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Strawberry Mousse Cake with Chocolate Cupcake Decoration

Strawberry Mousse Cake with Chocolate Cupcake Decoration

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This Strawberry Mousse Cake is made with sponge cake filled and frosted with a cream cheese mousse made with strawberry coulis and decorated with chocolate cupcakes and strawberries.

Today is my little daughter’s birthday.  Evanggelia (we call her Elia) is turning 19 today!

I asked her a few days ago what kind of cake she would like for her birthday and she insisted that she wanted a plain sponge cake, with whipped cream and strawberries. 

“Are you sure”, I asked her “this is way too easy.  No, chocolate on it?”. 

As Elia’s birthday is in March when the strawberries start appearing in the market, most of Elia’s Birthday cakes are with strawberries as she loves them.

Top shot of the strawberry mousse cake image

I’ve made hundreds of cakes and even when I was single I did not make a cake as simple as the one she was asking me to make. 

I decided to use the ingredients she wanted but I started thinking what to do to make it a strawberry cake but to make it something special and although she said no chocolate, I am sure she will love it and if she doesn’t she can easily remove the chocolate.

How I imagined making the Strawberry Mousse Cake

  • To make a sponge cake
  • To use strawberries to make a sauce with which I would flavour the cream
  • To make the filling with whipped cream and cream cheese
  • To make chocolate cupcakes to decorate it.

What I actually did:

I prepare the usual sponge cake I make but this time I flavoured with vanilla and mastic.  

The sponges were prepared on Wednesday evening and assembled the cake last night, except for the decoration on top, which I finished this morning.

Collage 1 Making sponge image

I made two sponges and cut each one in the middle to have four layers.  I used the best bottom piece as the last layer.

Don’t worry if the other pieces are not cut to perfection or if they break because this will not matter.

Collage 3 Making strawberry coulis image

I prepared a strawberry sauce / coulis.  I used to call it strawberry sauce but only recently realized that strawberry sauce and coulis is the same thing.  Coulis is just a fancy name for the sauce.  

I used this coulis to wet the sponge cakes with its syrup, to flavour the whipped cream and the rest were pureed and used in the cream cheese filling.

Collage making the filling image

For the filling, I didn’t like the idea of just adding whipped cream and as she loves cream cheese,  I mixed some cream cheese as well and made a kind of strawberry mousse but without the eggs.

Collage 2 Making chocolate cupcakes image

How I visualized the Strawberry Mousse Cake

I wanted to decorate the cake with chocolate cupcakes and fresh strawberries, so yesterday morning I melted  couverture chocolate in a double boiler (I wish I had white chocolate at the time I decided to make it, but it was 6 a.m.). 

It took me almost 1 hour to make them.  When the chocolate melted I added the butter but it turned very hard.  A quick thinking and I decided to add vegetable oil.  That didn’t work either.  Finally I opened a heavy cream and poured just a few teaspoons each time and mixed it until I had the right consistency. 

Each time it started becoming hard, I just mixed in some heavy cream in.  I must have used about 3 tsps. 

To make the chocolate cupcakes, I used mini paper cups, the ones I use to put truffles in.

I only wanted around nine mini chocolate cupcakes but to be on the safe side, in case any one broke, I decided to make a few extra ones. 

What I did was to add some melted chocolate in the cups and spread it inside until it was well coated.

While I was preparing them I thought of ways I could use the leftover melted chocolate. 

One way was to add milk and make choco milk for the children but they were asleep and I had to leave before they woke. 

Then I could add them in a big cupcake casing and refrigerate it to use it in another recipe, such as a ganache but finally there wasn’t too much left so I continued filling more mini cup cakes. 

What remained in the pot was a pity to go wasted so I heated a cup of milk in the microwave to save time and mixed it in the chocolate and I had a cup of chocolate milk for breakfast.

Chocolate cupcakes filled with strawberry mousse image

Preparing the Sponge Cakes

It is advisable to prepare the sponge cakes from the previous day.

Sift the flour and corn flour with baking powder and salt. Mix in vanilla and mastic powder.

