this cake screams summer!
we bought some apricots from the south of france in the market. they were delicious raw, but we couldn't help making a cake as well!
we flavored the whipped cream with rosemary, which is known to match perfectly apricot. and it does!
it's the kind of "big" cake that impresses your guests but that is very easy to make, and not that time-consuming.
and if you are using a stand mixer, the génoise is done in no time. a light, airy and soft génoise!
as we use maple syrup (or honey) to roast the apricots, they will be quite sweet. that's why the génoise and the whipped cream don't contain much sugar. so feel free to increase the amount of sugar if you like sweet cakes.
for one cake:
for the génoise:
4 eggs
80 g sugar
120 g flour
a pinch of salt
for the roasted apricots:
about 15 apricots
4 tbsp maple syrup or honey
1 tbsp salted butter
for the rosemary whipped cream:
3 tsp of rosemary leaves (dry or fresh)
200 g whipping cream
10 g icing sugar
2 tbsp mascarpone
2 tbsp cream cheese
1 tsp crème de pêche de vigne (optional)
place whipping cream in a bowl and add rosemary leaves. place in the fridge for at least 2 hours, so that the rosemary flavours the cream.
prepare the roasted apricots:
preheat the oven to 200°C (392 F).
wash and halve the apricots, discarding the pits.
place the apricots halves in a baking dish in one layer. sprinkle evenly maple syrup or honey on top.
top with small pieces of salted butter.
bake for 20-25 minutes, until apricots are tender.
leave to cool completely.
prepare the génoise:
preheat the oven to 170°C (340 F).
in a large bowl, whisk eggs with sugar for about 10 minutes until the mixture doubles in volume (easier if you uses a stand mixer like a kitchenaid!). it should become very light and airy.
sift flour and salt together. incorporate to the egg-sugar mixture very gently, and mix carefully using a spatula or a skimming ladle (as gently and carefully as if you incorporated a mixture into beaten egg whites). the mixture should still be airy and voluminous.
butter and flour a round baking pan and pour the mixture in it.
bake for about 30 minutes until a knife comes out clean.
leave it to cool completely.
prepare the whipped cream:
filter the cream to remove rosemary leaves. in a bowl, whisk together cream, mascarpone, cream cheese, crème de pêche de vigne and icing sugar. whisk the mixture into whipped cream.
assemble the cake:
cut the génoise in two.
place the bottom layer on a cake plate. spread 1/2 of the whipped cream on it, and place the roasted apricots on all the surface (you can keep a few to decorate the top of the cake). place the upper layer of the génoise on top. cover the cake with the rest of the whipped cream. decorate with some roasted apricots and rosemary branches.
refrigerate for 1-2 hours before serving to let the flavours soak in together.
piece of advice:
the "crème de pêche de vigne" (pêche de vigne = vine peach) is like the "crème de cassis", only a bit less alcoholic (15-18% against 20-25%). it is very popular in burgundy, and it is mainly used in cocktails. if you can't find it you can replace it with a tsp of vine peach syrup.
