strawberry chiffon shortcake
I’m not exactly proud of the cake mix part either, but you see, these cakes really had nothing to do with eating and everything to do with construction. Fascinated by cakes with endless layers, one time we cut the layers so thin, we were able to make the Layer Cake of Our Dreams, six flats of cake each filled with a different shade of frosting (red, orange, yellow, green and blue) and covered in purple icing. It was the kind of starts-and-hearts-and-glitter-and-omg fantabulous I think you really need to be a pre-adolescent girl to appreciate, and the taste, well, what did we care. It was purple!
Come to think of it, that might have actually been the last cake we made for a good long while, but I’ve never lost my love affair with that vaulted, magical tool in her mother’s kitchen that brought our skyscraper cake dreams to life: the layer cutter. Ridiculously simple, it involves arched piece of metal with a wire stretched across that could be set at one of twenty different notch-levels, I had never seen such a tool before or since hanging out at her house. So, you can imagine my unparalleled glee when I found this very toy on Amazon.com, people, and for all of $9.95. It took all of my restraint not to buy two.
Which kind of brings us up to my current “phase”–birthday cakes. Tell me, is there anything as splendid as a homemade, multi-layered birthday cake replete with gushing bloops and dollops? Something about a big round cake in a Plexiglas-domed always screams “yay! party!” in a way that cupcakes, cookies and brownies never do. Doesn’t everyone deserve one of these? I think so. Thus with my friend Alexis’ (cough) 25th birthday on Saturday night, I couldn’t resist making another favorite childhood cake, a layered strawberry shortcake, simple and fresh as could be.
I struggled a bit, however, choosing a variety of cake that would be light as well as complementary to the stars–whipped cream and fresh strawberries. Pouring over recipe after recipe, the questions kept coming: Did I want a vanilla foam cake? Perhaps a genoise? Could angel food cake be made in anything other than a tube pan? What does dacquoise even taste like? I still don’t know if I made the “perfect” choice–a classic chiffon–but I was so enthralled by the Joy of Cooking’s story about Harry Baker, a Hollywood insurance salesman, and his invention, the chiffon cake, I couldn’t resist, and you shouldn’t either. Maybe there’s a better layer cake out there, and believe me I’ve thought about it, but sometimes you’ve just got to go with the consensus: birthday cake=awesome, and that’s really all there is to it.
Strawberry Chiffon Shortcake
Adapted from The Joy of Cooking
Chiffon cakes are known for having the richness of butter pound cakes but the lightness of angel food cakes. Some argue that this is because they use oil, which because it is liquid at room temperature, can keep the cake especially moist. The oil cannot be replaced by butter, unfortunately, and recipes advise universally against it. The lemon zest helps compensate for flavor lost by the lack of butter.
Although I’d intended the cake as a four-layer, the limitations of my cake carrier demanded that I stop at three, and even the center dollop of that was rudely squished by the dome. Not to overwhelm you with my might and could-ofs, here are three options to consider before you proceed with the following recipe:
- Make it as I’d originally intended the towering four-layer: Proceed as directed below.
- Make it as pictured, the thick three-layer: Proceed as below to bake a four-layer cake, but stash the fourth layer well-wrapped in the freezer for a future use. (Dare I suggest a whipped cream and strawberry trifle with the other remaining ingredients?) Make only three-quarters of the whipped cream and use only one-and-a-half quarts of strawberries.
- Make it as I’d like to, next time, a slim three-layer: Make only half the cake recipe, baking it in a single 9″ pan. Once cool, take a deep breath, and carefully cut this layer into thirds. Proceed with three-quarters of the whipped cream and only one-and-a-half quarts of strawberries.
Cake layers:
2 1/4 cups sifted cake flour
1 1/2 cups superfine or regular sugar, divided
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup cold water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
5 large egg yolks at room temperature
8 large egg whites at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
Filling:
2 cups heavy cream
6 tablespoons confectioners sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 quarts strawberries, hulled and sliced (I sliced mine very thinly, but would do so more thickly next time, or double-layer the strawberries so that you get a higher fruit-to-bite ratio.)*
1. Make cake layers: Preheat the oven to 325°F. Have two 9-inch round cake pans ready, lined with parchment paper that has been lightly sprayed with cooking spray, but otherwise ungreased. (Alternatively, this recipe yields on classic tube chiffon cake. Leave the cake pan ungreased, and use one with a removable bottom.)