Beat eggs and sugar for approximately 10 minutes till smooth and creamy.

Gently fold in the flour mixture using a spatula, so that the beaten air doesn’t escape.

Line with parchment paper two 26 cm spring form tins and divide the mixture.

Bake in a preheated oven at 180oC / 350oF for about 35 – 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Turn out onto racks to cool.

Preparing the Chocolate Cups

You must prepare the chocolate cups the previous day, of even earlier.

In a bain Marie (double boiler) add the chocolate with butter and oil and mix until the chocolate melts.  Add some heavy cream and mix until its consistency becomes runny again.  Take about 1/2 teaspoon chocolate and cover the sides and bottom of the mini cups.  Refrigerate until ready to use.

Preparing the Strawberry Coulis

You can also prepare the strawberry coulis, the day before.

Wash and hull the strawberries and place in a non stick frying pan. Add the water, sugar, and rum and simmer for about thirty minutes, stirring from time to time until the syrup is thick. Set aside until it cools.  Strain the strawberries and set aside ¼ cup of the strawberries.  Puree the remaining in a food processor.

Put the gelatin leaves in a bowl and cover with tap water for five minutes.  Heat the heavy cream in a small pot until warm and add the gelatin leaves (without the water). 

Mix continuously on low heat until there are no traces of gelatin on the spoon.  Set aside until it cools.

Filling the Chocolate Cups

When the heavy cream and gelatin has cooled add 2 – 3 tbsps in the reserved ¼ strawberries and mix.  Set aside to almost set

Unmold the chocolate cups and fill them by 2/3 with the strawberry mixture and refrigerate.

Preparing the Filling and Frosting

Whip the heavy cream on high speed until peeks start forming.  Add the icing sugar, vanilla, strawberry syrup and drop of food color and mix to combine.  Remove half into a bowl, cover with cling film and refrigerate for decoration.

In the remaining whipped cream add the cream cheese, the pureed strawberries, any leftover syrup and the heavy cream with gelatin and mix on low speed and gradually increase to high speed until fluffy and smooth.

Putting the cake together

Cut each sponge cake with a sharp long knife into two slices and wet each half with some strawberry syrup.

Put the first piece in the platter and put back the ring of the spring form.  Add 1/3 of the cream cheese and continue with second and third sponges, adding the remaining cream.  Cover with the last sponge cake and refrigerate for at least 2 – 3 hours or even better overnight.

Add some whipped cream in a piping bag and decorate the chocolate cup cakes.

Collage 5 putting cake together image

Cover the top with the remaining whipped cream and decorate with the chocolate cupcakes and strawberries.

A piece of strawberry mousse cake image
Update: March 2021 (ten years later)

Using the same ingredients I made this birthday cake again. I made some chocolate cupcakes with white chocolate and there was some leftover melted white chocolate, which I added to the filling.

Collage Happy Birthday Elia 2021 image
Top shot of the strawberry mousse cake image

Strawberry Mousse Cake with Chocolate Cupcakes Decoration

Yield: 14
Prep Time: 3 hours 45 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time: 5 hours 15 minutes

This Strawberry Mousse Cake is made with sponge cake filled and frosted with a cream cheese mousse made with strawberry coulis and decorated with chocolate cupcakes and strawberries.

Ingredients

For Sponge cake:

  • 8 eggs
  • 1 1/3 cups sugar
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • ¼ cup corn flour (starch)
  • 2 vanillin sachets flavoured with Mastic
  • A pinch of salt

To wet the sponges:

  • ½ cup strawberry syrup (from the strawberry sauce)

For Chocolate Cups:

  • 15 mini paper baking cups
  • 125 couverture chocolate
  • 1 tsp margarine or butter
  • 1 tsp vegetable oil
  • 250 ml heavy cream divided. A few tbsp were used and remaining heavy cream was used to dissolve the gelatin.

