Strawberry Princess Cake

We love a good princess cake. The classic version with pastry cream and raspberry is one of our favorite desserts on the planet. We love this dessert so much and wanted to create a play on it by taking the classic princess cake and making a strawberry version. To make this version, we  create a strawberry pastry cream and a strawberry jam instead of raspberry jam. 

How is this version different from a standard princess cake? There are 3 main ways this is different from our original princess cake recipe. First, we cook down a raspberry puree that gets folded into the pastry cream. Second, we make a strawberry jam instead of a raspberry jam. And third, we use a pink marzipan instead of the green version. 

Please note that this recipe is a VERY challenging one! It’s a labor of love with several components and requires a bit of technique. But if you’re up for the challenge, it is very worth it!

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Prep Time 2 hours hours

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Cooling 12 hours hours

Total Time 15 hours hours

Servings 12

Ingredients

Strawberry Puree (yields 1 cup but will only require ½ cup)

• 1 pound of fresh hulled and sliced strawberries 16 oz
• 2 tablespoons water 30 ml
• 2 tablespoons sugar 25 g
• ⅛ teaspoon Diamond Kosher salt 1 ml
• Zest of 1 lemon
• Total Yield = 1 cup

Marzipan

• 8 oz pink marzipan

Vanilla Bean Pastry Cream

• 1 packet powdered gelatin 7 g
• 2 ½ tbsp water 40 g
• 2 cups whole milk 500 g
• 1 tbsp vanilla bean paste
• ½ tsp salt 3 g
• 2 ½ tbsp cornstarch 20 g
• ⅔ cup granulated sugar 130 g
• 5 egg yolks 75 g
• 4 tbsp salted butter room temp 60 g
• 1 cup heavy cream 250 g folded in after cooling
• ½ cup strawberry puree from above

Strawberry Jam

• 12 oz strawberries fresh or frozen
• ¾ cup granulated sugar 150 g
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• Zest of 1 lemon
• Pinch of salt
• 1 tbsp vanilla bean paste

Chiffon Cake

• 3 egg yolks 55 g
• ¼ cup light brown sugar packed 55 g
• 3 ½ tbsp olive oil 50 g
• ¼ cup water 50 g
• ¾ cup + 1 tbsp all-purpose flour 110 g
• ¾ tsp baking powder 3 g
• ½ tsp kosher salt 3 g
• 4 large egg whites 120 g
• ¼ tsp cream of tartar
• ¼ cup + 1 tbsp granulated sugar 55 g

Mascarpone Cream

• ½ cup mascarpone 130 g
• 1 ⅔ cups heavy cream 400 g
• ½ cup powdered sugar 60 g
• ⅛ tsp salt 1 g

Sweet Milk Soak

• 125 g milk
• 25 g sugar
• ⅛ tsp salt 1 g
• ¼ tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

Strawberry puree:

• Add the sliced strawberries into a blender with the water, sugar, salt and blend until smooth
• In a medium saucepan, heat the strawberries over medium heat until the mixture is about half the volume (it should come out to 1 cup). This will take around 20 minutes. After cooking, mix in the zest of 1 lemon.
• Set aside the mixture until it is entirely cooled throughout before using
  

Strawberry Vanilla Bean Pastry Cream

• Sprinkle gelatin over water in a small bowl. Let bloom for 5 minutes.
• Heat milk, vanilla paste, and salt in a saucepan just to a boil.
• Whisk cornstarch, sugar, and egg yolks in a bowl. Slowly temper in the hot milk, whisking constantly. Return everything to the pan.
• Cook over medium heat, whisking until thick, smooth, and glossy.
• Off heat, whisk in gelatin and butter. Add in ½ cup of the cooled strawberry puree.
• Transfer to a bowl, press plastic wrap on top, and chill until set (overnight if possible).
  

Chiffon Cake

• Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together.
• In another bowl, whisk yolks, brown sugar, oil, and water.
• Sift in dry ingredients; whisk until smooth.
• In a mixer, whip egg whites + cream of tartar to soft peaks. Gradually stream in sugar; whip to stiff, glossy peaks.
• Whisk ⅓ of meringue into yolk mixture to lighten, then fold in the rest gently.
• Pour into an ungreased 16×10” sheet pan. Bake at 325°F ~15 min, until golden and springy.
  
• Drop pan from 6 inches (helps prevent sinking). Cool completely before releasing.

Strawberry Jam

• Combine strawberries, sugar, lemon juice + zest, salt, and vanilla paste in a pot. Toss to coat; macerate 30 minutes.
• Cook over medium-high heat until jam reaches 220–225°F, stirring often to prevent burning.
• Transfer to a container, cool, and refrigerate until set.

Sweet Milk Soak

• Whisk milk, sugar, salt, and vanilla until dissolved.

Mascarpone Cream

• Whip mascarpone, heavy cream, powdered sugar, and salt together until stiff peaks form.

Assembly

• Whip the reserved 1 cup cream and fold into chilled pastry cream.
• Cut chiffon into three 5.33″x10” rectangles. We then like to make an acetate cake collar that we shape to the size of our layers to help keep it all intact.
  
• Place first layer on serving dish. Brush with milk soak, spread ⅓ jam, then half the pastry cream. Repeat with second layer.
• Finish with the last cake layer + remaining jam. Chill overnight.
  
• Pile mascarpone cream into a dome on top.
• Roll marzipan on a powdered-sugar-dusted counter into a thin sheet. Drape over the cake, smoothing gently, and trim excess.
• Chill until ready to serve. Slice and enjoy!

Notes

NOTE THE IMAGES HAVE AN EXTRA LAYER. This recipe is only 3 layers of cake with 2 layers of filling.

 

Adapted from Hannah Ziskin’s version.