Red, White & Blue Desserts from the Garden Café

With Fourth of July festivities just around the corner, we asked the Garden Café what they'll be serving up at celebrations this weekend. They suggested three desserts in patriotic shades, made with the season's freshest berries and a zesty dash of citrus to beat the summer heat. Strawberry Mint Sorbet and Orange Curd Ice Cream make the perfect accompaniments for the star of our dessert menu-- a beautiful buttermilk cake dotted with berries and cloaked in vanilla buttercream. Pastry Chef Hilary M. shares the recipes for her trio of treats, below.

Berry Buttermilk Cake
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1 3/4 cups sugar
Zest of 1 lemon
3 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup buttermilk
3 cups of berries (1 cup each raspberries, blueberries, blackberries), tossed with 2 tablespoons flour

Measure the flour, baking powder, and salt into a bowl. Whisk to combine and set aside. Cream butter and sugar in a stand mixer until light and fluffy. Add lemon zest and vanilla. Add eggs one at a time, scraping the bowl between each addition, until fully incorporated. Starting with the flour, alternate the dry ingredients and the buttermilk until just combined. Mix berries in a bowl, toss with 2 tablespoons flour and gently fold into the cake batter. This is a very thick cake batter, so don’t worry if some of the berries bleed! Split batter between two 9-inch cake pans and bake at 350°F for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow your cakes to cool completely.

Lemon Curd
6.25 ounces egg yolks
160 grams sugar
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons lemon juice
3 ounces soft, unsalted butter

Whisk egg yolks, sugar, and lemon juice together in a sauce pan. Cook on medium heat, whisking constantly, until thick. Pour through a sieve and whisk in the butter. Allow to cool in the fridge.

Vanilla Buttercream
1 pound unsalted butter
1 pound confectioner’s sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Salt

Cream butter and sugar until light in color and fluffy. Add vanilla and a pinch of salt.

To assemble the cake: Carefully cut your cake layers in half horizontally. Place your first layer of cake on a plate or cake stand. Spread the cooled lemon curd in an even layer, leaving a half inch border. Repeat with the other layers. The lemon curd may be squeezed out towards the edge-- that's why it's best to leave a border. Using a small offset spatula or a knife, spread a thin layer of vanilla buttercream on the sides and top of your cake. Don’t worry if it doesn’t look perfect! This is called a crumb coat. You’re trapping all the cake crumbs in this first layer. Put your cake in the fridge (or freezer) so the buttercream hardens. After 5-10 minutes, pull the cake out and apply a second coat of icing. Decorate with extra berries or fresh flowers.

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Strawberry Mint Sorbet
3 pints strawberries
2 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups + 2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 cup mint leaves

Hull and slice the strawberries. Put in a food processor and blend until very smooth. Pour the strawberry purée through a sieve (you may need to use a spatula to push it through). Add the lemon juice and set aside. Combine the water and sugar in a saucepan. Chop the mint and add it also. Bring to a boil, take off the heat, and allow to steep for 10-15 minutes. Pour through a sieve and whisk into the strawberry purée. Chill completely. Spin in your ice cream maker!

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Orange Curd Ice Cream
Orange Curd
1 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
3/4 cup sugar
8 egg yolks
200 grams unsalted butter

Ice Cream Base
652 grams whole milk
123 grams heavy cream
157 grams sugar
70 grams egg yolks

Whisk juice, sugar, and egg yolks for curd in a saucepan on medium heat until thickened. Pour through a sieve and whisk in the butter. Allow to cool completely. Whisk the base of milk, cream, and sugar in a pan and heat until it reaches a simmer. Pour a small amount of the milk mixture into egg yolks, whisking constantly. This will temper your egg yolks. Pour them back into the hot milk, whisking the whole time. Gently heat this mixture (stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or spatula) until it’s thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Pour through a sieve and cool completely. Mix your cooled orange curd and ice cream base and spin in your ice cream machine!