2. Sift the flour, 1 1/4 cups sugar, baking powder and salt together twice into a large bowl.
3. In a another bowl, beat the yolks, water, oil, zest and vanilla on high speed until smooth. Stir into the flour mixture until smooth. In another large bowl, or the bowl of your stand mixer, beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar until soft peaks are formed. Add the remaining 1/4 cup sugar, and beat on high speed until the peaks are stiff but not dry.
4. Use a rubber spatula to fold one-quarter of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture, then fold in the remaining whites. Do so gently, only until the egg whites are no longer visible. Overdoing it will deflate the egg whites, and yield a denser, shorter cake.
5. Scrape the batter into the two prepared pans and spread evenly. (If you are needling and fussy, you can weigh them to make sure they are even, something I would never do, oh no.) Bake them until the top springs back when lightly pressed and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean 40 to 50 minutes (or 55 to 65 for the tube pan). (Please, do me a favor and check your cake every five minutes or so from the 30 minute mark on, as I confess I never wrote down the exact baking time for the 9″ circles, but am pretty sure it was 45 minutes in my oven. M’kay?)
6. Let cakes cool on a cooling rack for at least an hour (or, if in a tube pan, upside down over a bottleneck or resting the pan on four glasses for at least 1 1/2 hours). When completely cool, run a knife around the sides to release, then flip out onto a plate (or your hand, if you’re daring) and then another plate.
7. Make the whipped cream: Beat heavy cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract in a clean mixing bowl until it holds stiff peaks.
8. Assemble the cake: Carefully split each cake layer in half, leaving you with four cake surfaces. One by one, scoop one-quarter of the whipped cream onto the surface of the cake and spread it evenly to the edges, without going over, with an offset spatula. Arrange one-quarter of the sliced strawberries over the whipped cream in one or two layers, depending on your preference. (If you use only one layer, you’ll likely have leftovers.) Repeat with the remaining three layers. If you have any leftover whipped cream, you can pipe it decoratively over the top, or, uh, scoop it up with those leftover strawberries. I won’t tell.
9. The cake can refrigerated for a few hours before eating it. In fact, as some of the moisture from the whipped cream and berries seeps into the cake, I think the texture is improved.
* In the comments, we’ve gotten into another approach to the strawberry filling part: macerating them for one hour with a couple tablespoons of sugar and 1 tablespoon of either creme de cassis or fresh lemon juice. This softens the strawberries and creates more of the saucy variety you’d get in a bakery cake. To create the cake layers this way, spread the strawberry mixture then the whipped cream over each layer, proceeding otherwise as directed above.
Can we assume that when you were a child, you had an Easy-Bake Oven?
No! I did not. But I really, really want one now, despite Alex’s repeated assertion that I already have one. Is my oven pink? I didn’t THINK so.
I swear that, if I lived in NY rather than Texas, I would be stopping by your house every dang day to see what you were up to in the kitchen and what I could sneak a taste of. Count your blessings that I do indeed live thousands of miles away.
I don’t know what the Joy of Cooking says about Harry Baker but you might find this article interesting.
http://www.rakemag.com/stories/section_detail.aspx?itemID=25850&catID=146&SelectCatID=146
Such lovely cakes recently and it’s too hot to turn on the stove much less the oven.
Deb–Absolutely gorgeous! I just love it. Please make my birthday cake, okay? Nothing is better in life than cake and real whipped cream. Yum!
It’s very pretty! And … fun … if things can “look” fun.
And your new lens rocks.
Saw the pics of this on Rock Star Diary and was eagerly anticipating your post for it!!!
1. I always use a genoise for that type of ‘open’ layer cake. We do a similar one of peaches and cream with almond crunchie bits on top.
