The goal behind this dessert was to make a strawberry cake unlike any that I have made before. I love making doughnut creams, so I wanted to make another flavor. This time, it’s a strawberry angel food shortcake. I used angel food cake as the base, because it is super light and airy, being made and leavened entirely from meringue. What I love is that this recipe does not use any butter or oil. The only real fats come from white chocolate and heavy cream. So you can feel a lot less guilty about eating it.

The different components include the angel food cake, which I used mizuame in, just to give the cake a little more moisture, a strawberry-Meyer lemon mousse and mirror glaze, chantilly, and an agave glazed strawberry slice. I wanted the presentation to be as cute as it is modern, capturing that Harajuku aesthetic that I so often boast about having.  This dessert is really pretty, cute, and perfect for Valentine’s. Share it with somebody special, or just eat it yourself in the dark while rewatching old episodes of Celebrity Big Brother UK, because Tiffany “New York” Pollard is bae. I won’t judge either way.

For the angel food cake base:
1/4 cup mizuame
1/4 cup granulated sugar
4 egg whites
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
a pinch of salt

Whip the egg whites with mizuame, vanilla, salt, and cream of tartar to stiff peaks. Sift the flour and cornstarch. Fold together. Pipe into silicone doughnut molds and bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes. Allow the cakes to cool completely before removing from the molds. Clean the molds, because you will need to re-use them for the mousse.

For the strawberry mousse:
1/2 cup strawberry puree
1 tablespoon Meyer lemon zest
3 tablespoons Meyer lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoons gelatin powder + 1 tablespoon water
1 cup heavy cream
a pinch of salt

Bloom the gelatin with water. Melt into the puree, zest, salt, and juice. Bring to a simmer. Cool completely. Whip the heavy cream to stiff peaks. Fold together. Pipe into the doughnut molds, and press the already baked angel food cakes into the mousses. Freeze for 2 hours.

For the glaze:
1/2 cup white chocolate
3 tablespoons strawberry puree
1 1/4 teaspoons gelatin powder + 1 tablespoon Meyer lemon juice

Bloom gelatin into the juice. Melt into the puree. Melt the white chocolate over a double boiler. Combine the puree with the white chocolate. Mix until smooth. Keep the glaze tepid.

Assembly:
Chantilly cream
Fresh strawberries
Agave nectar

Remove the leaves from the strawberries and slice thinly. Glaze in agave. Whip heavy cream to stiff peaks and season with sugar and vanilla.

Glaze the doughnuts and pipe on a dollop of whipped cream and finish with the strawberry slice.