Directions

Choc Hazelnut Sponge

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (355°F). Grease and line a 20cm cake tin.
2. Mix together sifted flour, hazelnut meal, bicarb soda and grated chocolate. Set aside.
3. Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy (approx 5 minutes). Beat in the vanilla and the egg yolks one at a time.
4. Fold in the flour mixture and buttermilk into the butter mixture a third at a time.
5. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites to soft peak. Fold the egg whites into the flour mixture until just combined.
6. Pour mixture into the cake tin. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until cake has shrunk slightly from the sides of the tin and springs back when gently touched.
7. Cool in the cake tin for 20 minutes before turning onto cake rack to cool completely. Slice in half and set aside.

Strawberry Jelly

1. To make the jelly, soak the gelatin leaves in cold water for 5 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, remove the leaves from the strawberries and blend into a smooth puree. If you’re picky about the seeds you can sieve them out.
3. Combine the strawberry puree with the maple syrup in a small saucepan. Heat the mixture over medium heat, stirring, until it just begins to boil. Remove from heat.
4. Squeeze the excess water from the gelatin leaves. Add to the strawberry puree and stir until combined. Pour the mixture into a 20cm cake tin lined with plastic wrap. If desired, add extra slices of strawberries to the tin for decoration.
5. Place the tin the the freezer on a flat shelf until completely set.

Chocolate Mousse

1. For the mousse, combine the gelatin and tepid water together in a small bowl until gelatin blooms
2. Heat the milk in a medium saucepan until warm (do not allow to boil); add the bloomed gelatin and stir until dissolved.
3. Put chopped chocolate into a bowl; pour milk/gelatine mixture over the chocolate and stir until chocolate has melted.
4. Whip cream to soft peaks. Fold 1/3 of cream mixture into the mousse to lighten; fold in the rest of the cream in two batches until just combined.

Assembly

1. To assemble, prepare your cake ring, cake tin or cake mould.
2. Pour a small portion on the mouse to cover the base. Add one half of the sponge layer, followed by the jelly layer. Add a quarter of the mousse to cover the jelly layer and fill around the sides. Finally, add the last layer of sponge cake then the remaining mousse to cover.
3. Place cake in the freezer until completely frozen though. Unmould the cake just before pouring the glaze.

Mirror Glaze

1. Combine the half cup of water and the powered gelatin in a small bowl until the gelatin blooms. Place the grated white chocolate in a large bowl and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, condensed milk and remaining water. Heat mixture over medium heat until it’s simmering steadily (if you have a candy thermometer about 100°C is ideal). Remove from heat, add the bloomed gelatin and stir until dissolved.
3. Pour the mixture over the white chocolate, stir gently to combine. Take care not to stir too vigorously so as not to add air bubbles to the mixture.
4. Allow glaze to cool to around 30-35°C. At this point it will feel warm to the touch and will coat the back of a spoon. If the mixture cools too much to pour it can be gently heated again.
5. If adding colour, divide mixture into small bowls and gently stir in the gel food colouring. Colour can also be added to the palette knife in the last step.
6. Remove the mousse cake from the freezer and prepare it for pouring either by placing it on a cake rack or an overturned ramekin.
7. Pour the glaze over the top of the cake, completely coating the top and sides. If the glaze drips too quickly and is too thin it hasn’t cooled enough. If its thick and doesn’t drip, its too cold and needs to be gently heated.
8. Once the cake is coated with the base colour glaze you can add dollops of other coloured glaze. Leave it to drip as is, or use a palette knife to spread the colours and smooth the top.