Charlotte Royale Recipes

MARY BERRY'S CHARLOTTE ROYALE

Steps:

• For the jam, place the strawberries in a small pan with the sugar and cook over a low heat until the sugar has melted. Add the knob of butter. Bring to the boil and boil vigorously for four minutes, or until the temperature on a sugar thermometer reaches 104C/219F (setting point). Remove from the heat and stir in the knob of butter. Transfer to a large bowl and leave to set.
• For the sponge rolls, preheat the oven to 220C/fan 200C/425F/Gas 7. Grease and line two 33cm x 23cm/13 x 9in Swiss roll tins with baking parchment. Whisk the eggs and sugar together in a large bowl until the mixture is light and frothy and the whisk leaves a trail when lifted out. Sift the flour into the mixture and carefully fold it in. Divide the mixture between the prepared tins and give it a gentle shake so that the mixture finds its own level, making sure that it has spread evenly to the corners.
• Bake in the two Swiss roll tins for 10-12 minutes, or until the sponges are golden-brown and begin to shrink from the edges of the tin. While the cakes are cooking, place two pieces of baking parchment a little bigger than the size of the tin on the work surface and sprinkle with caster sugar.
• Turn the cakes out onto the sugared parchment and peel off the paper. Trim the edges of the sponges with a sharp knife and score 2cm/¾in from the short edge, being careful not to cut right through.
• Leave to cool slightly, then spread with jam and roll up the cakes firmly from the scored end and set aside.
• For the bavarois, soak the gelatine in cold water until soft. Purée 450g/1lb of the raspberries in the bowl of a food processor. Pass the raspberries through a sieve over a bowl and discard the seeds. Stir the raspberry liqueur into the purée and set aside.
• Pour the milk into a pan and heat until just under boiling point. Whisk the egg yolks and caster sugar together until pale and creamy. Pour the hot milk over the eggs and whisk together. Drain the gelatine, squeezing out any excess moisture and add it to the custard. Return the custard to the pan and cook until the mixture coats the back of a spoon. Do not boil as this will split the custard and prevent the gelatine from setting. Remove from the heat, transfer to a clean bowl and leave to cool slightly before folding in the raspberry purée. Leave to cool for at least 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, line the base of a 2 litre/3½ pint round bowl with cling film, to help turn the Charlotte royale out. Slice the Swiss rolls into 1.5cm/⅝in slices and use to line the base and sides of a bowl. Pack the slices closely together so that no filling can seep through, reserving enough slices to cover the top (which will become the base).
• In a bowl, whip the cream until soft peaks form when the whisk is removed from the bowl and stir into the raspberry bavarois. Fold in the remaining 100g/3½oz of raspberries and the small strawberries and spoon into the lined bowl.
• Cover with the remaining cake slices. Cover with cling film and chill in the fridge overnight until set.
• Turn out the Charlotte royale onto a cooling rack.
• To decorate, tip the caster sugar into a pan with 125ml/4fl oz water and bring to the boil. Dissolve the arrowroot in two tablespoons of cold water and stir into the sugar syrup. Bring to the boil, remove from the heat and leave to cool slightly before spooning over the Charlotte royale to glaze.
• Whip the cream and icing sugar in a bowl until soft peaks form when the whisk is removed from the bowl and spoon into a piping bag fitted with a medium star nozzle.
• Pipe a continual scallop design of cream around the base of the Charlotte royale and decorate with fanned and glazed strawberries.

CHARLOTTE ROYALE (AKA BRAIN CAKE)

Steps:

• Cut the cakes into about 1 1/2cm (half inch) slices.
• Butter a bowl (or mold or springform pan) and place 1 1/2cm slices of jam roll around the sides, fitting them tightly together so that there are no spaces for the custard to seep through. Reserve some slices for placing on top of the Bavarian cream (which will be the bottom of the cake when removed from the mold). Refrigerate until you are ready to fill the mold.
• If using gelatine, soak gelatine in 3 tablespoons cold water.
• Heat milk with vanilla over a medium heat. Add gelatine (or agar-agar) to the milk and bring it gently to the boil, stirring continuously. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.
• While cooling, whisk together egg yolks, icing sugar and salt until smooth, and pour the yolk mixture into the milk while stirring constantly.
• Stir continuously with whisk over a gentle heat until the mixture coats the back of a spoon. The mixture must NOT boil. Pour into a bowl and allow to cool, then refrigerate until the custard is cold and just beginning to thicken.
• While the custard is cooling, whip the cream until it just starts to thicken, then add the icing sugar. Continue whipping to soft peaks. Fold in the fruit or purée and/or liqueur if using.
• Fold cream together with the cooled, but not set, custard. (If the custard has cooled and set a bit too fast, use your mixer to make it creamy before blending it with the whipped cream.).
• Pour into the prepared dish, top with reserved slices of sponge roll and chill overnight.
• To unmold, briefly place the bowl into warm water, cover with serving plate and invert. Tap gently and ease the bowl off of the cake. Add whipped cream and fruit as a garnish if you like.
• For vegetarian use agar-agar.

