Aldi · Desserts
Tried this? Be the first to share.
A gateau is a layered sponge cake finished with cream, and the format survives in the freezer for a practical reason: sponge and cream both freeze and thaw well, where a pastry or a meringue doesn't. Strawberry is the classic filling for one. The fruit is soft enough to sit between sponge layers without needing to be cooked down, and its acidity cuts the cream, which is otherwise the dominant thing in the slice. It's sold frozen rather than baked at home. Sponge is also one of the few cake structures that survives a freezer without going dense, because the air trapped in the crumb is held by set protein rather than by fat. That's why gateaux dominate this part of the aisle while butter-heavy cakes don't.
