This is the boarding call for all passengers who love red velvet cakes & strawberries. The destination is a show stopping ‘Red Velvet Strawberry Mousse Cake with Strawberry Jelly and Strawberry Whipped Cream‘. Hop on!

At the base, we have red velvet cake (I’ve used my eggless recipe from here). Next is a light & creamy strawberry mousse layer set with agar agar (to keep it vegetarian). Next, we have a layer of strawberry jelly (I used store-bought jelly crystals to make this, you can make your own too). The whole cake is the topped with whipped cream flavoured with strawberry. It’s perfect any time of the year, but especially for Valentine’s day for that someone special in your life! You might think it’s too much work, but you just have to work on 1 layer and let it cool/chill completely before the next one, giving ample time to relax and prep. And trust me, the end result is worth it.

I’ve used a 7-inch springform pan, but the recipe can be doubled for a 9-inch or 10-inch springform pan too. A springform pan is necessary for such recipes because it’s easier to de-mould and you don’t have to invert the cake to take out the pan.

Ingredients –

Red Velvet Cake Layer
50 g all-purpose flour
60 g granulated white sugar
1/2 tbsp unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1/8 tsp Baking powder
1/8 tsp Baking Soda
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 cup milk
1/4 tsp apple cider vinegar (regular works fine too)
20 ml oil (1 tbsp + 1 tsp)
1/2 tsp Vanilla extract (replace it with strawberry extract to intensify the flavour)
few drops of Red food colour (preferably the gel paste kind, they don’t dilute the batter)

Strawberry Mousse Layer
180 ml (3/4 cup) heavy whipping cream, chilled
45 g (1/4 cup) white chocolate chips, melted
60 ml (1/4 cup) sweetened condensed milk
60 g (1/4 cup) mascarpone cheese, soft at room temperature
1 cup fresh strawberries, diced
1 tsp strawberry extract
red food colouring, optional
30 ml (2 tbsp) water
1 tsp agar agar powder

Strawberry Jelly Layer
1 packet of strawberry jelly crystals (90g carton, vegetarian)
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup cold water (instead of 1 cup as recommended on the packet)
sliced strawberries for garnish

Strawberry Whipped Cream
120 ml (1/2 cup) heavy whipping cream, chilled
15g (1 tbsp) icing sugar
5-6 medium size fresh strawberries for puree (we’ll need 2 tbsp puree)
extra strawberry slices for decoration, optional

Procedure –

Red Velvet Cake Layer
Follow the procedure from my eggless red velvet cakes recipe and pour the batter into the springform pan. Make sure that ONLY ¼th of the pan is filled (if the batter is more bake some cupcakes too). Bake for 18-20 minutes at 180ºC until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Let it cool completely.

Strawberry Mousse Layer
1. Pour the cold heavy cream into a mixing bowl and whisk until stiff peaks form (the beaters or whisk wires will leave distinct traces on the cream and stand in firm peaks when the beaters are lifted). Set aside.
2. Into a separate bowl, add the mascarpone, melted chocolate, sweetened condensed milk and strawberry extract. Using a whisk or a hand mixer, blend the ingredients together until creamy.
3. Add in half of the diced strawberries, blending them into the mixture. (You can add a little red/pink food colour here for added effect).
4. In a small saucepan, sprinkle the agar agar over 2 tbsp water. Mix together and bring it a boil until the agar agar is completely dissolved. Pour the dissolved agar agar into the strawberry base, add the remaining diced strawberries and mix everything together.
5. Add the prepared whipped cream and use a spatula to gently fold the strawberry base with the cream, keeping it light and fluffy.
6. Pour the mousse over the cooled red velvet cake and spread evenly to the edges. Refrigerate the cake for at least 1 hour before adding the final layer.

Strawberry Jelly
1. For the garnish, slice about 8-10 strawberries and arrange them overlapping each other, starting from the outside edge and working in. Refrigerate the cake for about 1 hour.
2. Follow the instructions on the package to make the jelly. Add the crystals in a heatproof bowl. Boil 1 cup of water and add them to crystals and mix until the sugar is dissolved. Add 1/2 cup cold water (lesser than what the packet said as I wanted a little hard jelly) and keep mixing until it cools down to lukewarm. The jelly should still be in a liquid stage but not too hot or it’ll mess up the mousse layers below.
3. Pour it over the mousse layer gently. Quickly remove any air bubbles with a toothpick before the jelly sets.
4. Once completely cool, place cake into the refrigerator until set completely.

Strawberry Whipped Cream

1. Puree the strawberries in the food processor until they become a thick, seedy liquid.
2. Pour the cold heavy cream into a chilled metal bowl and whisk until soft peaks form.
3. Add the sugar and whisk until stiff peaks form.
3. Mix in 2 tbsp of this strawberry puree into the whipped cream until just combined.
4. Transfer the cream into a pastry bag tipped with a decorating tip of your choice. Pipe the whipped cream onto the strawberry jelly layer, covering the layer completely. Decorate with slivers of strawberries if you wish.

Chill the cake in the refrigerator overnight to allow the cake to set completely.

To release the cake from the pan, run a flat spatula along the edges.

Keep the cake refrigerated until ready to serve.