The Great British Bake Off is one my favorite shows, inspiring new bakes, new flavors, and new techniques! Join me on my journey to bake through all the Season 8 Challenges.
Total Cooking Time: 7 hours and 30 minutes
The Great British Bake Off is a classic show for bakers and those looking for a friendly competition. All the bakes on the show look delicious and I often want to try baking them myself! I finally got off the couch and into the kitchen to recreate some of the recipes from Bake Off! I chose to start with season eight of Bake Off as it is my favorite season and the one with some of my favorite challenges!
Holy Hell… This is it. The final showstopper. The last challenge it is a doozy. I actually spent quite some time developing this recipe and figuring out how I wanted to go about it. The recipe on the Great British Bake-Off website has a simplified version of this cake which consists of the Lemon (Kate uses Yuzu instead of lemon) genoise sponge and the lemon and white chocolate bavarois.
But I wanted to take it further. I wanted to really try my best to recreate the recipe as seen on the show. I wanted to include the Lychee Jelly, the Coconut Dacquoise, and the White Chocolate mirror glaze. This ended up being a six-level entremet which feels a little insane. But hey! I wanted to go out on a high note.
Check out the Season 8 Great British Bake Off Page to see other bakes from the series or the Make section for more recipes!
Ingredients
Do you want a million ingredients? Because this felt like there was a million ingredients. Okay, okay, it was only 18 ingredients but that still feels like a lot! And even though only 18 unique ingredients were used, there were 32 different instances in the recipe where ingredients were called for.
One note that I find absolutely terrifying is that this recipe is made up of 25% sugar. Not sure why I decided to check that out but for some reason I counted all the ingredients needed, converted them to the same unit and then looked at the percentage make up of the entire cake. And yea. 25% sugar.
This is followed by 16% egg and 15% white chocolate. A part of me is happy that one of the title ingredients of the recipe is in the top three ingredients by amount. So, I guess yay? Either way, this cake is packed full of sugar but also worth it.
Process
01
Lemon Sponge
The first recipe I decided to make was the lemon genoise sponge. This recipe would take some time to bake and cool before the assembly of the full cake which made it feel like a great place to start. The original plan was to make a genoise but somehow that recipe turned out like a piece of rubber. I don’t know what happened not do I really want to know. It was weird and I was tired.
So, I went with a different recipe than planned! The one I talk about here is a little different from what I did because the one I did ended up having too much liquid. This recipe cuts its back a little bit to make a proper sponge.
I first created two mixtures – one wet mixture and one dry mixture. In one bowl, I mixed all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In another bowl, I mixed milk that was room temperature and lemon juice.
In a large mixing bowl, I creamed together the butter and sugar. Then I added in the eggs, one at a time, until the mixture was fully smoothed. Lastly, I added the flour and milk, alternating additions between the two. Then it’s into the oven to bake! I released the edges when the cake came out of the oven and let it cool in the pan before turning it out.
02
Lychee Jelly
The Lychee Jelly is one of the most striking parts that I saw in Kate’s dessert, and I was really excited to give this a go again. Especially since my last attempt at Jelly did not turn out as well as I had hoped it would. This is redemption. For sure.
In a small bowl, I mixed the powdered gelatin and a few tablespoons of water to allow the gelatin to soak and rehydrate. While the gelatin is doing its thing, I put sugar and some water in a pan on the stove to cook. This was to create a simple sugar syrup. I wasn’t trying to make caramel. That’s why I cooked the mixture over a low heat until the sugar was just dissolved.
Then I added in the gelatin (squeezing out any excess water), the lychee extract, and any desire food color. I went with red because I really wanted that big and bold red layer running through the middle of the dessert.
The mixture was cooked until all of the ingredients had fully incorporated. I poured the jelly into a 9-inch pan and allowed it to cool down to room temperature. And then, into the fridge it went! To speed up the jelly solidifying process, you can put the jelly in the freezer as well. Just make sure it’s cold and the jelly should set up.
03
Coconut Dacquoise
The next layer to bake is the dacquoise. And… um… I don’t know exactly what a dacquoise is. But I know that I need to make one for this recipe, so I looked it up. It’s apparently a layer of meringue used in cake that typically has some sort of nut involved. The one I decided to use has almond flour, so I guess that checks out.
The first step of making a dacquoise is to create the meringue base. So it’s time to whip eggs! I only whipped the eggs until they were light and frothy and then I added in the sugar. I like to add the sugar in increments to give the mixture more time to dissolve the sugar properly. It’s just a habit now. Measure out sugar and then use a tablespoon to slowly add it to the eggs. And we have a meringue!
In another bowl, I mixed together the almond flour and cake flour until well combined. Then I added in 1/3 of the meringue to make the dry ingredients turn into more of a paste. I folded the remaining meringue into the paste until one consistent batter was formed. The batter was spread out onto a baking tray and finally, a sprinkling of shredded coconut was scattered along the top.
And then it was into the oven! I ended up watching this one for a while because I wasn’t completely sure how long it was supposed to cook. I just knew it was supposed to be cooked until the outside was nicely toasted (or browned). It ended up being about 45-50 minutes.
