Tangy Lemon Berry Mousse Cake

Ingredients

Tangy Lemon Cake Layer

• 3/4 cup butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1 1/2 cups self raising flour
• grated rind of 1 orange
• grated rind of 1 lemon

Berry Mousse Layer

• 3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 2 1/4 tsp powdered gelatin
• 2 cups fresh berries (pitted cherries, raspberries, or strawberries)
• 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp sugar
• 2 cups cold heavy cream
• * optional: 1 drop pink food coloring

Berry Glaze

• 2 cups fresh berries
• 1-2 tbsp water
• 1/4 cup sugar

Directions

Sponge Cake Layer

1. Preheat oven to 350F, and grease a 9x12 baking pan.
2. Cream together butter and sugar until fluffy and then gradually beat in eggs one at a time.
3. Fold in flour, orange and lemon rinds.
4. Pour into greased pan and bake for 1 - 1.5 hours until it is set in the middle, and is golden brown.
5. Remove from oven and let cool in baking pan.
6. In the meanwhile, prepare the berry mousse:
7. Place lemon juice in a small bowl and sprinkle with gelatin. Let sit until gelatin softens.
8. In a blender, puree 2 cups fresh berries until smooth, scraping down bowl as needed. *Optional, add 1 drop of pink food coloring for added vibrance.
9. Pour through a fine-mesh sieve into a measuring cup, pressing on solids (you should have about 1 cup of puree); set aside solids for your glaze.
10. In a small saucepan, combine berry puree and 1/2 cup sugar over medium cook until bubbling.
11. Add gelatin mixture and cook, stirring constantly, just until gelatin dissolves, about 1 minute.
12. Transfer mixture to a small bowl and let cool to room temperature, 20 minutes.
13. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat cream and 2 tablespoons sugar on medium-high until firm peaks form, about 4 minutes.
14. With a rubber spatula, gently fold in berry puree mixture until combined.
15. Pour over cooled cake.
16. Smooth top and refrigerate until set, about 2 hours (or up to overnight).
17. Before serving prepare berry sauce by heating berries in a medium saucepan until they begin to soften and liquefy. Add sugar water to desired consistency and bring to a boil.
18. Let come to a simmer. Take off stove and use a hand held blender to liquefy about 3/4 of the sauce.
19. Pour warm over individual slices of cake.