I love cherries and they are at their very best right now and not for long, so I made the most of these beauties and made a delicious entremet. The entremet has several elements (as it should have!):
-dark chocolate mousse
-cherry and black pepper compote
-dark chocolate cake
-chocolate, hazelnut and black pepper croustillant
-cacao mirror glaze
-dark chocolate branches
Ingredients and procedure
Chocolate sponge cake
150ml almond milk
1/3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
75g soft vegan butter
100g caster sugar
1/2 tsp salt
125g self raising flour
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
25g cocoa powder
20g melted dark chocolate
Pour the apple cider vinegar in the milk and let curdle. Beat the vegan butter and the caster sugar for ~5 minutes, until pale and fluffy. In another bowl, sift together the flour, the bicarbonate and the cocoa powder. Then start adding this dry mix to the beaten butter, but do it in batches and alternate a batch of dry with a batch of wet (milk+vinegar) ingredients. Do not mix, try to FOLD. Treat the butter as if it was beaten egg whites. Once everything is incorporated, add the melted dark chocolate and pour in the cake tin. I divided my mixture in 3 tins. Bake at 180C static for ~45 minutes. I have a temperamental oven, so for me it takes 50 minutes, for others it might take a bit less. Check with a metal skewer.
Croustillant
50g melted chocolate
20g caramelised almonds (20g sugar, splash of water)
1/2 tsp black pepper
Combine all ingredients. Spread on the sponge and let set.
Cherry compote
200g cherries, 150g pureed, 50g whole cut in half
2 tsp agar agar
80g sugar
2 tbsp gin
a good pinch of black pepper
Cook all the ingredients until the mixture reaches 80C, then set aside until ready to assemble.
Pipe in the mould and let set
Chocolate mousse
6 g agar agar + 30g cold water
150 g unsweetened almond milk
280 g dark chocolate
300 g heavy cream (semi whip before adding to the cooled ganache)
Mix the agar with the water and let sit a few minutes. Warm up the milk and add the agar, stir well and let warm (do not bring to a boil but to 90C). With the double boiler system, melt the chocolate. Pour the milk on the chocolate in 3 batches, stirring well to combine. Let cool.
Whip the heavy cream until soft peaks form and fold in the cool (30C) chocolate mixture in three batches. Pour in the mould and using a spoon make sure there are no spots left behind.
Cacao glaze (modified after the chocolate glaze recipe by Petra Stahlova)
1250g water
140g almond milk
120g + 30 caster sugar
50g glucose syrup
10g pectin (Certo, or powdered NH pectin)
45g dutch processed cocoa powder
3g water + 3g lemon juice
Warm in a saucepan water, 120g sugar, syrup and coconut milk. Once this mixture reaches 40C add the pectin mixed with the rest of the sugar and keep whisking until the mixture reaches a boil. Add the cocoa powder and keep stirring for a minute or two until well combined and finally add the lemon juice and water mixture. Transfer to a blending glass and blend with an immersion blender without forming bubbles. Transfer to a bowl and cover with cling film and let rest 6h in the fridge. When ready to use, heat with a double boiler system to 40C.
Miri's Cake Files 