Title: Flour Bakery Strawberry Chiffon Cake
Ingredients:
- 7 eggs
- 1 heavy cream
- 2 1/2 fresh strawberries
- 3 cake flour
- 2 sugar
- 1 baking powder
- 1 kosher salt
- 1 canola oil
- 1/2 vanilla bean paste
- 2 powdered sugar
- 5 sugar
- 2 sugar
- 1/2 vanilla
- 1/2
Instructions:
1. Heat the oven to 350°F and place a rack in the center of the oven. Line two 8-inch cake pans with parchment paper circles or butter the bottoms ONLY of the two 8-inch cake pans. (We leave the sides unlined/unbuttered so that when the cake is finished baking it clings to the side of the pan as it cools. This cake is very light and airy and when it comes out of the oven it tends to collapse on itself.) Set aside.
2. Separate the eggs. In a large bowl stir together the cake flour, 1/2 cup/100 grams of the sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a small bowl whisk together the milk, vegetable oil, the 7 egg yolks, and vanilla extract. Set aside both bowls.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment or using an electric hand mixer, whip the 7 egg whites over medium high speed until you can see the tines of the whisk starting to leave a trail in the whites, about 45 seconds to 1 minute. At this point start whipping in the remaining 1/2 cup/100 grams of the sugar, a tablespoon at a time, waiting 5 to 8 seconds before adding another tablespoon. When all of the sugar is added continue whipping for another 30 to 45 seconds until the whites are at soft peak stage, i. e., when you stop the mixer and slowly lift the whisk from the whites they rise up in a peak and then softly droop. The whites will look a lot like shaving cream. Set aside.
4. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. Use a rubber spatula to stir the two together. When well mixed, take a few large spoonfuls of the beaten egg whites and fold into the batter. Add the rest of the whites and fold gently until well combined. Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans. Bake in the 350°F oven until golden brown and your finger bounces back when you poke the cakes in the center, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove the cakes from the oven and let cool for a few minutes and settle a bit. They will have risen nice and high and be slightly domed. After about 5 minutes, carefully invert them on a cooling rack. This will allow them to cool upside down and stay light and lofty. Since the sides are not lined or buttered the cake will cling to the side and not fall out of the pan.
5. While the cakes are cooling, stem and slice 1 pint of the strawberries by placing them stem down on a cutting board and slicing them into thin 1/4-inch slices. Place these sliced strawberries in a large bowl and sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar. Toss well to combine. Whip the heavy cream with the confectioners’ sugar until the cream is thick and stiff. Set aside the berries and whipped cream. Make the Vanilla Syrup and set aside.
6. When the cakes are completely cooled, turn them over and run a small paring knife around the edge of the cake pans and invert the cakes by rapping them upside down against a table. If the bottom has caved in a bit, trim the bottom with a sharp serrated knife so it is level. Turn the cake right side up and if they have rounded at all use the knife to even off the tops of the cakes. Place one of the cakes on a flat serving plate and using a pastry brush, brush generously with about half of the vanilla syrup. Spoon about 1 1/2 cups of the sweetened whipped cream onto the cake and spread it evenly across the top. Take a small spoon and create a shallow well in the cream, building up the sides of the cream so you have walls to hold in the berries. Strain the juice from the sugared berries and spoon the berries into the well, spreading them evenly across the cake all the way up to the whipped cream wall. Discard any strawberry juice. Place the second cake upside-down onto the strawberries and cream and press down slightly to even out the cake. Brush the cake with the remaining Vanilla Syrup. Using an offset spatula, spread the sides and top of the cake with a very thin layer of cream. This is called a crumb coat and it will hold all of the crumbs inside the cake so you can finish it off with a beautiful white layer. Once the crumb coat is set, wash the offset spatula and go over the whole cake again with most of the remaining whipped cream (reserve about 3/4 cup for piping) so you have a final clean white covering of the cake. Use a large piping bag fitted with a star tip and the last of the whipped cream to pipe a border along the top of the cake. Slice about half of the remaining berries in half (pick the largest berries). Pile the halved and whole berries on top of the cake. Let the cake come together in the fridge for at least an hour or up to a day in the fridge. The cake is best served the same day it is made; store any uneaten cake in the fridge for up to 2 days in an airtight container.
7. Vanilla syrup: In a small saucepan combine the sugar with 1/2 cup/120 grams water and bring to a boil. Stir in the vanilla extract. Let cool. Syrup may be made in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge indefinitely.