And so, this post slides in in the last few hours of April, because I am loathe to miss a month without some creation or another.
I have little to report and even less to write. Clerkship life is busy and rather more overwhelming than I could have known.
I’m in the middle-end of my 3rd clerkship now, psychiatry.
Even though my work-life balance is better/good in this clerkship, I still sometimes feel that my hobbies and passions hang by the merest thread. But still, the seasons change and this space endures.

This handsome cake is a lemon-basil strawberry fraisier, which is a French cloud of a cake.

It’s built with the lightest genoise sponge, lifted only by egg whites and brushed with lemon-basil simple syrup. Cherubic strawberries nestle into the butteriest crème mousseline, which is pastry cream whipped into fluffiness.

It’s labor intensive but absolutely heavenly to eat—well balanced and not cloyingly sweet.

I should note that it does require two items of special equipment: a cake ring and acetate strips. I use both of mine more often than I thought I would—so they’ve ended up being good investments.

Lemon Basil Fraisier
very lightly adapted from Evil Twin Kitchen
makes 1 6-inch 2-layer cake

ingredients:
for the crème mousseline:
600 grams (2 1/2 cups) whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 eggs
2 egg yolks (save whites for the cake)
150 grams (3/4 cup) sugar
56 grams (1/2 cup) corn starch
340 grams (3/4 pound, 3 sticks) butter, divided, softened

for the genoise:
3 eggs
2 egg whites (from crème mousseline)
120 grams (1 cup) powdered sugar
75 grams (1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons) AP flour
28 grams (1/4 cup) corn starch
1/2 teaspoon salt

for the lemon-basil simple syrup:
50 grams (1/4 cup) sugar
30 grams (2 tablespoons) lemon juice
30 grams (2 tablespoons) water
4 chopped fresh basil leaves

to assemble:
900g (2 pounds) fresh strawberries
basil leaves
acetate
6-inch cake ring

directions:
Make the crème mousseline: heat whole milk until simmering.
Whisk sugar and cornstarch together.
Whisk eggs, egg yolks, and sugar/cornstarch mixture together until foamy.
Once the milk is simmering, use a ladle and spoon a small amount of hot milk into the egg mixture while whisking to temper the eggs.
Once the eggs are tempered, mix them into the rest of the hot milk.
Cook over low heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture has thickened.
Stir in the vanilla extract.
Stir in 50 grams (4 tablespoons, 1/2 stick) of the butter (it will melt as it incorporates) and set aside to cool completely.
Meanwhile, make the genoise: preheat oven to 325 degrees F and lightly grease and flour 2 6-inch pans.
Whip the eggs until the volume doubles and the color lightens.
Sift in 1/2 of the powdered sugar and continue to whip the eggs; repeat with the remaining powdered sugar for 10 minutes, until the mixture ribbons and is pale—almost white.
Whisk the AP flour, corn starch, and salt together and then sift into the egg mixture.
Using a spatula, fold the flour mixture into the eggs gently so that you don’t knock too much volume out.
Portion into the two prepared pans.
Bake for 16-20 minutes, until the cakes are golden and spring back to the touch.
Remove from oven and let cool for 2 minutes in the pans; turn out onto wire racks and let cool completely.
Make the syrup: bring sugar, lemon juice, and water to a boil.
Drop in the basil leaves and bring to a low simmer for 1 more minute; turn off heat and strain mixture into a bowl.
Finish the crème mousseline: whip the cooled crème on high speed until it begins to volumize.
Add the remaining 290 grams (2 1/2 sticks) of softened butter in 3-4 chunks.
Allow the crème to whip until it is fluffy and silky.
Pick out strawberries by lying them inside the cake ring and prioritizing similar shape/size.
Choose 30 that are similar sizes; chop up 3 extra berries finely.
Trim your cakes to fit inside your cake ring with a gap for your strawberry halves.
Line the cake ring with an acetate strip.
Place first cake in the bottom of the cake ring; nestle 12-14 strawberry halves around the cake.
Brush the cake with the lemon-basil syrup and pipe some crème mousseline on top and in between the strawberries.
Place the chopped strawberries in the center of the first layer and top with the second cake.
Brush the top with syrup.
Pipe the crème generously on top and around the second layer; the crème needs to be thick enough to contain the strawberry decoration on top.
Nestle your remaining strawberries into the cream, pressing straight down to avoid smushing the mousseline around.
Chill for at least 4 hours and up to overnight.
Peel off the acetate and decorate with a few basil leaves.