With berries currently in season, I have sometimes been having an apple and blueberry smoothie for breakfast. The refreshing and tangy taste combination provided the idea for this Apple and Blueberry Mousse Cake.
Of course, I had to get chocolate in somewhere hence the soft chocolate cake base! As with my Easter Dessert Slice, I use a version of my Chocolate Almond Slice for the base.
This dessert cake can be made in either a 20 cm or a 22 cm pan. In the larger pan, the base and the mousse layer will be slightly shallower, whereas in the smaller pan, they will be slightly deeper.
Because the finished cake can’t be tipped out of the cake tin onto its top (imagine squashed apple and blueberry mousse!), use either a loose bottom cake pan or a springform pan. Both of these allow the cake to be easily extracted from the cake pan once the mousse has set.
The mousse cake in the photographs in this post was made in a 22 cm pan as it is the only loose bottom pan I have. When using the larger pan, it may appear that there isn’t enough base mixture for the size of the pan, however, by spreading the mixture into the pan with a spatula, it covers the base of the pan adequately.
For the mousse:
- Either fresh or frozen blueberries may be used. If using frozen blueberries, allow them to thaw slightly prior to using.
- For quickness, I use store-bought apple puree. I use either Freshfields Apple Sauce (which I have only ever seen at Countdown Supermarkets) or Spiral Apple Puree which is organic and available from some organic shops.
When blending together the blueberries, apple and cream, ensure that the blueberries are completely pureed. The first time I experimented with this recipe, I didn’t blend for long enough. Subsequently, small pieces of blueberry remained and, in my view, made the texture of the mousse unpleasant. When completely pureed, there will be tiny dots of blueberry visible but there should be no larger pieces visible. This makes the mousse layer smooth and appealing!
The photo below on the left shows the blended ingredients with the blueberries not completely pureed – you can see pieces of blueberry clearly visible. The photo to its right shows the blueberries completely pureed – while tiny dots of blueberry are visible, there are no bigger chunks remaining.
You will see in the recipe below that once the base is cooked and cooled, I place it on a cake card (or board) before putting it back in the cake pan to top with the mousse. Placing it on a cake card means that once the mousse layer is set, the cake is much easier to transfer to a serving plate (the card remains under the cake on the serving plate). Cake cards are available for a very low price (a few dollars) from craft stores such as Spotlight and from most “Two Dollar” type shops.
It probably goes without saying, but since the cake is largely cream, it should be stored in the fridge.
Cake Base
Ingredients:
- 2 eggs
- ¼ cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- ½ cup ground almonds
- 2 Tablespoons cocoa
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
Method:
Pre-heat the oven to 180° C.
Line a 20 cm or 22 cm round baking pan with baking paper.
Lightly whisk the eggs. They don’t need to be over-beaten. I usually use a hand whisk to do this.
Add the sugar and vanilla. Whisk lightly, ensuring all of the sugar is incorporated.
Add the ground almonds, cocoa and baking powder, and mix to combine. The mixture is quite runny.
Pour the mixture into the prepared pan.
Bake for 15 minutes. Test with a skewer before removing from the oven.
Set the base aside and allow it to cool completely before covering with the mousse.
Apple and Blueberry Mouse
Ingredients:
- 500ml (2 cups) single (not thickened) cream
- 2 Tablespoons icing sugar
- 2 Tablespoons gelatine powder
- ½ cup cold water
- 200g blueberries, fresh or frozen
- 180g apple puree
- 200ml single (not thickened) cream
- 1 Tablespoon caster sugar
Method:
Whip together to soft peaks the 500ml of cream and 2 Tablespoons of icing sugar. Cover and place in the fridge while preparing the other ingredients.
Place together in a bowl the gelatine powder and cold water. Place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and stir until the gelatine is completely dissolved. Set aside to cool slightly.
Place the blueberries, apple puree, caster sugar and the 200ml of cream into the bowl of a food processor or other blender. Blend until pureed and until only tiny dots of blueberry remain (as discussed above).
In a large bowl, mix together the blueberry-apple puree and the gelatine.
Fold in the whipped cream. Ensure all of the cream is well incorporated.
Take the cooled base and place a cake card (that is the same measurement as the cake base) on top.
Flip the card and base over, and peel off the baking paper from the base.
Place the base (on the card) into the relevant size (20cm or 22cm, whichever size base you made) loose bottom pan or springform pan.
Line the sides of the pan with baking paper. This can be tricky to do since the baking paper needs to slide down behind and around the cake base.
Pour the mousse onto the base. Using a spatula, spread the mousse evenly over the base.
Refrigerate for several hours or preferably overnight before serving.
To serve, carefully remove the cake from the pan. This is where the benefit of having placed the base on a cake card comes into its own! Peel away the baking paper from around the side of the cake. Place on a serving dish or simply use the card as the serving plate.
Once the cake has been served, any remaining cake should be placed back in the fridge within about 20 minutes.
