July 30, 2007

Daring Bakers


I made the Strawberry Mirror Cake as part of the Daring Bakers' July Challenge. I did find it very challenging. First, I was afraid of gelatin. I have used it in the past (way past) with poor results and stayed away from any recipe using it. I still had issues with my gelatin but now I know (with the help of other DBers) that you can strain the gelatin (I learned after I made the cream). Second, I did not realize how much I had to beat my egg mixture for the cake (used my very old hand mixer) and my layers were a little thin (I will be buying a second bowl for my mixer). Third, I let the Bavarian cream set a smidgen too long and while I was able to fold in the whip cream I did have some bits of concentrated Bavarian cream giving the effect on the cut slice of cotto salami. The mirror was surprisingly easy to make and tasty too. On a whole I liked the cake but it will not become part of my baking standbys perhaps a special occasion cake.

18 comments:

Deborah said...

I had issues with the gelatin and the cream - and learned too late to strain it! It was a great learning experience, though!

Wendy said...

I am so glad I am not the only one! Thanks for the comment.

breadchick said...

I think a lot of people had problems with the gelatin. But your cake is lovely. Congrats on completing the challenge!

Meeta K. Wolff said...

I was not too keen on the gelatin. I found it was far too much. Your cake looks lovely though!

Anonymous said...

Great job and good for you for overcoming your fear of gelatin!

Jenny said...

Getting that second mixer bowl seems to be a common thing for us, doesn't it? :-)

Good work on the cake!

Helene said...

Oh heck, I come form the country of apsic so I actually admit that I don't mind gelatin...when not too overpowering and I think the cake had too much. Good job on finishing it.

Belinda said...

Well, any trouble you had certainly doesn't show in the finished cake! It looks perfect. :-)

Lis said...

Your cake looks gorgeous, Wendy! And I feel your pain regarding the gelatin. After getting through everyone's entry (1 more left!) I'm almost thinking of making this again - with blueberries and much less gelatin, just to see what would happen.

Yay for completing your first challenge! I can't wait to see what you create next month! =)

xoxo

Peabody said...

Looks great. I agree, this is a special occasion cake.

Cheryl said...

I love your cake and your post was so short but sweet.

Anne said...

Your cake is beautifully presented. Well done on this challenge :)

Alpineberry Mary said...

I ended up straining my bavarian cream to remove my clumpy gelatin balls. In hindsight the clumping was a good thing. Straining meant that I ultimately had less gelatin in my bavarian cream and therefore my cream was still stablized enough but didn't get all rubbery like some other people experienced with theirs.

Glad you were able to join us with this month's challenge. =)

KJ said...

Your cake looks lovely. I agree it's more of a special occassion cake. I was more taken with it's elegance than it's taste.

Elle said...

The gelatin was a challenge, partly because I think there was too much called for in the recipe. Congrats on a pretty cake. Sorry it took me so long to comment.

Chris said...

Good job completing the challenge!

Dolores said...

Glad you were able to join us this month... your cake is lovely even *with* the gelatin issues.

MyKitchenInHalfCups said...

Yes, I thought the cream was good but I thought the mirror was the best. The mirror was something you might do again and possibly even more like ordinary meaning the effort was very much worth the result.