There are different theories about the origin of this dessert, but all place it around the 19th century and indicate that it was created for a “Carlota”. Some say it was made for the daughter of King George IV, others for the wife of King George III. Whatever it was created for, today we can all enjoy it (beyond our name), since it is a simple dessert that has few ingredients.
It is a fruit mousse wrapped in vanilla or ladyfinger biscuits and it is ideal for summer, since it is served very cold, combined with the richest fruits of this season. However, it is also perfect to serve as a dessert during the Christmas holidays if you decorate it with cream or whipped cream. In any case, keep reading and discover in this article how to make strawberry carlota, you’ll love it!
Ingredients to make Strawberry Carlota:
- 200 grams of sugar (1 cup)
- 70 cubic centimeters of water
- 3 egg whites
- 300 grams of strawberries
- ¼ lemon (juice)
- 300 grams of milk cream
- 10 grams of unflavored gelatin
- 50 cubic centimeters of water
- 13 vanillas or ladyfingers
How to make Strawberry Charlotte:
- This recipe consists of several preparations that you must make separately and join at the end.
- To start, mix the water with the sugar in a tall pot, let it hydrate for a few minutes and then cook it over medium heat, taking care that the liquid does not touch the edges, otherwise the sugar will crystallize. Beat the whites.
- Once this is done, once the sugar water begins to boil, leave it for about 2 minutes or until the bubbles are very large and thick.
- You can also measure the temperature, which should be between 118 and 119 ºC.
- Add it in the form of a string over the beaten egg whites and continue beating until they come to room temperature, a bright white color and are supported by the whisk.
- Mix the cleaned fruit without the stems with the lemon juice and process it to obtain a puree.
- On the other hand, beat the cream until it is completely assembled. In this way, you will get a strawberry and cream carlota with a texture similar to that of mousse, it will be exquisite!
- In a small container, hydrate the gelatinwith 5 parts of water, that is, 10 grams of gelatin with 50 ml of water. Heat it for 10 seconds in the microwave to activate it.
- Mix the activated gelatin with the crushed strawberry. Next, add 1 tablespoon of the meringue and join it by making enveloping movements.
- Pour the preparation from the previous point into the rest of the meringue and integrate it with enveloping movements so that it does not lose volume.
- Add the whipped cream and repeat the enveloping movements.
- Now it’s time to assemble the strawberry carlota.
- To do this, cut the tip of the vanilla beans and place them with the rounded edge facing up and the concave edge facing out, covering the walls of your mold.
- You can previously cover it with film or acetate to facilitate demolding. Also cover the base of it with more vanillas.
- You can make your own vanillas with this simple recipe for ladyfingers.
- Add the strawberry cream and distribute it well.
- Cover the dessert with film and reserve it in the freezer for 30 minutes or in the fridge for 4 hours. You can keep this dessert in the freezer for 2 months.
- Now you can enjoy this exquisite strawberry carlota. You can decorate it with more fruit on top or whipped cream, whatever you like!
- And if you want to make a Christmas cap, we recommend placing one side around it to improve its presentation, it will be like a gift!