I let the dacquoise cool down a bit at room temperature before throwing it in the freezer to solidify. The dacquoise should be cut into a circle the same size as the final entremet so mine ended up being about 9.5-inches in diameter.
04
Lemon and White Chocolate Bavarois
How am I not finished yet?!? Why is there so much to do in this recipe?? Why? Anyway, it’s now onto the lemon and white chocolate bavarois. I put the gelatin in a few tablespoons of water to soak in a small bowl. While this is soaking, I moved on to heating milk over the stove. The milk should be warmed but not boiled.
In another bowl, I whisked together the egg yolks and sugar until it was light and frothy. I wanted to get a ribbon like effect when removing the whisk. I then whisked in lemon juice before slowly adding the warmed milk.
The whisk should be continuously moving while the milk is being added. This is to prevent the eggs from cooking after the milk is added in. After everything has been combined, the mixture was put back in the pan and back on the stove. Stir over low heat to thicken.
05
Assembly
To assemble all of these layers, I put the coconut dacquoise on the bottom of the cake pan. Then I put down a layer of the lemon and white chocolate bavarois. I allow this to chill for about 30 minutes to make sure the cake layer would sit properly on top of the bavarois.
Then I put down a layer of the lemon sponge followed by a layer of the lychee Jelly. And finally, the last layer should be another layer of the white chocolate and lemon bavarois. This should go down the sides but I accidentally chilled the bavarois between the two layer steps and it make it a lot thicker and harder to work with.
I found some holes on the side of the my bake which is a big no-no for when you’re using a mirror glaze. My quick solution was to fill the gaps with whipped cream. The best idea? No. A functional idea? Good enough! Now I froze the whole thing while moving on to make the mirror glaze.
06
White Chocolate Mirror Glaze
The last big ingredient to make is the white chocolate mirror glaze! This starts very similarly to a jelly, except I’m combined water, sugar, and condensed milk! While the sugar is dissolving, I also hydrated the gelatin powder by putting in a few tablespoons of water.
The fully hydrated gelatin will be added into the sugar mix after the sugar is dissolved and removed from the heat. The gelatin should fully dissolve. I put my white chocolate in a heat proof bowl, and the poured the sugar mixture over the chocolate.
The heat from the sugar mixture will be enough to melt the chocolate. I like to stir this to make sure the chocolate melts fully. To make sure the glaze has a proper consistency, I blended it. Blending is wonderful. And after blending the mixture, I strained it through a sieve to make sure no chunk made it into the final glaze.
Then it’s time to wait. Because this mixture needs to cool. The best temperature for pouring the mirror glaze is about 92° Fahrenheit. Then it’s time to pour it onto the cake! I started my pour on the center of the cake and worked my way outward.
07
White Chocolate and Sugar Shards
But what is a cake without decorations?1 decided to do two types of decorations although only one made it to the cake. The first decoration was a white chocolate circle and butterflies. All you have to do is melt the white chocolate! I just used the microwave in two 30 second bursts.
The other that I attempted to make was sugar shards. For sugar shards, the sugar should be dissolved in a little bit of water and brough up to the hard crack temperature (300° F). I forgot to bring it up to temperature so it had trouble solidifying back down.
The decorations go on the cake after the mirror glaze sets up!!
Reflections
Again, some struggle bus happening here. I did a good job on the flavors while the texture of the cake turned out a little odder than I expected. But after doing several layers, several times, I feel like the outcome came out well! The color of the jelly being dyed red was absolutely striking.
Am I ready for bake-off? Nope! After doing all of this, I feel even less prepared than I did when I began. But I don’t think that will stop me. The question is, what will I do next?
Lessons
It’s okay to redo
If something isn’t work, it’s totally okay to start over! Some thing’s aren’t fixable and that’s okay. This is mainly me giving myself permission to mess up. Because I think everyone deserves that. And I have a special ability to be extra hard on myself in the moment.
recipe
White Chocolate and Lemon Entremet
Ingredients
Lemon Sponge
- 6 Tablespoon Unsalted Butter
- ¾ Cup Granulated Sugar
- 2 Eggs
- 1 ½ Cup Cake Flour
- ¼ Teaspoon Salt
- ¾ Teaspoon Baking Powder
- ¼ Teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 Cup Whole Milk
- ¼ Cup Lemon Juice
Lychee Jelly
- 4 Tablespoon Gelatin
- ⅔ Cup Granulated Sugar
- 1 ½ Cup Water
- 1 ½ Teaspoon Lychee Extract
- Red Food Coloring
Coconut Dacquoise
- 10 Egg Whites
- 1 ⅔ Cup Granulated Sugar divided to 1 Cup and ⅔ Cup
- 1 ⅔ Cup Almond Flour
- ⅔ Cup Cake Flour
- ½ Cup Shredded Coconut
Lemon and White Chocolate Bavarois
- 2 ½ Teaspoon Gelatin
- ⅔ Cup White Chocolate finely chopped
- ⅔ Cup Whole Milk
- 3 Egg Yolks
- 1 Tablespoon Granulated Sugar
- 6 ½ Tablepsoon Lemon Juice
- 1 ½ Cup Heavy Whipping Cream well chilled
White Chocolate Mirror Glaze
- 1 Cup White Chocolate finely chopped
- ⅓ Cup Water
- ⅔ Cup Granulated Sugar
- ⅓ Cup Condensed Milk
- ½ Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
- 2 ½ Teaspoon Gelatin
White Chocolate and Sugar Shard Decorations
- ½ Cup White Chocolate finely chopped
- ¼ Cup Granulated Sugar
- 2 Tablespoon Water
- Red Food Coloring
Instructions
Lemon Sponge
- Preheat the oven to 350° Fahrenheit
- In a small bowl, whisk together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt
- In another small bowl, whisk together milk and lemon juice.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar.