For strawberry sauce/coulis:

  • 800 grams fresh strawberries
  • 1 ½ cups demerara sugar
  • ½ cup water
  • 1 shot dark rum
  • 3 gelatin leaves
  • Leftover heavy cream, after making the chocolate cupcakes

For filling and decoration:

  • 500 ml heavy cream
  • 1 tbsp icing sugar
  • 2 tsp vanilla powder
  • About ¼ cup strawberry syrup (from sauce)
  • 1 drop red food colour
  • 300 grams Philadelphia cheese

Instructions

Preparing the Sponge Cakes

  1. Sift the flour and corn flour with baking powder and salt. Mix in vanilla
    and mastic powder.
  2. Beat eggs and sugar for approximately 10 minutes till smooth and creamy.
  3. Gently fold in the flour mixture using a spatula, so that the beaten air
    doesn't escape.
  4. Line with parchment paper two 26 cm spring form tins and divide the mixture.
  5. Bake in a preheated oven at 180oC / 350oF for about 35 - 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Turn out onto racks to cool.

Preparing the Chocolate Cups

  1. In a bain Marie (double boiler) add the chocolate with butter and oil and
    mix until the chocolate melts 
  2. Add some heavy cream and mix until its
    consistency becomes runny again 
  3. Take about 1/2 teaspoon chocolate and
    cover the sides and bottom of the mini cupcake liners  Refrigerate until
    ready to use.

Preparing the Strawberry Coulis

  1. Wash and hull the strawberries and place in a non stick frying pan. Add the
    water, sugar, and rum and simmer for about thirty minutes, stirring from time
    to time until the syrup is thick.
  2. Set aside until it cools 
  3. Strain the strawberries and set aside ¼ of the coulis  Puree the remaining in a food processor.
  4. Put the gelatin leaves in a bowl and cover with tap water for five minutes 
  5. Heat the heavy cream in a small pot until warm and add the gelatin leaves (without the water)  Mix continuously on low heat until there are no traces of gelatin on the spoon.
  6. Set aside until it cools.

Filling the Chocolate Cups

  1. When the heavy cream and gelatin has cooled add 3 tablespoons in the reserved ¼ strawberries syrup and mix  Set aside to almost set and unmold the chocolate cups 
  2. Fill the cups by 2/3 with the strawberry mixture and refrigerate.

Preparing the Filling and Frosting

  1. Whip the heavy cream on high speed until peeks start forming  Add the
    icing sugar, vanilla, strawberry syrup and drop of food color and mix to
    combine 
  2. Remove half into a bowl, cover with cling film and refrigerate for decoration.
  3. In the remaining whipped cream add the cream cheese, the pureed strawberries, any leftover syrup and the heavy cream with gelatin and mix on low speed. Gradually increase to high speed until fluffy and smooth.

Putting the cake together

  1. Cut each sponge cake with a sharp long serrated knife into two slices and wet each half with some strawberry syrup.
  2. Put the first slice in the platter and put back the ring of the spring form 
  3. Add 1/3 of the cream cheese mixture and continue with the second and third sponges, adding the remaining cream 
  4. Cover with the last sponge cake and refrigerate for at least 2 - 3 hours or even better overnight.
  5. Add some whipped cream in a piping bag and decorate the chocolate cup cakes.
  6. Cover the top with the remaining whipped cream and decorate with the chocolate cupcakes and strawberries.

Notes

Analysis of Preparation time:

1/2 hours for the sponge cake

1 hour for the chocolate cup cakes

2 hours for putting the cake together

15 minutes for decoration

Analysis of Cooking time:

1 hour for the sponge cake

½ an hour for strawberry sauce



Nutrition Information
Yield 14 Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving Calories 873Total Fat 43gSaturated Fat 25gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 14gCholesterol 184mgSodium 261mgCarbohydrates 104gFiber 4gSugar 88gProtein 17g

"These values are automatically calculated and offered for guidance only. Their accuracy is not guaranteed."

Did you make this recipe?

Tried this recipe? Tag me @ivyliac and use the hashtag #kopiaste!

Birthday Cakes

If you want some inspiration to make a Birthday Cake, here are a few more cakes I have made!

Collage Elias's Chocolate Mousse Cake image

Kopiaste and Kali Orexi!!

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