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It’s Midsummer this weekend, and in Sweden (where I live) it’s usually a big celebration. With dancing, and food and dessert. The most traditional cake to eat has vanilla, cream and strawberries in it. However this year I decided to make something that looks like midsummer, and also has a little bit of an enhanced flavour profile. So this years midsummer cake has three beautiful fluffy vanilla sponge layers with a soft and airy tart cherry mousse along with some nutty pistachio dacqouise layers,; its covered and decorated with a white chocolate Swiss merengue buttercream, and has some cherry dust on top. Allt he components compliment each other and every slice doesn’t feel heavy or too overpowering. Its just perfect. Plus, its EASY to bake! Don’t be intimidated by the layers, it’s a very super duper easy cake to make, just follow everything step by step and as they say in England ‘ bob’s your uncle’ (i.e. you’re done!… I personally don’t know who bob is, but its what they say lol)

Here’s how you bake it!

Instagram : @bakedbyammna | Youtube : Baked By Ammna

INGREDIENTS :

Vanilla Sponge –  

• 4 eggs
• 150g sugar (3/4 cup)
• 1 tbsp oil, vegetable or olive oil ( I used sunflower oil)
• 2 tbs buttermilk (if you don’t have access to buttermilk make it yourself – 2 tbsp milk combined with 1 tsp lemon juice)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 150g flour (1 1/3 cup)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt

Pistachio Dacqouise – 

• 120g pistachio, coarsely crushed
• 90g almond flour
• 150g icing sugar
• 200g egg whites
• 50g sugar

Cherry Mousse Layer – 

• 312g (2 1/2 cups) fresh or frozen pitted cherries (I used frozen)
• 55g sugar
• 250ml whipping cream
• 3 sheets of gelatine , silver grade – I use Halal gelatine and buy it from here –> Click Here

White Chocolate Swiss Meringue buttercream – 

• 4 Egg Whites
• 120 g Granulated Sugar
• 170g white chocolate, melted and cooled
• 250 g Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature And Cut Into Tablespoons
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 1 pinch Fine Sea Salt
• (Plus liquid gel colour for the flowers, if you want to decorate)  

METHOD :

Vanilla Sponge – 

1. line one 8inch round cake tine with baking paper. Turn the oven on to 180C.
2. Beat the eggs and sugar until fluffy and light in colour. In a small bowl, add in the oil, buttermilk and vanilla. In another bowl, add in the flour, baking powder and salt. Then pour half of the flour mixture into the egg/sugar fluff, and FOLD gently with a spatula, add in half of the wet ingredients, and fold. Then add in the remaining flour mixture, and fold, and then the remaining wet ingredients and fold until combined. Do not over mix, you don’t want to lose the air from the cake.
3. Pour evenly into the two lined baking tins, and bake for 25-30 min, take out, let cool completely. Leave to side until time to assemble.

Pistachio Dacqouise – 

1. Turn your oven on to 180C.
2. In a medium bowl, mix in the ground pistachio, almond flour and icing sugar. Then whip up the egg whites until stuff peaks, and slowly add int he sugar. Whisk on high until glossy and thick. Then fold in the dry ingredients, until thoroughly combined, making sure not to over fold and make sure not to release too much air. Then spread & make two 6 inch circle discs, onto a baking tray lined with baking paper. I just used a spoon and spooned it out, you can use a piping bag if it’s easier. Bake for 20 min, until golden. Take out and let cool completely before assembly.

Cherry Mousse – 

1. Put the gelatine leaves into a bowl with cold water to soften.
2. Put the cherries into a saucepan and let it simmer on low. Once the cherries have started to go soft start to crush them , until they are all soft. Using a blender, blend the cherries until it becomes a thick paste (don’t worry if it’s too wet, it will all come together in the later steps). Put it back onto the stove to heat up just slightly.
3. Then squeeze off the excess water from the gelatine leaves and put them into the cherry paste, mix until the gelatine has completely dissolved. Pour it into a clean small bowl, and leave it to come to room temp (you can out it into the fridge, just make sure to keep checking on it so it doesnt become stiff).
4. Then whip up your cream to stiff peaks and add in the sugar.
5. Fold in the cooled cherry/gelatine mixture and put it into the fridge until time to use.

White Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream – 

1. Melt your white chocolate, (I melt mine using a microwave in intervals), and let it cool down. Set aside.
2. Place egg whites and sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk until combined.
3. Place bowl over a hot water bath on the stove and whisk constantly until the mixture is no longer grainy to the touch (approx. 3mins).
4. Place bowl on your stand mixer and whisk on med-high until the meringue is stiff and cooled (the bowl is no longer warm to the touch, approx. 5-10 mins).
5. Switch to paddle attachment.
6. Slowly add cubed butter and mix until smooth. Add in the melted cooled white chocolate and whip until thoroughly combined.
7. Add vanilla,Whip until smooth. Keep aside in the fridge for covering the cake later.

Assembly –  

1. Take a 8 inch cake tin, and place baking paper on the bottom. Then place 1 layer of the vanilla sponge, pipe/pour about 1/4 of the mousse on top. Place 1 pistachio dacqouise disc on top. Then pipe/pour some fo the cherry mousse on, and start again with the vanilla sponge repeating the layers as before twice more. So you end up with the cake in the order (from bottom up) Vanilla sponge, cherry mousse, pistachio dacqouise, cherry mousse, vanilla sponge, pistachio dacqouise, cherry mousse, vanilla sponge.
2. Place into freezer for 2-3 hours, until stiff and cold.
3. Once cold and hardened, Take out and cover with an even layer of the white chocolate Swiss buttercream. If you want to pipe or place flowers on, take some of the buttercream, and colour it with your desired colours, and pipe or place on the flowers around the cake.

And there you have it! 😉

Enjoy! And Happy Midsummer! 🙂

Instagram : @bakedbyammna | Youtube : Baked By Ammna