Fresh Fruit Cake with Pastry Cream and Whipped Cream is a cake as simple to prepare as it is indulgent. The one everyone loves!!
I dedicated it to a little girl, Francesca, who celebrated her birthday with lots of fruit just the way she likes it.
It may seem difficult or complicated, but believe me, writing the procedure takes longer than making it!
This is a refined and elegant dessert, but at the same time very easy to prepare.
Be patient, don’t get anxious about timing, follow my steps and then decorate however you like.
The sponge cake (Pan di Spagna) is a classic of Italian pastry. With its delicate, light taste it’s the perfect dessert for birthdays and ceremonies.
Often I’m invited to lunches or dinners with many guests and asked to take care of the dessert. I don’t mind! However, the number of people complicates things and forces you to think of a practical cake that can be sliced into generous portions to please everyone.
A classic round cake is not enough because it yields at most about 16 slices, so the solution is a large rectangular cake.
Today’s cake is one of the options I use on these occasions.
It’s easy, practical to slice, delicious and yields about 15–25 slices (depending on slice size).
It’s spectacular and will make you look good.
This cake is customizable in every part.
You can change the filling cream (for example use chocolate cream), change the decoration and the soaking syrup.
On this cake I wrote ‘welcome back’ but you can change the wording to suit the occasion.
This is a tall sponge cake, sized 30 x 40 cm (about 12 x 16 in).
It is moistened with a syrup, enriched with a layer of pastry cream. The external decoration is done with whipped cream and lots of fresh fruit.
I suggest preparing the sponge and the pastry cream the day before and assembling the cake the same day so the fruit and cream stay fresh.
It’s a very simple dessert that always works!
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Medium
- Rest time: 2 Hours
- Preparation time: 40 Minutes
- Portions: 25 Servings
- Cooking methods: Electric oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
Fresh Fruit Cake with Pastry Cream and Whipped Cream
- 10 eggs (room temperature)
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (00)
- 1 1/4 cups potato starch (or cornstarch)
- 1 lemon (organic, grated zest (or one packet of vanilla))
- 1 pinch salt
- 4 1/4 cups milk
- 4 eggs (whole)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour (or cornstarch)
- 3/4 cup + 2 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 lemon (organic zest)
- 3/4 cup + 2 tbsp water ((200 ml))
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 3 tbsp + 1 tsp fruit juice (pineapple or orange; for adults add 2 tbsp rum)
- as needed fresh fruit (strawberries, pineapple, blackberries, blueberries, grapes, etc.)
- 4 1/4 cups whipping cream (already sweetened)
- as needed spray glaze
Tools
- Baking Pan
- Stand Mixer
- Kitchen Scale
- Sieve
- Piping Bag
- Saucepan
- Hand Whisk
Steps
Fresh Fruit Cake with Pastry Cream and Whipped Cream
Pour the milk into a saucepan and bring it to a boil with the whole lemon peel; be careful to use only the yellow part of the zest.
(I used lemon zest but a vanilla bean or one tablespoon of vanilla extract also works well.)
In a separate small pot, whisk the eggs with the sugar. (use whole eggs, both yolk and white).
Then add the flour and whisk to remove any lumps.
(If you prefer, you can replace the flour with cornstarch.)
Temper the egg mixture by gradually adding some milk, poured in a thin stream while whisking; to avoid lemon zest getting into the cream use a fine strainer. After adding all the milk, return the mixture to moderate heat.
Keep stirring on the heat and you will see the pastry cream thicken within a few seconds.
Remove from heat and cover the pastry cream with plastic wrap placed directly on the surface.
Let it cool completely before using.
(Tip: make it well in advance — prepare it hours ahead, then keep it in the fridge once cooled.)
To prepare the rectangular sponge (Pan di Spagna) first sift the two flours twice onto a sheet of parchment and set aside.
Flour + cornstarch (or potato starch) must be well sifted.
(This operation traps a lot of air and will make the cake very fluffy.)Grease and flour the pan, preheat the oven to 356 °F.
Put the whole eggs in the bowl (eggs must be at room temperature).
Add the sugar and a pinch of salt (optional: vanilla or the grated zest of a lemon).
Start the mixers and whip the mixture.The mixture should be voluminous and fluffy.
(To reach this result, beat with the whisk for 10–15 minutes.)
Gently fold in the previously sifted dry ingredients.
