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strawberry charlotte cake/charlotte aux fraise

Charlotte Aux Fraises (Strawberry Charlotte Cake)

Bernice Baran
Charlotte Aux Fraises, also known as a Strawberry Charlotte Cake, is a classic French mousse cake made with lady finger biscuits, Bavarian cream and fresh strawberries. This cake is a definite show-stopper but is much simpler to make than it looks. 
4.84 from 12 votes
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 25 minutes
Additional Time 16 hours
Total Time 17 hours 25 minutes
Course Cakes
Cuisine Italian
Servings 12 slices
Calories 468 kcal

Equipment

  • 1 electric mixer stand or hand
  • 2 cookie sheets
  • 1 piping bag
  • 1 large round piping tip
  • 1 Rubber Spatula
  • 1 9 inch spring form or 8 inch or cake mold (see blog post)
  • 1 medium saucepan

Ingredients
  

Lady Fingers (can use store bought too)

  • 6 large eggs (50-60 grams each) separated
  • 150 grams (3/4 cup) granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 240 grams (2 cups) all-purpose flour spooned and leveled
  • 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • granulated sugar for topping

Bavarian Cream

  • 1 cup (240mL) whole milk
  • 4 large egg yolks room temperature
  • 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
  • 2 Tbsp (28g) salted butter room temperature
  • 2 tsp vanilla bean paste
  • 1 Tbsp (9g) gelatin dissolved + 2 Tbsp cold water
  • 1/3 cup (40g) powdered sugar spooned and leveled
  • 1 1/2 cups (13oz) heavy whipping cream cold

Strawberry Filling

  • 1 1/2 lbs. fresh strawberries diced
  • 2 Tbsp (25g) granulated sugar
  • 3-4 Tbsp (45-60mL) elderflower liqueur (or lemon juice)

Whipped Cream

  • 1/4 cup (30g) powdered sugar
  • tiny pinch of salt
  • 1 cup (240mL) heavy whipping cream cold
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
  • whole strawberries for topping

Instructions
 

Lady Finger Biscuits

  • Preheat the oven to 350F (177C) convection and line 1 large cookie sheet and an 8 inch pan with parchment paper.
  • Place the egg whites in the bowl of the stand mixer and using the whisk attachment, at full speed, beat until they're frothy.
    6 large eggs (50-60 grams each)
  • With the mixer on medium speed, stream in the cup of sugar. Turn the mixer up to full speed and beat just until the meringue reaches stiff peaks.
    150 grams (3/4 cup) granulated sugar
  • Add in the egg yolks and vanilla and turn the mixer to medium-high speed, mixing, a few seconds, just until they're fully combined.
    1 teaspoons vanilla extract, 6 large eggs (50-60 grams each)
  • Sift in the flour and salt and turn the mixer up to medium-low speed, mixing just until the flour is incorporated.
    240 grams (2 cups) all-purpose flour, 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • Use the rubber spatula to gently scrape the bottom and edge of the bowl and make sure it's all combined.
  • Gently place the batter in a large piping bag fit with a large round tip and pipe a thin layer of batter into the 8 inch pan. Smooth it out and bake for about 18ish minutes, or until it no longer looks wet and is a golden color.
  • Meanwhile pipe identical lines of batter (just like eclairs) onto the cookie sheet. Try to let the piping bag glide and not press down as your piping so you don't deflate the air.
  • Sprinkle the cookies with granulated sugar (I do a generous amount because a lot of it falls off).
    granulated sugar
  • Bake on the middle rack (top rack if not convection) for 12ish minutes (rotate after 8-9 minutes if one side is getting darker) until they're dry and lightly golden brown.