2. You would totally love my family’s 12-layer caramel cake. I’ve made it many times, slicing the paper thin cake layers by hand, I’m kind of anti-gadget like that. (cake looks sort of like this one)
3. That one picture makes me dizzy, very cool!
Ooh, I’ve made one similar to this but with (in my opinion) one big flavor-booster. In my recipe, you make a strawberry syrup out of frozen strawberries, sugar, etc., simmered on the stove. After you slice the cake layers, you spread the syrup onto the cut sides to let the strawberry goodness soak into the cake. Then just ike you did–layer with whipped cream and fresh strawberries. It’s amazing what that extra strawberry moistness does for the cake!
Laura W. — Love that story, very similar but much more involved.
Glenna — You know, I’ve always preferred pretty much any frosting over buttercream. I don’t dislike it, it’s just so shockingly sweet it makes everything inside taste flat in comparison. When I was a kid, I never understood why people frosted cakes with anything but whipped cream.
Mercedes — I just DROOLED from that butterscotch cake. I must make it. Whose birthday is next? Huh? Huh? Tell me more about this genoise. I confess I’ve read about them, probably eaten it without realizing it, but haven’t made it and connected the taste. Is it super-moist? Firm and easy, well, stacked and sculpted? Does it have to be brushed with syrup to stay moist? Yes, I know I can read about any of this by Googling, but I’d much rather hear from someone I *know* who has made them often!
Kara — Love the strawberry idea. I considered giving an alternative strawberry filling, where you macerate the strawberries for an hour with sugar and some lemon juice and then maaaybe a pinch of cornstarch to thicken it up, but I haven’t tried it for this cake so I didn’t want to lead anyone astray. I agree that a little extra moisture goes a long way.
This is so lovely! One of the best cake I have seen.
I think that I enjoy watching your cake phase.
If only you had mentioned this earlier. My birthday was three days ago.
But I think I may just try this one for my dad’s instead of tartlets. Or for a special occasion of another sort.
What a pretty cake! And I have that layer cutter – best tool that I ever borrowed from my mom and “forgot” to return :)
Eeek- I just saw that I miss-typed, I meant to say that I usally make my cakes with chiffon, as in, way to go girl, good choice. I like chiffon because it’s much easier, friendlier, and moister than genoise (in my opinion).
Also, I know, 12-layer caramel cake rules, we use a slightly different icing, but either way it’s good stuff.
Me me me! Oh please, me! My birthday is July 27th! Plenty of time for you to make one then fly over here with it!
My chocolate layer cake cheats all the way through with pre-mixed cake and frosting, however, I paint on, slog on, whatever you want to call it, either raspberry juice or kalua, depending on the birthday person, on each of the 4 layers before assembly. It makes it really moist. I think I’ll give this recipe a go sometime though. Maybe for my husbands birthday in November, since this recipe screams “SUMMERTIME”.
I can’t believe I didn’t know about this tool until today! I absolutely need one. No birthdays coming up, but, really, isn’t it always good to practice?
I love the way the strawberries look like a kaleidoscope on top of the cake!
Love the use of the new camera lense. Can you please invent cake-by-internet delivery? I’m thinking something comparable to Wonkavision.
Ohhh that looks so delicious! I love the photo where you are folding in the egg whites. And the ones from the top showing the lovely arrangement of berry slices.
Ahem. My birthday is next (well, after Alex’s). And that cake is butterscotch. Coincidence? Hmmm, I think not. (Yes, I’d forego my request for BigFatMuffinCakeWithRaspberryOnTop for that butterscotch cake.)
Looks delightful and just so summery! I may have to try because every strawberry that is grown in Japan is absolutely PERFECT. No lie.
I do have one question, though; what do you do with those extra three egg yolks!? It’s driving me nuts.
You are my new best friend. First…the photography. Just awesome. Had I your talents, I would be doing the happy dance all day long. Second…oh my glorious gracious, this recipe is getting a big fat Google star. It looks THAT good. **Hearty applause**
Hahaha – While I am no expert, I believe the flavor of a cake like the Technicolor one you mentioned, is probably also *best described* as purple.
As in:
Q- “What does that cake taste like?”
A- (as you swallow the bite straight, with no chaser) “Purple. It tastes… like purple.”
when my mom makes wedding cakes, she actually uses fishing line to level off the top of the layers. no fancy layer cutter for her! my mother has always been a baker (not professionally… she just loves it so much & was born with the gift) but i didn’t inherit too much of the desire (save the occasional banana bread loaf). you have inspired me to bake a cake tho. if it wasn’t after 1:30 am, i’d do it NOW.
