomegranate, taken seeds out

Sponge
100 g plain flour
pinch of sea salt
6 large eggs
150 g castor sugar
1 tbsp pomegranate juice

Bring the cream to the boil in a small saucepan. Pour half over the chocolate in a bowl, leave for 1-2 minutes to soften, stir until it is almost melted, then pour the rest over and stir until smooth. Leave to cool, then cover and chill for at least 1 hour.

To make the sponge, preheat the oven to 180C and butter two 23 cm sandwich or deep cake tin with removable bases. Sift the flour into a bowl and add the salt. Put the eggs in a bowl and whisk for about 8-10 minutes using an electric mixer until the mixture is almost white and mousse-like. Lightly fold in the flour in two goes. Divide the mixture between the prepared tins, and give them a couple of sharp taps on the worktop to eliminate any large bubbles. Bake for 12-14 minutes or until the sponge is light golden, springy to the touch, shrinking from the sides and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. The cake on the lower shelf may need a few minutes longer. Remove from the oven and run a knife around the edges to loosen them. Leave to cool, when the cake will sink a little.

Given the delicacy of the sponge, the cake is best assembled on the plate you want to serve it from. Loosen both sponges using a palette knife and put one on a plate. Using an electric mixer beat the mousse until it forms soft but firm peaks, taking care to stop whisking before it turns grainy. As long as it is thick enought to spread. It will firm up further on cooling. Spread one third of it over the surface of one sponge, sandwich with the second sponge and spread another third over the top. Use the remainder to coat the sides of the cake - you may need a small knife to do the bottom sponge. Clean the edges of the plate with kitchen paper. Chill the cake for a couple of hours for the mousse to set. If keeping it any longer than this, cover with clingfilm at this point.

Just before serving, scatter the pomegranate seeds over the top of the cake. Like a trifle, the cake itself should be served lightly chilled, but the fruit is nicest at room temperature.