PUMPKIN CHARLOTTE ROYALE

Steps:

• For the cake: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 10-by-15-inch jellyroll pan with nonstick cooking spray and line with a piece of parchment. Spray an 8-inch round cake pan with nonstick cooking spray and line with a parchment round.
• Whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
• Add the granulated sugar and eggs to a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat on high speed until thick, fluffy and lightened in color, about 3 minutes. Beat in the pumpkin puree. Add the dry ingredients and mix on low to incorporate. Scrape down the bowl and beat on medium for 1 full minute.
• Pour about 3/4 cup of the batter into the prepared 8-inch cake pan and spread into an even layer. Scrape the remaining batter into the prepared jelly roll pan and spread into an even layer. Bake until the cakes spring back when gently touched, 14 to 17 minutes. Let cool in the pans for 2 minutes.
• Loosen the edges of the jelly roll pan cake with a knife. Using a sieve, generously dust a clean kitchen towel larger than the jelly roll pan with confectioners' sugar. Flip the cake onto the towel and peel off the parchment. Starting on a long end, fold the towel over the cake edge and begin to roll the cake up with the towel as tightly as possible without cracking the cake. Leave the cake rolled in the towel to cool completely, about 30 minutes. When the round cake is cool enough to handle, run a knife along the edge and invert onto a wire rack to cool completely.
• For the cream cheese filling: Meanwhile, beat the cream cheese and butter in a stand mixer on medium speed until smooth and combined. Add the confectioners' sugar, pumpkin pie spice and vanilla and beat until the ingredients are incorporated. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• When the rolled cake is cool, unroll it, leaving it on the kitchen towel. Spread the cream cheese filling over the cake in an even layer. Roll the cake back up tightly, this time keeping the towel on the outside. Transfer to a baking sheet and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• To assemble the charlotte: Line a 2 1/2-quart stainless steel or glass bowl with plastic wrap, leaving a few inches of wrap overhanging the outside of the bowl.
• Trim the edges of the cake roll, then slice the roll into 20 rounds, each about 1/2 inch thick. Starting in the center of the plastic wrap-lined bowl, arrange the rolls next to each other tightly. Cut any remaining rolls to fit and fill the top edge of the bowl as best as possible. Trim the cake roll rounds to come 1/2 inch below the edge of the bowl.
• Add the white chocolate to a microwave-safe bowl and microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring in between each, until melted. Pour the chocolate into the cake-lined bowl and use an offset spatula to spread into an even layer and fill any cracks between the cake roll pieces. Refrigerate while you make the pumpkin mousse filling.
• For the pumpkin mousse filling: Put 2 tablespoons cold water in a small bowl and sprinkle the gelatin over it; stir to moisten and set aside.
• Add the sweetened condensed milk to a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Simmer, stirring constantly, until the milk thickens to a paste-like consistency and just starts to brown, about 10 minutes. Stir in the pumpkin, return to the heat and cook until the mixture just begins to bubble and sputter, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the bloomed gelatin. Transfer the mixture to a separate bowl and cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally (see Cook's Note).
• When the pumpkin mixture has cooled, add the heavy cream to a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whip on high until the cream begins to thicken. Add the cooled pumpkin mixture, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Continue to beat until stiff peaks form.
• Spoon the whipped cream mixture into the center of the cake-lined bowl, smoothing the top to an even layer. Trim the 8-inch cake to fit on top of the filling. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 3 hours and up to overnight.
• To serve, invert the charlotte onto a cake stand. Remove the plastic wrap and dust with confectioners' sugar. Serve cold.