- Add in the eggs, one at a time, waiting until the egg is fully combined before adding the next. Scrape down bowl as needed.
- Alternate adding the flour mixture and the milk mixture until fully combined into one dough. I did three additions of each mixture.
- Pour the batter into a prepared 9-inchcircular pan and bake for 30-35 minutes or until well-rise, golden brown and springy. Loosen the sponge from the tin and let cool before turning out onto a wire rack.
Lychee Jelly
- In a small bowl, allow the gelatin to soak in approximately 4 tbsp of warm water for about 5 minutes.
- In a small pot, dissolve the sugar and ¾cup of water over the stove. Add in the soaked gelatin, lychee extract, and red food coloring.
- Pour into a prepared 9-inch circular pan and allow the jelly to cool. Put the jelly in the fridge to set.
Coconut Dacquoise
- Preheat the oven to 325° Fahrenheit
- In a large bowl, whip the egg whites until light and frothy. Add 1 and ¼ cup sugar and whip until the meringue is no longer grainy.
- In a separate bowl, combine the almond flour, cake flour, and 1 cup sugar. Mix in 1/3 of the meringue until the dry ingredients turn into a paste like texture.
- Fold in the remaining meringue until all of the ingredients are combined.
- Spread mixture out on a baking tray. Sprinkle with coconut and for 45-55 minutes or until brown.
- Freeze until solid and cut into a circle as large as the final cake pan being used. (Mine was 9.5 inches)
Lemon and White Chocolate Bavarois
- In a small bowl, soak gelatin in water to softened.
- In a medium, pan, heat the milk until steaming hot (not boiling) and then remove from the heat.
- In a heatproof bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until thick and frothy (approximately 2-3 minutes). Whisk in lemon juice and then add in the hot milk and mix until combined.
- Pour the mixture back into the pan and stir over a medium to low heat until the custard has thickened. It should not boil. Remove from heat.
- Squeeze out any excess water from the gelatin. Stir the gelatin into the custard mixture until the gelatin has fully dissolved.
- In a heatproof bowl, put the white chocolate. Strain the custard onto the chopped white chocolate and allow the chocolate to melt. Stir until smooth and combined. Allow to cool to remove temperature and start to thicken, stirring frequently.
- Whip the cream until it reaches soft peaks. Fold the cream into the custard until fully combined.
Assembly
- In a 9.5-inch pan, place a down a layer of coconut dacquoise. Spread out a layer of the lemon white chocolate bavarois. Chill for 30 minutes to allow the bavarois to gently set.
- In the center of the tin, place the lemon genoise cake and layer the lychee jelly on top
- Encase the genoise and jelly inside a layer of lemon white chocolate bavarois and chill for 3 hours or overnight.
White Chocolate Mirror Glaze
- Ensure cake is completely frozen with the tops and sides smooth.
- Soak gelatin in 2 tablespoon water and allow to sit for 5-10 minutes until fully soaked.
- In a small pan, combine sugar, condensed milk, and remaining water until the sugar is fully dissolved. Remove from heat and add bloomed gelatin. Stir until the gelatin has dissolved.
- Place chopped white chocolate in a heatproof-bowl. Pour gelatin mixture over the chocolate and allow chocolate to melt.
- Blend mixture until smooth and stain through a sieve to remove any excess material. Stir occasionally to prevent a skin from forming. Allow mixture to cool to 90° – 94° Fahrenheit.
- Pour the glaze over the frozen cake. Work in a circular motion starting at the center of the cake and slowly moving toward the edges.
- Smooth top and sides as needed. Transferto the final serving dish and let the cake chill for approximately 1 hour.
White Chocolate and Sugar Decorations
- Melt the white chocolate and divide into two. Add red food coloring to one of the bowls of the melted white chocolate.
- On an acetate sheet, spread out chocolate and allow to cool. Before fully cooled, just into the desired shapes and curve acetate as needed.
- For sugar shards, put sugar and 2 tablespoons of water into a small pan over a low heat. Swirl until the sugar dissolves. Allow to come up to 300°Fahrenheit.
- Remove from the heat and pour into a thin layer onto an oiled baking sheet. Leave to set and break into shards.
- Decorate cake with shards and chocolate shapes as desired.
- Enjoy!!