Revelation of the 11th season of Top Chef in 2020. Diego Alari is the most famous French chef on TikTok today with 2.7 million followers. Trained by Jean Imbert, he democratizes cooking with simple, quick and delicious recipes such as his book 40 Recipes in Less than 30 Minutes (Hachette Cuisine). The cake he made for us is in the same vein: easy to make, deliciously regressive and amazing.
For 8 people – Preparation: 1 hour – Cooking: 1 hour – Rest: 1 hour
For strawberry compote :
- 500 g fresh strawberries
- 60 g powdered sugar
- 1 vanilla pod
- juice of ½ lemon
For pancake dough:
- 360 g flour
- 3 pinches of salt
- 60 g powdered sugar
- 6 eggs
- 700ml milk
- 80 g melted butter
- 20 g pistachio paste
- 3 sprigs of basil
For the mascarpone cream:
- 300 g heavy cream
- 60 g sifted powdered sugar
- 300 g mascarpone
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
For decoration:
- 1 tbsp teaspoon dried strawberry powder
- 1 tbsp tablespoon chopped pistachios
- red chocolate balls
- 5 strawberries
- edible flowers (roses, pansies, etc.)
Strawberry compote
Cut strawberries into quarters. Put them in a saucepan with sugar and a split vanilla pod. Add lemon juice and 60 ml water. Leave to simmer for at least 1 hour. When it is cooked, stir the compote and cool it. The resulting preparation should not be too liquid, but dense enough.
pancake dough
In a bowl, mix flour, salt, sugar and eggs, then add milk and melted butter. Beat until you get a smooth paste. Add pistachio paste mixed with basil leaves, stir. Cook pancakes in a pan, leaving them on a plate.
Mascarpone cream
Whip fresh cream with powdered sugar until whipped cream. Add the mascarpone and vanilla extract, then beat again to make a smooth cream that holds together well. The book is awesome.
Also to discover: Diego Alari explains how to cook leftover fried chicken
Cake assembly
Place the first pancake on a plate or server. Add a thin layer of mascarpone cream, then strawberry compote. Repeat the operation until the pancakes run out. Leave in the freezer for 1 hour. Using a spatula, coat the pancake cake with a thin layer of mascarpone cream. Using a sieve, dust with dry strawberry powder, sprinkle with pistachio flakes, then garnish with chocolate balls, a few strawberry pieces and flower petals. Serve immediately or refrigerate.