Mix with a spatula from bottom to top.Pour the batter into the greased and floured pan.
(Pan about 12 x 16 in).
Level gently.
Bake in a preheated oven: conventional mode at 356 °F for about 35–40 minutes, or convection at 338 °F for about 35–40 minutes.
I always recommend checking doneness with a skewer to avoid over-drying or underbaking.
Before removing from the base, wait until it has cooled.
Once warm, remove the sponge from the pan and let it cool on a rack.
Meanwhile prepare the soaking syrup.
In a small saucepan put the water, granulated sugar and the whole peel of one untreated (organic) lemon.
Set over medium-low heat and simmer for about 15 minutes until you get a syrup.
Remove from heat and let cool completely.Add the fruit juice.
(If you want an alcoholic base add the alcohol at the end with the heat off).
Now wash, dry and cut some fruit for the filling. Toss a little lemon juice on it to avoid browning.
(Leave some fruit whole for the final decoration.)
Whip the cold cream straight from the fridge.
Transfer half of the whipped cream into a piping bag. Put everything back in the fridge to keep cool.
(The cream in the bowl is for covering the cake; the cream in the piping bag is for decorating.)When the sponge is cold, cut it into two layers.
Soak the first sponge layer with the syrup.
Spread a generous layer of pastry cream and fill with the fruit.
Close with the top layer, brush the surface with the syrup and cover with the remaining whipped cream.
To make decoration easier I chilled the cake in the fridge for a few hours.
Finally, I decorated it with rosettes of cream; I placed strawberries all around the sides.
Decorate the top as you like with the fruit of your choice.
Spray a little glaze over the fruit so it stays shiny and doesn’t darken.
Return the cake to the fridge until serving time.
Tips
To make this recipe truly impeccable and help readers overcome the anxiety of making a “big cake”, here are some practical tips based on experience and the ingredients chosen:
1. The Secret of the Sponge (10 Eggs)
Working with 10 eggs requires attention to ensure the right fluffiness without using baking powder:
Room temperature: Make sure the eggs are at room temperature; they will whip faster and incorporate more air.
Long whipping: Whip the eggs with the sugar for at least 15–20 minutes. The mixture should be “ribboning”, meaning that when you drop a bit of batter it should remain visible on the surface for a few seconds.
Gentle folding: When you add the sifted flour and starch, use a spatula and fold gently from bottom to top so you don’t deflate the volume.
Working with the pastry cream
With 1 liter of milk the cream has a lot of thermal mass:
Quick cooling: As soon as it’s ready, spread it in a wide dish and cover it with plastic wrap placed directly on the surface. This prevents a skin from forming and helps it cool faster, ensuring food safety.
Notes
Do not soak the edges too much (they give way easily); focus slightly more toward the center.
Non-alcoholic version: If the cake is for children, replace the rum with a milk-and-vanilla syrup or with the leftover fruit juice diluted with a little water and sugar.
For a clean decoration like the photos, the cream must be very cold before whipping.
Spray glaze: As indicated among the ingredients, the glaze is essential. It not only gives shine (a “pastry” effect) but seals the fruit so it does not darken or release juices that would stain the white cream.
Order matters: Pat the washed fruit dry well before placing it on the cream; excess moisture harms the stability of the decoration.
Storage
Sponge: Prepare it the day before and, once completely cooled, wrap it well in plastic wrap. This will keep it moister and easier to slice without crumbling.
Pastry cream: Also prepare in advance. Store it in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours, covered with plastic wrap directly on the surface to prevent a skin from forming.
The cake must be kept strictly refrigerated. Being a 12 x 16 in cake, make sure you have enough space free from strong odors (like onion or cheese), as the whipped cream easily absorbs smells.
It keeps well for 2–3 days. Over time the whipped cream may lose some volume and, despite the glaze, the fruit may start to release liquids.
If possible, use a large rectangular cake carrier or create a “dome” with foil (without touching the decoration) to protect it from fridge air which could dry the cream.
How to write on cakes
To make a perfect chocolate inscription you only need a few ingredients and tools: the main element is dark chocolate, melted. Prepare a cone from parchment or use a piping bag and fill it with melted chocolate.
Hold the cone at an angle similar to when you write with a pen, almost touching the surface to be decorated, then apply gentle pressure to release the chocolate. Adjust the thickness of the line by changing the pressure on the cone.
Tips for other recipes
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