CHARLOTTE ROYALE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line the bottom of a 15-x-10-inch jelly roll pan with parchment paper.
• Place the egg yolks and icing sugar in a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment and whip until the yolks have doubled in volume and hold a ribbon when the whip is lifted, about 4 minutes. Whip in the vanilla.
• In a separate, or cleaned bowl, whip the egg whites with the salt first on low speed until foamy, then increase the speed to high and pour in the granulated sugar, whipping until the whites hold a medium peak.
• Sift half of the flour into the yolk mixture and fold in using a whisk, then fold in half of the whipped egg whites. Repeat with the remaining flour, and then change to a spatula to fold in the last of the whites until evenly incorporated. Spread the batter into the prepared pan, taking the time to ensure the batter is level.
• Bake the cake for about 12 minutes, until the cake springs back when gently pressed in the centre. Let the cake cool for about 2 minutes on a cooling rack, then loosen the sides with a spatula. Sift a layer of icing sugar over the surface of the cake and cover with a clean tea towel. Place a second cake pan over the towel and quickly invert the cake, removing the pan it was baked in. Peel off the parchment paper and dust this surface with icing sugar. Roll the cake up from the 10-inch side with the towel and let it cool completely (cooling it rolled sets its "memory" so the cake won't crack once filled).
• Stir the raspberry jam to soften. Unroll the cake and spread an even layer of jam over the cake. Roll the cake back up again, dust the top with icing sugar. Cover and store at room temperature until ready to serve.
• The cake can be prepared up to a day in advance and stored, wrapped and unrefrigerated.
• Bring the milk up to a simmer along with the scraped seeds from the vanilla bean (or the vanilla bean paste, if using). In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar. Slowly pour the hot milk into the yolks while whisking constantly, then return the entire mixture to the pot. Cook the custard over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the mixture thickens and coats the back of the spoon, about 4 minutes. Strain the custard into a bowl.
• Stir the gelatin with 1/3 cup of cool water and let it soften for a minute. Whisk this into the custard while it is still hot. Cool the custard completely to room temperature, then chill the custard for about 15 minutes, so that it is cool to the touch but not setting.
• Whip the cream to soft peaks and fold this (using a whisk) into the cool custard mixture. Assemble the charlotte while the custard is still fluid.
• Line a 6-cup bowl or charlotte mold with plastic wrap. Slice the jelly roll into ½ inch slices and line the entire bowl, pressing the jell roll slices together as tightly as possible without altering their shape. Pour the Bavarian cream into the mold and place any remaining jelly roll slices on top. Cover the charlotte with plastic and chill for at least 4 hours to set.
• To serve, invert the charlotte onto the serving plate and peel away the plastic wrap. Slice into wedges to serve.

CHARLOTTE ROYAL

Steps:

• To make the jelly roll, first preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• Using an electric mixer, whip the eggs until light and frothy and lemony in color (about 5 minutes). Add the sugar and continue to mix until the sugar grains are completely disolved.
• Sift together the dry ingredients (flour, cornstarch and salt) and add to the sugar and eggs. Finally, mix in the vanilla.
• Line a jelly roll pan with parchment and lightly oil or prepare with cooking spray. Pour batter in pan and bake in oven about 25 minutes, until cake is browned and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
• Remove from pan and place on a clean dishcloth dusted with confectioners sugar. Allow the jelly roll to cool 5 minutes. Trim hard edges off the cake to make the cake easier to roll. Remove parchment paper. Lightly spread 2 cups jam on the top of the cake and begin creating the jelly roll. Begin your roll from the narrow side of the cake and use the dishtowel to gently turn the cake on itself. (Remember to push back the towel as you roll the cake.) Continue rolling until done. Leave towel around the exterior to force the roll to retain the shape while cooling.
• Once the cake is cool, cut into 1/4 inch slices and use slices to line a rounded (dome-shaped) casserole dish.
• Warm the last cup of jam and brush on the inside of the jelly roll shell. You may not need the entire cup to do this.
• To prepare the cream filling, dissolve the unflavored gelatin into a bowl with 2 tablespoons of warm water. Allow the gelatin to sit for 5 minutes.
• Whip the heavy cream until it reaches the soft peak stage. Sprinkle in the salt and lemon juice. Whip in the gelatin, then the sugar 1 or 2 tablespoons at a time until the cream reaches the stiff peak stage.
• Fold the cream mixture into the jell roll shell, smoothing to a uniform height. Cover with plastic and chill at least 3 hour, preferably overnight.
• To serve, invert casserole dish onto serving plate. Slice and serve.