Exotic Cloud Cake

Before starting this Exotic Cloud Cake recipe, make sure you have organised the necessary ingredients for the Sacher biscuit. Sacher refers to a type of chocolate biscuit.

Place the whole eggs and egg yolks into the stand mixer recipient. Add the almond powder and sugar. Beat until pale and fluffy.

In the meantime, sift the cocoa powder and baking powder together.

In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites. When they are fluffy and still foamy...

... add the castor sugar...

... and beat until stiff.

Add the sifted ingredients to the egg and almond preparation...

... and fold gently with a rubber spatula.

Gently incorporate the beaten egg whites.

Fold in a vertical motion.

Add the melted butter.

Place a Flexipan Entremets silicone mat 33.5 x 33.5 cm on top of a Silichef XL perforated baking sheet...

... and fill with the preparation, without greasing beforehand.

Spread the preparation...

... over the whole surface to an even thickness, using a cranked metallic spatula.

Bake in a preheated oven to 170°C (gas 3)...

... for 12 minutes. When cooked, let cool before removing from the mould.

Remove the biscuit from the mould onto a sheet of greaseproof paper. This biscuit is very fragile, be careful not to break the corners.

Set aside until cooled down completely.

Using a stainless steel square frame 16 x 16 cm, cut the Sacher biscuit into two squares. If you can't cut two whole squares from the biscuit, cut two pieces to create the second square.

For the exotic fruit crémeux: Organise all the necessary ingredients.

Soften the gelatine sheet in cold water.

Pour the passion fruit purée, banana purée and lemon juice in a saucepan. Bring to a boil.

In a mixing bowl, place the whole eggs and castor sugar...

... and beat vigorously with a whisk.

When the fruit preparation starts boiling...

... pour over the blanched eggs.

Combine well, then transfer into the saucepan used to boil the fruit purées.

Scrape the preparation from the sides of the bowl to waste as little as possible.

Cook 'à la nappe' until the temperature reaches 84°C. I recommend using a digital probe thermometer. This technique is identical to custard (the preparation should not boil in order to avoid scrambled eggs).

When the cream is cooked...

... pass through a chinois or fine sieve to remove the stringy white bits from the eggs.

Squeeze the gelatine sheet to drain...

... and add to the hot cream. Combine gently.

Place the cream in the processor recipient...

... and add the butter cut into cubes...

... and process until the butter is completely incorporated.

Remove the bowl from the processor...

... and pour the cream inside the square frame, over the Sacher chocolate biscuit.

Spread to an even surface...

... and cover with the second square of Sacher biscuit, then store in the fridge. (Note I had to use two pieces of biscuit to create a whole square.) Cover with cling film and place in the freezer. Ideally, make this the day before and freeze overnight.

For the caramelised pineapple: Organise all the necessary ingredients.

Cut the pineapple in half and peel. Remove the central core.

Using a knife with a thin hollow edge blade, cut half of the pineapple into thin slices, then into strips...

... and cut into small cubes.

In a non-stick frying pan, place the butter and soft brown sugar...

... until you obtain a pale caramel. When the caramel is ready...

... add the pineapple cubes...

... and caramelize for a few minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the grated coconut...

... the lime juice...

... and the lime zest (use a Microplane Classic grater.

When caramelised, add the dark rum. Combine well and set aside.

For the milk chocolate mousse: Pour the milk in a saucepan.

...and the whipping cream.

Add half of the castor sugar.

Soak 2/3 of one gelatine sheet in cold water.

In a mixing bowl, place the egg yolks and the rest of the castor sugar...

... and blanch with a whisk.

Pour the milk and cream over the blanched egg yolks and combine with a whisk.

Transfer the preparation into the saucepan used to cook the milk and cream, and cook 'à la nappe'. The temperature should not exceed 85°C, otherwise you will end up with scrambled eggs. A digital thermometer is essential for this operation.

Pass the preparation through a chinois or a fine sieve...

The preparation should be at room temperature.

Strain the gelatine sheet...

... and add to the hot cream.

Beat the whipping cream until you obtain a whipped cream, using an electric whisk.

Melt the chocolate couverture in the microwave, in periods of 30 seconds to make sure the chocolate does not burn. Add the melted chocolate to the custard at room temperature.

Combine with a whisk until homogeneous.

Take 1/4 of the whipped cream...

... and add it to the chocolate preparation. Combine vigorously with a whisk.

The preparation should be at room temperature.

Pour the chocolate preparation over the rest of the whipped cream...

... and combine gently with a rubber spatula. The consistency should be pretty liquid.

Pour the preparation into the Silikomart silicone cloud mould.

Fill the bottom of the mould until the cavities are no longer visible. Reserve in the freezer to set. Keep the remaining chocolate mousse at room temperature.

Remove the Sacher biscuit with crémeux filling from the freezer. Slightly reheat the sides of the frame to facilitate the operation.

Return to the freezer.

For the crunchy coconut base: Organise all the necessary ingredients.

Place the white chocolate and cocoa butter in a bowl and melt in the microwave in periods of 30 seconds.

In the stand mixer recipient, place the pailleté feuilletine flakes and the coconut.

Stir the melted chocolate and cocoa butter...

... and add to the stand mixer bowl.

Combine at low speed with the flat beater until homogeneous.

The texture should be grainy and crunchy. Set aside.

Remove the cloud mould from the freezer (the chocolate mousse should be set but not frozen). Spread the caramelised pineapple cubes over the chocolate.

Place the Sacher biscuit and exotic cream stack on top, pressing it down so the cream comes up on the sides.

Cover with the rest of the chocolate mousse. Make sure there are no air bubbles and that all gaps in the mould are filled with chocolate mousse.

Even the surface with a cranked metallic spatula.

Spread the coconut base over the chocolate mousse, creating a thin layer.

Carefully wrap the whole thing with cling film...

... and slice a rolling pin over the surface until flat and regular. Freeze for a few hours. If you're equipped with a deep freezer (down to -30°C) or a freezer with boost function, use it until the cake is frozen. It is essential to remove the cake from the mould when it is completely frozen.

Take the cake out of the freezer...

... and release from the mould onto a baking sheet.

This is what the cake should look like at this stage.

Place the cake on a rack, then place the rack in an airbrush spray booth.

Apply white velvet spray over the surface of the cake, from a distance of 25/30 cm. Make sure you shake the bottle well before use. There's no need to reheat the bottle beforehand. The cake should be frozen for perfect results.

Coat the whole surface with the white velvet spray until you can no longer the chocolate mousse. Transfer the cake in the fridge and let defrost slowly. If you wish, you can arrange an edible flower (pansy for instance) on the surface of the cake just before serving.