Print

Santa Claus Dome Cakes Recipe

Print Recipe

★★★★★

4.7 from 564 reviews

Santa Claus Dome Cakes are festive and elegant desserts featuring a creamy vanilla mousse encasing a fresh strawberry, set atop a buttery sablé cookie base. Finished with a shiny red mirror glaze and white chocolate decorations mimicking Santa’s hat trim, these individual domes combine smooth textures and vibrant holiday colors perfect for special occasions.

Ingredients

Scale

Vanilla Mousse

  • 300 ml heavy cream (cold)
  • 250 ml whole milk
  • 1 vanilla bean or 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 3 egg yolks
  • 80 g granulated sugar
  • 6 g powdered gelatin (about 2 tsp) + 30 ml cold water
  • 6–8 fresh strawberries (small, stem removed)

Sablé Cookie Base

  • 120 g unsalted butter (room temperature)
  • 80 g powdered sugar
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 200 g all-purpose flour
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Red Mirror Glaze

  • 150 g sugar
  • 150 g glucose syrup
  • 75 ml water
  • 100 g sweetened condensed milk
  • 150 g white chocolate (finely chopped)
  • 10 g powdered gelatin + 60 ml water
  • Red gel food coloring

Decorations

  • 100 g white chocolate for the ring and ball

Instructions

  1. Bloom the Gelatin for the Mousse: Combine 6 g powdered gelatin with 30 ml cold water in a small bowl and let it sit for 10 minutes until fully bloomed.
  2. Heat the Milk and Infuse Vanilla: In a saucepan, warm the whole milk with the vanilla bean (split and seeds scraped) or vanilla extract over medium heat until hot but not boiling. Remove from heat.
  3. Prepare the Egg Yolk Mixture: Whisk the egg yolks and granulated sugar in a separate bowl until pale and slightly thickened.
  4. Cook the Custard Base: Slowly pour the warm milk into the egg yolk mixture while whisking constantly to temper the eggs. Return the mixture to the saucepan and cook gently over low heat, stirring until the custard thickens slightly and reaches 82°C (180°F).
  5. Incorporate Gelatin and Cool: Remove custard from heat, stir in the bloomed gelatin until fully dissolved, and let cool to room temperature.
  6. Fold in Whipped Cream: Whip the cold heavy cream to soft peaks and gently fold into the cooled custard base until smooth and combined.
  7. Fill Molds with Mousse and Strawberries: Spoon a small amount of mousse into each silicone dome mold, press a whole strawberry into the center, then cover with more mousse to fill the mold. Smooth the tops.
  8. Freeze the Mousse Domes: Place molds in the freezer and freeze overnight until completely solid.
  9. Make the Sablé Cookie Dough: Cream butter and powdered sugar until smooth, add egg yolk and vanilla, then mix in flour and salt until dough forms.
  10. Roll and Chill the Dough: Roll dough between parchment sheets to 4 mm thickness and chill for 30 minutes.
  11. Bake the Cookie Bases: Cut rounds larger than dome molds, place on parchment-lined baking sheet, and bake at 170°C (340°F) for 12–14 minutes until lightly golden. Cool completely.
  12. Bloom the Gelatin for the Glaze: Combine 10 g powdered gelatin with 60 ml water and let bloom for 10 minutes.
  13. Heat Syrup Base for Glaze: In a saucepan, boil sugar, glucose syrup, and water until temperature reaches 103°C (217°F).
  14. Finish the Glaze: Remove from heat, stir in sweetened condensed milk and bloomed gelatin until dissolved. Pour mixture over chopped white chocolate and let sit for 1 minute.
  15. Blend and Color the Glaze: Use an immersion blender to blend until smooth, add red gel food coloring to achieve bright Santa hat red. Cool glaze to 32–35°C (90–95°F) before using.
  16. Unmold and Glaze the Domes: Remove frozen mousse domes from molds; place on wire rack over tray. Pour red mirror glaze evenly over each dome and let set for 5 minutes.
  17. Assemble the Domes on Cookies: Lift each glazed dome gently with a spatula and place on sablé cookie base.
  18. Decorate with White Chocolate: Pipe or mold a ring of melted white chocolate around each dome base to form the “fur trim” and add a small white chocolate ball on top to complete the Santa hat look.

Notes

  • Ensure gelatin is fully bloomed for a smooth mousse and glaze.
  • Temper egg yolks carefully to avoid curdling when combining with hot milk.
  • Freeze domes thoroughly before glazing to ensure smooth coating.
  • The red mirror glaze should be poured at 32–35°C to avoid melting the mousse.
  • Use silicone dome molds for easy unmolding of mousse domes.
  • The sablé cookie base can be made in advance and stored airtight.

Keywords: Santa Claus Dome Cakes, vanilla mousse, mirror glaze, sablé cookies, holiday dessert, Christmas cake, festive dome cakes

Find it online: https://dinewithdylan.com/santa-claus-dome-cakes-recipe/