A Péché Mignon is layers of thin crispy biscuit, layers of crème mousseline with pieces of peaches and a torched meringue dome to cover it.
The crispiness from the thin biscuit layer goes perfectly with the airy crème mousseline and the freshness from the peaches. To add a little kick, the layers of biscuit are brushed with a peach liqueur syrup. The meringue on the top adds a divine mallowiness to the cake and incases it perfectly to give that wow-factor.
This cake is time-consuming to make but it is layer upon layer of goodness. This recipe is inspired by the recipe by "Il était une fois la pâtisserie".
For this cake, use a spring-for tin and make the sizes of the biscuits a little bigger than the tin you are using to make sure it will be big enough because you will be able to cut off the excess biscuit once it is baked.
Ingredients:
For the genoise:
4 eggs
120 g caster sugar
120 g self-raising flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 teaspoon of vanilla
For the crème mousseline:
4 egg yolks
300 ml of milk
1 gelatine leaf, soaked and rinsed
1 teaspoon of vanilla bean paste
15 g plain flour
1/4 teaspoon fo salt
15 g cornflour
250 g mascarpone
To fill:
1 can of peaches (remember to keep some to decorate)
For the sugar syrup:
75 g of water
50 g of sugar
1 tablespoon of peach liqueur or kirsch
For the Italian meringue:
4 egg whites
1/2 teaspoon of salt
250 g sugar
50 ml water
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
To garnish:
Peach slices
flaked almonds
Recipe
For the genoise:
Pre-heat the oven to 160C and grease a high top cake tin.
Whisk the eggs with the sugar + salt + vanilla for about 10 minutes on high until tripled in volume and super pale.
Sift in the flour and fold it in. Then place the batter in the prepped cake tin and bake for 30-35 minutes, until a knife comes out clean after being poked in side.
Leave to cool then unmould and trim the sides and the top to make it completely straight. Cut into 2 layers.
For the crème mousseline:
Whisk the egg yolks with the sugar until pale and then sift in the flour + cornflour + salt. In a saucepan, heat the milk with the vanilla.
Once nearly simmering, pour half onto the egg yolks, whisk and then pour that mixture back into the saucepan. Whisk on low heat consistently until thick.
Then add in the softened gelatine and once dissolved, add in the butter and mix until incorporated.
Pour into a bowl and cover with clingfilm, touching the pastry cream. Place in the fridge until cooled.
Whisk the mascarpone until less firm and then mix it into the cooled pastry cream. Reserve.
For the syrup:
Place all the ingredients into a saucepan and heat until all the sugar is dissolved.
To mount:
Take the circle from the cake tin you used to bake the cake, (you only need the sides) and place onto a Silpat on a baking tray. Alternatively, you could use the bottom of the cake tin, only this way is easier to unmould the cake.
Place in the bottom a layer of cake and brush on the sugar syrup.
Spread a layer of crème mousseline on and to the sides of the tin, if your cake was trimmed on the sides, it will run down the sides of the cake to fill the cake tin.
Take most of your peaches and chop into small pieces. Place them ontop.
Then repeat the process with the next layer of cake brushed with the sugar syrup and then finish with the crème mousseline, filling all the gaps and smoothing off. Place in the freezer for 1-2 hours.
For the Italian Meringue:
Place the sugar + water in a saucepan and heat on low heat.
Once the sugar is nearly dissolved, start whisking the egg whites with the salt.
Once the egg whites are soft peaks and all the sugar is dissolved, pour the sugar syrup into the egg whites, whisking all the while in a slow and steady stream, this will take up to 3 minutes to incorporate all the syrup. Keep whisking until the mixture cools down and forms stiff peaks. Add in the vanilla extract and mix one last time.
Take the cake out of the freezer and unmold onto a cake stand.
Spread most of the Italian meringue on the top and on the sides, smoothing ou with a palette knife.
Stick toasted flaked almonds on the sides like in the picture and place the remaining meringue in a piping bag and pipe roses on the top. In the centre place a few peach slices and it's ready!
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