No-Bake Peach Mousse Cake with Ladyfingers

Name: No-Bake Peach Mousse Cake with Ladyfingers
Ingredients: 100 g ladyfingers; 400 g peaches + juice of half a lemon + 1 tsp honey; 400 g heavy cream 30-33%; 300 g milk; 80 g sugar; 20 g starch (I used cornstarch); 1 packet vanilla sugar (10 g); 1 packet gelatin (10 g); 1 peach jello; 3 peaches; raspberries

Even though summer is already over, I really don't want to let it go — and besides, it's been quite warm here this week, so I made this light no-bake mousse cake. For the base I used ladyfingers, a simple sponge cookie sold in many supermarkets (the kind used for Tiramisu). The cookies soak up moisture and end up tasting just like soft, delicate sponge cake. For the mousse I used a peach purée with a hint of honey, whipped heavy cream, and pastry cream. The cake turned out incredibly tender, delicious, and light — my husband kept eating it and raving about it, even though he's a pretty spoiled taste-tester ? It really did turn out amazing, and it's so simple to make. Treat yourself and your loved ones to this delicate little indulgence — I'm sure you'll love it!

Ingredients:

Base:
100 g ladyfingers
Mousse:
400 g peaches + juice of half a lemon + 1 tsp honey
400 g heavy cream 30-33%
300 g milk
80 g sugar
20 g starch (I used cornstarch)
1 packet vanilla sugar (10 g)
1 packet gelatin (10 g)
Topping:
1 peach jello
3 peaches
raspberries

How to cook no-bake peach mousse cake with ladyfingers

Make the peach purée. Cut 400 g of peaches into rough chunks and place them in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Add the lemon juice and honey. Place the saucepan over heat and bring to a boil.

Blend with an immersion blender. Simmer the mixture to reduce it slightly (cook over low heat, uncovered, for about 5–7 minutes).

Press the peach purée through a fine-mesh strainer to remove any pieces of skin and tough fibers. Let it cool completely.

Make the pastry cream. Combine the milk, sugar, vanilla sugar, and starch in a saucepan, stir well, and place over heat. Cook, stirring, until thickened — the pastry cream will be quite thick. Let it cool completely.

Whip the heavy cream until noticeably thickened.

Add the pastry cream in portions, continuing to beat.

Add the peach purée and beat to combine. Bloom the gelatin in 80 ml of water and let it sit for 10 minutes, or for the time indicated on the package. Then heat it until hot so the gelatin dissolves completely. Let it cool. Pour the gelatin into the mixture (pouring it over the whisk while continuing to beat) and beat a little more.

Assemble the cake. Arrange the ladyfingers in the pan — mine is 22 cm in diameter. (If desired, line the pan with parchment paper for easier transfer of the finished cake.) If for some reason you don't want to use ladyfingers, or can't find them, you can bake a sponge cake like the one in the "Cream Cloud" Cake with Strawberries, for example — it will work just as beautifully.

Pour the cream over the ladyfingers and refrigerate until fully set.

Then arrange thinly sliced peaches in a ring around the top. The peaches should be really good — ripe, soft, and fragrant. That matters here! In the center I placed raspberries, but you can use any berries you like, except kiwi or fresh pineapple. Or you can fill the center with another ring of peaches.

Dissolve the jello in hot water — my packet was for 400 ml of water. Let it cool completely. Pour a small amount of jello over the fruit and refrigerate briefly until the first layer sets — this locks the fruit in place. Then pour in the remaining jello and refrigerate until fully set, 3–4 hours or overnight.

To unmold the finished cake, I run a hair dryer around the outside of the pan and then unclasp the springform ring — this gives the cake a nice, smooth edge. Alternatively, you can simply run a knife along the inside of the pan to release the cake.