For those who don’t know, the Mimosa Cake is a traditional Italian cake usually prepared on March 8th for the occasion of Women’s Day. On this special day, Italian women are offered Mimosa flowers and therefore, Italian people have created a cake to celebrate that looks just like a bouquet. Made out of sponge cake and chantilly cream, its texture is heaven-like.
However, I once tasted a revisited version of this cake and decided to reproduce it at home. Here’s how.
Ingredients
You should know that I took the Sponge Cake recipe aka Pan di Spagna in Italian, from my favorite cooking blog Giallo Zafferano. I twisted it a bit but I respected the main ingredients and instructions.
For the sponge cake
- 5eggs
- 1 pinchsalt
- 1 pinchvanilla
- 1/2 cupflour
- 1/2 cupcorn flour
For the Berries Coulis
- 300 gberries (fresh, of your preference)
- 3 spoonssugar
- 1/2lemon juice
For the Chantilly cream
- 1.5 cupsheavy cream (400ml, cold)
- 3 spoonspowdered sugar
Preparation
Preparation of the Sponge Cake
First of all, preheat your oven at 160°C.
In a big bowl, crack the eggs adding the pinch of salt and vanilla. With a stand mixer or alternatively a hand mixer, whisk the eggs on high speed for several minutes (minimum 5 minutes depending on the power of your machine) until the color of the beaten eggs becomes very light, and the volume doubles its size.
Once done, sift in the same bowl the flour and the corn flour and fold them gently into the mix with a rubber spatula making circular movements from the outside to the inside of the bowl.
Folding the flour instead of mixing it with the mixer or a whisk, will preserve the volume of the beaten eggs.
Finally, pour the cake mix in a buttered and floured cake mould (diameter size 22cm) and bake at 160°C for 40 minutes or until a toothpick or a knife comes out clean from the center.
Preparation of the Berries Coulis
While the cake is being baked, you can proceed with the preparation of the coulis. Wash all your fresh berries and transfer 3/4 of them to a small saucepan.
The remaining 1/4 is intended for decoration.
On medium heat, add the sugar and the lemon to the berries and mix them all with a wooden spoon.
When mixing, press the berries to release their juices.
Keep cooking until boiling. This will take approximately 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the coulis cool down.
Preparation of the Chantilly Cream
I advise you to prepare the Chantilly Cream when the other cake components are done, cold and ready to be filled.
Therefore, pour the heavy cream in a large bowl and with a stand mixer or a hand mixer, whisk the cream on high speed for a couple of minutes until hard white peaks are visible.
To ensure the success of the whipping, all ingredients and tools must be fridge-cold: heavy cream, whisk and bowl.
As a final step, add the powdered sugar to the whipped cream and start folding it with a rubber spatula until fully incorporated.
Assembling of Cake Components
Start by cutting horizontally the middle of the cake with a long bread knife. You will have 2 circular discs of cake.
On the first disc, pour down the berries coulis and spread it all over the cake. Then, layer it with half of the whipped cream. Spread it using a spatula.
The remaining half is destined for decoration.
Cover both fillings with the second cake disc and decorate it with the remaining whipped cream and fresh berries.
I never knew about the Italian day where you give women flowers. How lovely is that. Also the cake is gorgeous isn’t it. Very clever
Yes, indeed. Thank you for your lovely comment 🙂
Thanks for sharing, this cake looks yummy 🙂
You are most welcome 🙂