Spring signals

So I guess, some of you might have noticed that aside from a few post here and there and some photo shares on Facebook, I havent been blogging much lately. Its mainly because I was super busy working on a side project (all food relevant, ofcourse) which had been taking up all of my free time. And although there had been a lot of cooking and baking going around, I was mostly so tired in the evenings with almost no energy to deal with the overload of stuff that has just piled up in my camera and computer.

But wait, I am still around and actually trying my best to get back in the swing of things. There will hopefully be a heap of new and interesting posts over the next few days which should actually make up for the entire sparseness. (But please, do forgive me, just in case the nice sunny weather outside makes me slack off a bit :p) Anyways, now that we are talking about the weather, how about welcoming the warmer days with a light and fruity dessert?

Gosh, it was beyond awesome!!!

With lots and lots of beautiful springy colours and citric aromas - an exquisite balance of refreshing flavours and delicate sweetness.

Layered Berry Mousse Trifle

Ingredients:

1 sponge cake ( ca. 8")
1 1/2 cups fresh orange juice
1/3 cup cornflour
1 cup fine granulated sugar
1/4 cup water
1 tbs gelatin powder / 2 tbs agar agar (see note)
200 g frozen or fresh red berries
300 g whipped heavy cream
1 pkt jelly crystals
Fresh berries and other fruits of your choice


Dissolve gelatin in 1/4 cup tab water and place aside.
Note: In case youre using agar agar, just ignore this step. Unlike gelatin where you have to dissolve it in cold liquid first, agar agar can directly be cooked with other ingredients. It is generally a good substitute for gelatin and the ratio usually remains the same as powdered gelatin but when it comes to acidic liquids, you need to add more. Please note, it might not set with very high acidic foods like kiwi, pineapple, mangoes, peaches etc.


Take the fresh orange juice in a small sauce pan, dissolve cornflour in it and add in the sugar.
(Also add agar agar, if using).

Cook on medium heat until the sugar is completely dissolved and the mixture starts to thicken.

Remove from heat and put aside to cool. (Once luke warm, add in the gelatin).

Meanwhile, puree the berries in a food processor and strain through a fine sieve to remove the unwanted seeds.

Add the purree into the orange sauce and stir.

Also add the whipped heavy cream and fold carefully.

Fold in a hand full of fresh berries (or whatever fruits youre using).

Line the bottom of your serving bowl with a layer of sponge cake. Tip: You can either use a ready made sponge for this or make your own like I did.

Pour the prepared mousse over the base.

Cover with the remaining sponge cake.

Now take 200 ml boiling water and dissolve the entire packet of jelly granules in it. Add 200 ml iced water to this and stir gently.

Tip: For more details on the technique, check this post.

Pour the jelly over the sponge cake layer and put in the refrigerator for two hours or just until set.

Decorate with fresh fruits of your choice, glaze with melted apricot jam (or Tortenguss, in case you live in Germany) or dust the fruits with icing sugar immediately before serving.

Voila. Isn´t it gorgeous???