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Pistachio Dacquoise (Montebello Cake)

Pistachio dacquoise decorated with fresh strawberries on a white serving platter with berries and flatware on background.
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5 from 9 reviews

This pistachio dacquoise (Montebello cake) is a gluten-free French dessert made with nutty pistachio-almond meringue layers, pistachio mousseline cream, and fresh strawberries. This pistachio dacquoise recipe serves up to 10 and can be made a day ahead.

Ingredients

Scale

For pistachio dacquoise:

  • 1.4 oz (40 g) unsalted pistachios
  • 1 cup + 4 teaspoons (135 g) icing sugar
  • 1 cup + 3 tablespoons (115 g) almond flour
  • 1/2 cup + 5 1/2 teaspoons (150 g) egg whites (see note #1)
  • 3 1/2 tablespoons (50 g) granulated sugar

For pistachio mousseline cream:

For the pastry cream:

  • 1/4 cup (60 g) milk
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1/2 tablespoon (5 g) corn starch
  • 1 tablespoon (15 g) granulated sugar

For the Italian meringue:

  • 2 tablespoons (30 g) egg whites (see note #2)
  • 1/4 cup + 1 teaspoon (60 g) granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon (15 g) water

For creme Anglaise:

  • 7 teaspoons (35 g) milk
  • 2 tablespoons (30 g) egg yolks (see note #3)
  • 1 tablespoon (15 g) granulated sugar

Plus:

  • 5.3 oz (150 g) butter, softened
  • 1.4 oz (40 g) pistachio paste

For decoration:

  • 17.6 oz (500 g) fresh strawberries
  • 1/2 oz (15 g) pistachios
  • 1 teaspoon powdered (icing) sugar

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Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 335°F (170°C). To make pistachio dacquoise, chop pistachios into small pieces or process them in a food processor until ground. Mix powdered (icing) sugar, almond flour, and chopped (ground) pistachios. Beat the egg whites with an electric mixer, gradually adding granulated sugar. The meringue has to be flexible: reach medium-firm peaks. Pour the dry ingredients into the whites and gently mix with a rubber spatula, moving in a circular motion from the outside in. Stop mixing as soon as the mixture is homogeneous.
  2. Butter a tart ring or another cake ring of 9 inches/23-24 cm in diameter (the height does not matter) and place it on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Place the dacquoise preparation in a pastry bag with Ateco plain pastry tip 806. Make a spiral into the tart/cake ring, starting from the center and moving to the edge. Then make small balls in the direction towards the center, side by side along the edge of the ring (see note #4). Sprinkle small balls with powdered (icing) sugar. Bake for 30 minutes.
  3. To make the pastry cream, bring the milk to a boil in a saucepan. In a separate small bowl, whisk together egg yolk, sugar, and cornstarch. Pour the hot milk into the yolk/sugar/starch mixture, stirring constantly. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and bring it to a low heat. Continue whisking until the mixture begins to thicken. Pour the pastry cream onto a shallow plate, cover with plastic wrap in contact, and let it cool at room temperature.
  4. To make the Italian meringue, bring water and sugar to a boil. Meanwhile, whip egg white with an electric mixer. Once the sugar syrup reaches 250°F (121°C)  (use a cooking thermometer), pour it over the beaten egg white while keeping whisking. Beat until the meringue becomes firm. 
  5. To make crème anglaise, bring the milk to a boil. In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar and egg yolks. Pour the hot milk into the yolk/sugar mixture, stirring constantly. Return the mixture to the saucepan, heat over low to 181°F (83°C), and whisk continuously with a hand whisk. Pour the cream on a small plate, cover with a plastic film in contact, and let it cool at room temperature.
  6. Whisk the softened butter with a stand or electric mixer. Add the cooled creme Anglaise and whisk. Then add the Italian meringue, and whip again: the buttercream is ready.
  7. Mix the pastry cream with the pistachio paste and add it to the buttercream. Whip again. The pistachio mousseline cream is ready!
  8. To assemble the cake, place the dacquoise on a serving plate. Transfer the pistachio mousseline cream into a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip, and spread it over the dacquoise biscuit, leaving the edges uncovered. 
  9. Cut the strawberries in half and place them over the mousseline cream. Sprinkle chopped pistachios over the berries, and dust the edges of the dacquoise with powdered (icing) sugar.  

Notes

  1. 150 g of egg whites is approximately equal to 4 1/2 raw fresh egg whites from large-sized chicken eggs.
  2. 30 g of egg whites is approximately equal to 1 raw fresh egg white from a medium-sized chicken egg.
  3. 30 g of egg yolks is approximately equal to 1 1/2 raw fresh egg yolks from extra-large-sized chicken eggs.
  4. While making the dacquoise, pipe small round balls around the edges of the ring rather than toward the center; make sure you have enough dacquoise to finish piping. 
  5. If you make the dacquoise in advance, assemble the cake no later than 4 hours before serving, or it will become soggy.
  6. Replace fresh strawberries with fresh raspberries if you desire.
  7. Take the cake out of the fridge 30 minutes before serving so the mousseline cream has time to soften.

Nutrition

Find it online: https://www.bakinglikeachef.com/montebello-by-pierre-herme/