Saffron Cake with White Peach & Cinnamon
Saffron vanilla bean olive oil sponge, saffron cake soak, white peach mousse, frosted in a cinnamon Swiss meringue buttercream. The Leo cake.
Continuing with my effort to release all of my astrology cake recipes online, here is Leo! As for each of my astrology cakes, I look at the traditional correspondences in terms of colors, vegetables, fruits, herbs, etc, as the foundation. For Leo, I chose to incorporate yellow, saffron, and cinnamon.
The base of this cake is my Vanilla Bean Olive Oil Cake enriched with saffron for a lovely floral note and bright yellow color. I also incorporated saffron into the cake soak as well, infusing the threads in syrup. This reinforces the saffron note in the cake as well as adds additional color.
The filling for this cake is a white peach mousse. Because I made this cake during high summer, white peaches were readily available which may not be the case for now. I would suggest just using a Vanilla Bean Mousse (you can use the recipe linked, just forgo the infusing of rosemary into the heavy cream) instead if you are unable to get your hands on white peach.
This cake is finished with a cinnamon Swiss meringue buttercream. This uses a traditional Swiss meringue buttercream with as much cinnamon as your heart desires! I’ve decorated this cake with torched meringue, dried naval oranges, and red dahlias, but feel free to decorate in whatever way speaks to you.
Saffron Cake with White Peach & Cinnamon
Makes one 6-inch triple tier cake
Ingredients:
For the cake:
1 batch of Vanilla Bean Olive Oil Cake
5-7 threads of good-quality saffron
For the cake soak:
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup water
3-5 threads of good-quality saffron
For the mousse:
1/2 lb ripe white peaches, peeled and diced
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons cold water
1/2 tablespoon powdered unflavored gelatin
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup heavy cream
For the buttercream:
1 batch Swiss Meringue Buttercream
2-3 tablespoons cinnamon powder
Method:
For the cake:
In a small saucepan over high heat, add the saffron and milk.
Bring the mixture to just under a boil (do not let it fully boil), cut the heat, and allow the saffron to infuse into the milk for several hours or until the milk is at room temperature. Once at room temperature, you can proceed with the recipe or transfer the saffron milk to a container and refrigerate overnight, allowing for more infusion.
Proceed with the cake recipe as written being sure the layers are fully cooled before assembling.
For the cake soak:
Combine all ingredients in a heatproof bowl or mug.
Microwave for 1-2 minutes or until sugar has completely dissolved.
Set aside to cool to room temperature and infuse. Keep the cake soak in the fridge until ready to use. (You can also make this in a small saucepan on the stovetop, but I’ve found this method to be faster and easier with an identical result.)
For the mousse:
In a blender, add the diced peaches and lemon juice. Puree until smooth. Set aside.
Place the water into a small bowl. Sprinkle the gelatin on top and allow it to bloom for 5 minutes.
After the time has elapsed, transfer the gelatin to a small saucepan, add the sugar and place over medium heat.
Stir the gelatin mixture over the heat just until the sugar has fully dissolved. Do not cook the gelatin; you are just trying to dissolve the sugar here.
Once the sugar has dissolved, remove the gelatin from the heat immediately. Pour the gelatin into the pureed peach, add the salt, and blend again until smooth.
Transfer the mixture to a small container, cover, and refrigerate for 1-2 hours until set.
Meanwhile, in a cold bowl with a cold whisk, whip the heavy cream to stiff peaks.
Once your peach mixture has fully set, gently fold it into your whipped cream in 2 parts until fully combined. Try not to over-mix here as doing so will deflate the mousse.
Cover the mousse and place in the fridge for at least 3 hours (better overnight!) to set. Be sure the mousse is set fully before assembling.
For the buttercream:
Follow the recipe as written adding the cinnamon at the same time as the vanilla extract.
Taste and adjust cinnamon and salt as desired. Set aside at room temperature until ready to use (if you are making the buttercream more than 6 hours in advance, refrigerate until ready to use).
Assembly:
On a cake board or serving platter, place your first layer of cake.
Brush the sponge liberally with the saffron cake soak.
Add a scoop of your buttercream and spread evenly in a very thin layer across your cake.
Pipe a dam around the outside rim of the cake layer. The dam is essential to keep the mousse from spilling out the sides (unless that is what you are looking for aesthetically).
Add a scoop of your mousse into the center of the cake, spreading with a spoon to create an even layer.
Place your next layer of cake. Press down gently.
Repeat steps 19-23.
Place your last layer of cake on top.
Add a large scoop of buttercream to the top of the cake. Spread the buttercream across the entire top and sides of the cake in a thin, even layer to create a crumb coat.
Place the cake in the refrigerator for 15 minutes so the crumb coat can harden.
Add another scoop of buttercream and proceed to decorate as your heart desires. Enjoy!