Bavarian Cream

  • Place the milk in a saucepan over medium-low heat and allow it to come to a simmer.
    1 cup (240mL) whole milk
  • Meanwhile place the egg yolks and sugar in a medium bowl and whisk aggressively for 1-2 minutes while the milk heats.
    4 large egg yolks, 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
  • Remove the milk from the heat and stream half of it into the egg mixture, while whisking, to temper the eggs.
  • Then add the egg mixture to the saucepan with the rest of the milk and cook over low heat for 5-10 minutes, while whisking continuously (doesn’t have to be aggressive whisking just keep it moving the whole time).
  • The custard won’t thicken significantly but it should thicken slightly. To test if the custard is done cooking, it should coat the back of a spoon and when you draw a line through it (on the back of the spoon) the line stays separated. You can also use a thermometer and bring the cream to about 180F-185F.
  • Pour the custard back into a large bowl, add the butter and vanilla and mix just until they're all combined.
    2 Tbsp (28g) salted butter, 2 tsp vanilla bean paste
  • In a small bowl, mix together the gelatin and water until they’re combined. Let it set and then microwave it for 10 seconds. Mix and then add it to the custard. Whisk the gelatin well with the custard and then cover the surface with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for about 2 hours until the custard feels somewhat set and still a little jiggly but not runny.
    1 Tbsp (9g) gelatin dissolved

Strawberry Filling

  • While the Bavarian cream is cooling, dice the strawberries and toss them with the sugar and liqueur. This will help the strawberries release their juice.
    1 1/2 lbs. fresh strawberries, 2 Tbsp (25g) granulated sugar, 3-4 Tbsp (45-60mL) elderflower liqueur

Finish Bavarian Cream

  • Once everything is ready to go, sift the powdered sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large bowl with a hand mixer). Add heavy whipping cream and mix on medium-low speed until it thickens a little, about 30 seconds. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat for just another 30-60 seconds, until the cream holds stiff peaks. Don’t over-mix.
    1/3 cup (40g) powdered sugar, 1 1/2 cups (13oz) heavy whipping cream
  • Remove the custard from the fridge and use a whisk or hand mixer to mix it until it’s smooth again. This will disrupt the gelatin but it will set again when we put it back into the fridge. Make sure you whisk it until there are no more lumps and the custard is smooth again.
  • Add 1/3 of the whipped cream to the custard and whisk until it’s completely smooth. Add another 1/3 of the heavy whipping cream to the custard and now use a rubber spatula to fold it in gently. Repeat with the last 1/3.

Assemble

  • If you made the round 8 inch cake, place it in a 9 inch spring form pan and poke a bunch of holes into it with a fork. Strain the juice from the strawberries and drizzle it all on top of the cake layer.
    *If you're using store bought lady fingers, just assemble them tightly as a layer, the best you can. Cut them if you have to.
  • Assemble the lady fingers around the edge of the bottom layer.
    *If you created the bottom layer with just lady fingers, pipe a little bit of the cream on them to fill in the cracks so it stays together as one layer.
  • Spread half of the strawberries on top and then pipe half of the Bavarian cream on top of the strawberries.
  • Now place a layer of the lady fingers on top of the Bavarian cream, as tightly as possible and then top with the other half of the strawberries and the other half of the cream. Refrigerate the cake for at least 8 hours or overnight.

Whipped Cream

  • Sift the powdered sugar and salt into the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large bowl with a hand mixer).
    1/4 cup (30g) powdered sugar, tiny pinch of salt
  • Add heavy whipping cream and vanilla and mix on medium-low speed until it thickens a little, about 30 seconds. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat for just another 30-60 seconds, until the cream holds stiff peaks. Don’t over-mix.
    1 cup (240mL) heavy whipping cream, 1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
  • Pipe on top of chilled cake and top with fresh strawberries, gold foil and a dusting of powdered sugar.
    whole strawberries for topping

Nutrition

Calories: 468kcalCarbohydrates: 53gProtein: 8gFat: 25gSaturated Fat: 14gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 210mgSodium: 120mgPotassium: 224mgFiber: 2gSugar: 36gVitamin A: 1032IUVitamin C: 34mgCalcium: 91mgIron: 2mg
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