Problems I’ve experienced with filling my cakes have occurred due to either a very wet, limp French buttercream or not so firm mousse. Considering many possible factors including the enemy of butter, humidity, to the way certain ingredients are whipped in an effective manner, I’ve decided to focus on a new addition to the recipe.
I would like to introduce the method of the month for August – stabilizers or thickening agents. What are they? What do they do? Well, in relation to my melt proof mission, there are different types of stabilizers or thickening agents used in recipes to help resolve this problem and I will try to test them out.
Here are few stabilizers that are found in baking:
- cream of tartar
- gelatin
- vegetable gums like agar
- starches
I must confess that I vowed to stay away from instant gelatin for awhile after attempting to make a raspberry mousse that called for it. Only because my gelatin did not dissolve correctly with the raspberry puree and freaked me out when it coagulated into a lump that felt like instant cartilage. Sorry, just wanted you to know what daunted me about it. So now I am ready to try instant gelatin again as well as other alternatives. In fact, I have a sculpted cake coming up and I would hate for it to fall apart because the filling was not firm enough to support the cake. That has happened to me before, too!
Right now, I’m contemplating between a peanut butter mousse or a hazelnut mousse. Two different recipes, one calls for instant gelatin the other doesn’t. I might try both to see which one holds up the best before using it in my sculpted or 3D cake. I will post my results soon!
