The japanese version of strawberry shortcake utilises a sponge cake instead of a scone. I can think of no other dessert more ethereal than this; with the moist and tender cake, layered with chantilly cream and sweet strawberries.
For the longest time, I had been struggling with this dilemma. I liked the idea of using chiffon for cream and mousse type cakes. However, the only problem was that the cake was so delicate that it was difficult to slice horizontally; and i always wound with with wonky layers. To overcome this, i simply divided the batter amongst 3 pans and voila! no more layering.
Cake:
50 gm sugar
50 gm canola oil
50 gm cake flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
3 eggs, separated
1 whole egg
a. Cream 3 egg yolks, whole egg, oil, 25 g sugar, flour and powder in a bowl till thick and creamy.
b. In another bowl, beat the 3 egg whites with the remaining sugar till stiff. fold a little of the meringue into the mixture from (a) to lighten, then fold in the rest carefully using a large whisk.
c. Divide mixture equally amongst 3 seven-inch round pans. Bake at 160 C for 15 min or until baked. Once baked, the cakes must be cooled upside down to prevent collapse of the delicate structure. R2move the cakes 30 mins later.
Chantilly cream:
2 and 1/2 cups of heavy whipping cream
5 tbsp icing sugar
2 and 1/2 tsp of gelatine dissolved in 6 tbsp water
scraping of 1 vanilla bean
a. Stir the icing sugar and the vanilla seeds into the cream.
b. Beat the cream, when it starts to form soft peaks, pour in the gelatine in a thin stream and continue whisking to stiff peaks.
Strawberries:
if your strawberries are sour, macerate them with sugar for 30 minutes, then drain the juices.
Assembly:
a. Layer each cake layer with a portion of cream and sliced strawberries. I find using a mousse ring the easiest for this; I simply pour the cream in and use a spoon to level it out.
b. Pressed toasted almond flakes up the sides and decorate as desired.
