Fraisier Cake (French Strawberry Cake)

Fraisier cake is a classic French cake that can only be described as a celebration of strawberries! It looks like it would be impossibly complicated to make, but it's actually just a combination of a few simple components. I'll walk you through how to make each one.

Fraisier cake is the kind of cake that bakers look at and think is too advanced for them. I can tell you right now - it's not. It may look daunting, but this French strawberry cake is actually surprisingly easy to make. T

There are multiple components, but each one is straightforward (if a little time-consuming). I'll walk you through each part, step-by-step, so you can make a showstopping fraisier and blow everyone away (including yourself).

Ingredients

• Eggs - This recipe does use a lot of eggs! We use whole eggs in the genoise sponge. Use large eggs in the US or medium eggs in the UK.
  
• Egg Yolks - For the custard filling.

• Sugar - Use granulated sugar (caster sugar in the UK).

• Flour - For the genoise sponge, I find cake flour works best as it produces a beautifully light and airy sponge, which is what we want. However, if you don't have cake flour then all-purpose flour (plain flour) will do the trick.

• Oil - I use vegetable oil, but canola oil or any kind of neutral oil will do.

• Milk - Use whole milk to make sure your creme mousseline carries the flavor and structure.

• Vanilla - The vanilla flavor will really shine through in this recipe, so try to find a high-quality vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste. Or you can use a whole vanilla pod. Vanilla pods or vanilla bean paste will mean you can see those gorgeous vanilla seeds in your vanilla mousseline cream.

• Butter - Use unsalted butter. The butter will be whipped into oblivion to make the creme mousseline. Try to use a high-quality butter as the fat content tends to be higher and will produce a better result.

• Corn starch - Corn starch (or cornflour in the UK) is a thickening agent we will use in the custard (pastry cream). Do not confuse it with cornmeal.

• Strawberries - If you are making your strawberry syrup from scratch, you can use frozen strawberries for that, but inside the cake should absolutely be fresh strawberries and the best ones you can find. These strawberries will be on display, so you want to make sure you find red, ripe, juicy ones.

• Marzipan - Fraisier is also often finished off on top with a layer of marzipan or almond paste. I dyed my marzipan red to fit the aesthetic of the dessert, but you can skip the red food coloring if you like and just put it on au naturel.

See the recipe card for measurements.

What You'll Need

• Cake pan or ring
- Use a loose-bottom pan, springform pan, or cake/pastry ring. It must be the same size or smaller than your genoise pan and tall enough to hold all the layers. If needed, add an acetate collar to increase the height.
(I used an adjustable pastry ring set to 8 inches to match my sponge.)
  
• Pastry brush -
For brushing the syrup onto the sponge. Use a food-grade or silicone brush.
  
• Stand mixer with whisk attachment -
Strongly recommended - both the genoise and crème mousseline require long whipping times. A hand whisk will work, but it's a workout.
  
• Saucepan
- Needed for the bain-marie, strawberry syrup, and pastry cream.

How To Make Fraisier Cake

You should prepare your creme patissiere (pastry cream) and simple syrup ahead of time so they have time to cool. The strawberry syrup will be soaked into the sponge cake, and the pastry cream will be whipped into butter to make the mousseline cream.

You can also make the genoise sponge ahead of time if you like.

Make The Pastry Cream

If this is your first time making pastry cream, you can get detailed step-by-step instructions in my creme patissiere recipe.

1. Whip the eggs, sugar, and cornstarch together until pale and thick.

2. Heat the milk and vanilla over medium heat until scalding hot.

3. Slowly drizzle the milk into the egg mixture while whisking.

4. Return everything to the heat and boil for 1-2 minutes until thick. Cover and let cool.

Make the Strawberry Simple Syrup

This strawberry simple syrup is so quick and easy, and it's amazing on all kinds of desserts. I use a raspberry version in my Berry Chantilly Cake aswell.

1. Put the strawberries, water and sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil until the sugar dissolves.

2. Strain out the strawberries and set aside to cool.

Genoise Sponge Cake

The genoise sponge is the foundation of Fraisier - it is a light and airy Italian sponge cake used in a lot of European desserts and patisserie. Sponge cakes are notorious for drying out easily, which is why we soak them in simple syrup.

You can also try this cake with my hot milk sponge cake, which is a little more forgiving than the genoise technique.

See my genoise sponge cake recipe for more detailed instructions.

1. Whisk eggs and sugar over a double boiler until the sugar dissolves and the mixture no longer feels gritty.

2. Transfer to a stand mixer and whip on high speed for 5 full minutes. Then turn down to low speed and whip for a further 10 minutes.

3. Fold the sifted flour into the whipped eggs very gently, being careful not to knock out too much air.

4. Gently fold the wet ingredients into the batter until it reaches the ribbon stage.

5. Pour into a greased cake pan and bake at 350°F / 180°C (160° fan-assisted) for 35 minutes until golden brown and springy.

6. Flip the cake upside down on some parchment paper to cool. Remove the pan once no longer hot to the touch.

Assembling Fraisier Cake

It's easiest to get all the components lined up in front of you before you assemble the cake.

Note: If you are using an open-bottomed pan like a pastry ring, you want to build your fraisier cake directly on a cake board or whatever plate you will be serving on. If you are using a spring form pan or loose-bottomed cake pan, you can transfer it to the board or plate immediately after removing it from the pan.

Torte The Sponge

Slice the cooled genoise sponge cake in half to make two even layers.

I like to use a cake leveler to make it super straight, but a serrated knife works too.

Soak With Syrup

Place one of the cake layers into a pastry ring or loose-bottomed cake pan and soak with strawberry simple syrup. Don't add so much that it goes soggy, just enough to keep it moist.

I find using a pastry brush is the easiest way to soak it evenly.

Line Up Strawberries

Find the prettiest strawberries and slice them in half. It's best if they are roughly the same size.

Line the outside of the pan with strawberries facing outward, pack them tightly.

Decorate The Fraisier Cake

Once the fraisier cake has set, let it sit at room temperature for 5 minutes, then remove it from the cake ring.

A classic fraisier cake has a red marzipan layer on top, but if you don't want to add the marzipan, you can just decorate with more fresh strawberries.

Make the Marzipan Topping

1. Knead a little red food coloring into the marzipan until it is evenly distributed.
2. Roll the marzipan out on a worktop, lightly dusted with powdered sugar to whatever thickness you'd like it to be.
3. Use the cake ring or pan that you used for the cake to trace and cut a circle of marzipan the same size as your cake. Then lift it from the worktop and place it gently on top of your fraisier cake.
4. Decorate with fresh strawberries. Voila!

Storage

Once it has been assembled, the fraisier cake should be stored in the fridge and is best eaten within 3 days. The longevity really depends on the freshness of the strawberries that were used inside it. You should be able to get a good indicator by looking at the strawberries on the outside of the cake.

More Strawberry Desserts

If you love fresh fruit desserts, try some of my other strawberry recipes: