Passion Fruit Cake with Chocolate & Hazelnut
Updated: Sep 1
Passion fruit and chocolate are such a wonderful combination. The tart, fresh passion fruit cuts beautifully through the richness of the chocolate and hazelnuts, creating a cake that feels both indulgent and wonderfully balanced.
I think it’s especially fitting for New Year’s, when something fresh, elegant and a little special feels just right.
Amount:
8 slices
Ingredients:
Day 1: Brownie, crunch, curd
Day 2: Mousse
Day 3: Glaze, decoration
Day 1:
Milk Chocolate Brownie:
100 g milk chocolate (33%)
100 g butter
70 g caster sugar
125 g eggs (approx. 2.5 medium eggs)
1 tbsp all-purpose flour
80 g caramel chocolate (I use Callebaut Gold 30.4%)
a pinch of sea salt
Hazelnut and Nutella Crunch:
30 g caster sugar
15 g toasted hazelnuts
65 g milk chocolate (33%)
35 g Nutella
35 g cornflakes
a pinch of salt
Passion Fruit Curd:
0.5 sheet gelatin (1 sheet = 1.75 g, bloom value 240)
6 passion fruits (approx. 50 ml passion fruit purée / approx. 50 g passion fruit purée – can be store-bought or homemade)
25 ml lemon juice
75 g eggs (approx. 1.5 medium eggs)
20 g egg yolks (from approx. 1 medium egg)
75 g caster sugar
35 g cold butter
Day 2:
Passion Fruit Mousse:
3 gelatin sheets (1 sheet = 1.75 g, bloom value 240)
100 g passion fruit purée (from fresh passion fruits)
100 g caster sugar
300 ml heavy cream (min. 35%)
Day 3:
Glaze:
8 gelatin sheets (14 g, bloom value 240)
200 g white chocolate (28%)
147 ml heavy cream (min. 35%)
67 g water
187 g caster sugar
200 g glucose syrup
Yellow and white food coloring
Decoration:
100 g milk chocolate (33%)
Flowers (add a bit of food-grade wax, if they aren't edible)
Instructions:
Milk Chocolate Brownie:
Coarsely chop the chocolate, keeping the milk and caramel chocolate separate.
Slowly melt the butter in a saucepan (it mustn’t be too hot, as this can cause the chocolate to separate later). Add 100 grams of milk chocolate over low heat. Stir until all the chocolate has melted.
Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the sugar. Lightly beat the eggs with a fork in a separate bowl.
Let the batter cool slightly, then gradually add the eggs while whisking with a hand whisk. Finally, fold in the flour and the chopped caramel chocolate (80 g).
Pour the batter into a lined cake ring or springform pan, 16 cm in diameter.
Bake the brownie at 180°C / 356°F for about 20–23 minutes. It should be soft in the center and feel slightly underbaked.
Let the brownie cool completely. Cut out the center using an 8-cm-diameter cake ring.
Place the brownie in the refrigerator until the crunchy layer can be added on top.
Hazelnut and Nutella Crunch:
Toast the hazelnuts for 5–7 minutes at 175°C / 347°F.
Gently melt the sugar into a golden caramel in a saucepan, toss in the nuts, and pour the mixture onto a sheet of parchment paper. Let the nuts cool.
Finely chop the nuts.
Gently melt the chocolate (if necessary, in a double boiler). Set the saucepan aside.
Stir the finely chopped hazelnuts, lightly crushed cornflakes, salt, and Nutella into the chocolate.
Roll out the crunchy topping flat between two sheets of parchment paper and place it in the freezer for 5 minutes.
Then cut out a base using a 16-cm cake ring.
Cut out the center using an 8-cm-diameter cake ring.
Place the crunch layer on top of the brownie and return it to the freezer so it can set completely.
Passion Fruit Curd:
Soak the gelatin sheets in cold water for 5–10 minutes.
If you’re making your own passion fruit purée: Cut the passion fruits in half and scrape out the pulp. Strain the pulp to get a smooth purée without seeds.
Whisk together the passion fruit purée, lemon juice, eggs, egg yolks, and sugar in a saucepan. Slowly heat the mixture to a boil while whisking constantly.
Let the cream simmer for a couple of minutes until it thickens, while continuing to whisk constantly. Be careful not to use too high a heat, as this can cause the cream to burn. Simmer gently for a couple of minutes while whisking constantly until the cream thickens.
Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the butter, cut into cubes. Then add the gelatin
Strain the passion fruit curd through a fine-mesh strainer. Finally, blend with an immersion blender until completely smooth.
Pour almost all of the curd into a Savarin Silikomart silicone mold (16 cm in diameter). Reserve a small amount in the refrigerator for garnishing the top of the cake; place this in a piping bag fitted with a round tip.
Place the frozen brownie/crunch layer on top of the passion fruit curd with the crunch layer facing up.
Let the assembly set completely in the freezer for at least 3 hours.
Passion Fruit Mousse:
Soak the gelatin in cold water for 5–10 minutes.
Bring the passion fruit purée and sugar to a boil in a small saucepan. Remove the saucepan from the heat, strain the mixture, and whisk in the gelatin.
Let the mixture cool until lukewarm.
Whip the heavy cream to soft peaks and fold it into the mixture, which has cooled to lukewarm (if it’s too hot, it may cause the heavy cream to separate).
Pour the mousse into a piping bag. First, divide the mousse between a truffle ball silicone mold (2.2 cm) and a truffle ball (3.2 cm) silicone mold so that you have at least 8 half-spheres, ensuring you have 4 that come out of the mold neatly.
Divide the rest of the mousse into a Savarin Silikomart silicone mold (18 cm in diameter).
Remove the frozen cake from the freezer and place it into the passion fruit mousse with the passion fruit curd facing down.
Place the cake and mousse spheres in the freezer overnight so they can set completely.
Glaze:
Soak the gelatin in cold water for 5–10 minutes.
Finely chop the chocolate and place it in a large pitcher.
Heat the sugar, water, heavy cream, and glucose syrup to a boil. Remove the pot from the heat and whisk in the gelatin.
Pour the hot mixture over the chocolate in the pitcher. Blend with a hand blender until the glaze comes together (hold the hand blender at an angle to avoid air bubbles). Add yellow and white food coloring.
Cover the top of the glaze with plastic wrap and let it cool to 34-35°C / 93-95°F.
Remove the frozen cake from the freezer just before glazing.
Place the cake on a cooling rack lined with parchment paper.
Pour the glaze over the cake. Use two palette knives to run along the bottom of the cake on the rack to remove any glaze drips.
Place the cake on a cake platter and let it thaw in the refrigerator for about 6 hours.
Decoration:
Chocolate Ribbon:
Cut a piece of acetate sheet (58 cm x 1.5 cm) and lay it out on the kitchen counter:
Place a cake ring (18 cm in diameter) in the refrigerator.
Temper the chocolate.
Pour the chocolate onto the acetate sheet, smooth the surface with a small palette knife, peel the acetate sheet off the counter, and run your fingers along the edge of the acetate sheet to remove any chocolate residue.
When the chocolate has almost set, wrap the ribbon around the chilled cake ring with the chocolate side facing inward, and return it to the refrigerator.
Remove the acetate sheet once the chocolate has set and wrap the ribbon around the cake.
Chocolate Rectangle/Slab:
Cut a piece of acetate sheet (17 cm x 4 cm) and set it aside on the kitchen counter:
Temper the chocolate.
Pour the chocolate onto the acetate sheet, smooth the surface with a small palette knife, peel the acetate sheet off the counter, and run your fingers along the edge of the acetate sheet to remove any chocolate residue
Once the chocolate has almost set, place the acetate sheet between two cutting boards and transfer it to the refrigerator. This ensures that the chocolate slab remains completely flat while it sets.
Remove the acetate sheet once the chocolate has set. Place it on top of the cake.
Assembly:
Spread small dollops of passion fruit curd on the chocolate slab.
Garnish with flowers (add a bit of food-grade wax if they aren't edible).
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