Happy Birthday Aunty Choon Hua!

Lea, whose wedding cupcakes I made, gave me the honour to make a birthday cake for her lovely mom.   Since they are not a fan of overtly sweet desserts and since I am on a mousse cake streak, fatally, I suggested a mango mousses layer cake for her mom.   Lea gamely went with my idea. 

But little did I know that the mousse cake was to travel 5 hours back to Lea's hometown down south.  Needless to say, the mousse cake collasped but not to the point unconsumable.  Apparently, in keeping up with the cheer, the sporting family went ahead and dug into the mango mash with spoons and declared it yummy! all the same.

Lesson : Ask question, don't assume! (oh gosh!  I do feel like an imcompetent a** and was glad that Lea was good-natured over the whole issue.. :) )

Aunty Choon Hua, I am sorry that you did not get to see the actual cake,  here's some pixs - hope this will make up part of your birthday experience!)

Now, mousse cake is a very sensitive cake with real mango puree mixed into whipped cream and set to firmness with gelatine.   It need to be refrigerated.  At most, you can leave it at room temperature for less than an hour!

I had to keep sending it back to the fridge each time I worked on it.    The mousse will melt if left out too long.  Rather time consuming at this stage. 

The cake is covered with mango buttercream.  Double ZIIIING  of mango!

I love star tips.  Each star is impeccable!

Hands will ache and tired out very soon.   Make sure you rest your hands in between fridge time.

Leanne likes a garden theme.

I used pastel colours because it's for a lady!

View from the top. 

Close up.  Rainy days threaten to soften the flowers.  But they turned out alright!

Hope you enjoy!

Happy Birthday Kien Min!

This is the first time I am trying out a mousse layer cake.   It is for Kien Min, our good trusty friend who turned 30 on 1st April!  HAPPY BURPDAY! 

I have always love the lightness yet not coy texture of mousse compare to a straight buttercream.   The tricky part of this cake is the gelatine used to set the mousse.  I researched different recipes on the net.   Too little gelatine, your mousse won't set properly, too much, you get a solid piece of rubbery gel.   hmmm....but I love such challenges! 

I thought and thought - what would be the best flavour of the mousse.  My colleague mentioned that how she love the fragrant sweet smell of passion fruit.  That the smell lingers long on her fingers after she had the fruit.. and that settles it!  What better way to flavour your first mousse cake other than the delicious passion fruit.  Thanks CPY for sponsoring the fruits too!

Let's get down to work!

First, get the layer cake done.  This is the most well behaved cake.  All flat and baked just right, not one bit overdried! 

Look how fine the crumbs were.  I can imagine how nice the texture feels in my mouth already!

Next, up the passion fruit mousse.  Somehow the intense yellow of the passion fruit don't quite show through.  The passion fruit puree was mixed into the egg whites first, then incorporated into stiff whipped cream.   For 3 cups of mousse, I experimented with 2 tbsp of gelatine.  Hope this works!

I used a springform pan to hold up all 3 layers of cake alternating with layers of mousse.  It stands tall.  The sides is not smooth.  I do not have enough mousse to fill the sides, unfortunately.

Look how nice it is when the layers are cut.  The sponge cake is delicately soft and moist with the gelatine holds up the mousse rather well!

I would do a few things different next time.  I would probably trim an inch off each cake layers and encased the whole cake in mousse.  I am already excited!