Hi Deb — I first made a cake like this way back in 1966. My method for slicing the cake in two was (and still is) — go to your sewing basket, get a spool of thread, wrap a length of thread around your cake then gently pull. I don’t mean to saw with the thread held straight, I mean to put the tread all the way around the side of the cake (it’s easy to position it to see exactly where the cut will be) then cross the ends and gently pull. Works beautifully.
I also (God forgive me) used a Bisquick mix. They used to have a recipe for a cake on the back of the box. I’d macarate strawberries with sugar (no cornstarch, please) and let them set in the fridge for maybe an hour. I’d sprinkle the cut sides of the cake with Kirsch. On go mounds of strawberries directly on the cake so their juice can soak into the cake, THEN the whipped cream. Think 4th of July, sparklers, mosquitos, wet bathing suits and Strawberry Cake. Summer is officially here.
Deb, this cake is drool city! I love love love, strawberry and whipped cream cakes! Chiffon and me tend not to get along, but I’m inspired and will start trying to improve my relations with that light, fluffy yellow cake! Thanks!
Gorgeous cake! Sounds delicious.
I have to stop reading this in the morning. It’s 8:15 and I’m starving.
When I was a kid, I adored marbled cakes. My mom would help me make the batter and then she’d let me “play” at swirling the choloclate batter into the white with a table knife… thus was born a passion for baking and some really interesting “animal” figures in the batter. I’m glad to hear you had a similar experience. As for fresh whipped cream (particularly when piped into stars on cake), I think I’d bath in the stuff if I didn’t have to worry about cleaning the tub afterwards. I have peaches on hand at home… I think I’ll make this cake tonight with those and extra whipped cream!
Birthday Cake help! Deb – you seem like the right expert to ask (or one of your readers who seem to know all!) – My hubby loves banana cake – anyone have a great (and not too hard, I seem to be cake-challenged) recipe?
Meghan — How about Tish Boyle’s banana cake? I’ve had it bookmarked since Julie at Kitchenography posted about it February. http://kitchenography.typepad.com/my_weblog/2007/02/tish_boyles_ban.html And then I’d like to come over for a slice, okay?
Looks delicious! Cake is always a winner!
It was so amazing, I ate it I ate it. Nah Nah Nah Nah NAh NAH!
tee hee
ciao bella,
Jocellyn
OMG, I just made a um, semi-homemade version of this (I can’t bake for my life). I was just going to post about it today…. so strange. Lovely looking cake!
Jane — I have no doubt that we can arrange that cake for your birthday, but I think there is something seriously cracked out about a 9-layer cake that requires you to bake each layer separately (who the heck has THREE 8-inch cake pans? I have one. I don’t consider 8″ standard.) for 18 minutes each? I might test out whether you can make this cake in two or three layers and divide them up. And yes, we can find some way to tuck coffee flavor in there. We’ll save the BigFatMuffinCakeWithRaspberryOnTop for your wedding shower, hee.
Deidre — Why does it not surprise me that every strawberry in Japan is perfect? I used the three extra yolks to make the pastry cream (as I had extra whole milk, too) from the strawberry tart recipe over here. It can be frozen for up to one month.
Jory — Heh. You’re so right. I mean, we’d always make real (quick) buttercream with butter and powdered sugar, so the flavor wasn’t terrible. I just don’t think that yellow cakes and buttercream frosting are the end-all be-all. Except maybe when they’re purple. ;)
candy, Marie — Great suggestions! I have no doubt they’d work equally well, though the onus would be on the person holding the wire/string to get it perfectly level. (I’d fail every time.)
Gorgeous! I’ve been lurking for a while, but I just wanted to say that I totally enjoy your photos, stories and recipes. Thanks for all the wonderful posts!
Thank you, thank you! I’ll send you a note to let you know how it went :)
This cake is so beautiful! I haven’t had any strawberries for about a month so I think I’d better go get some tomorrow!
I wish I lived in New York and was your best friend.
I use dental floss to cut layers. Un fortunately, I’m not so neat as you when it comes to frosting: http://seriouslygood.kdweeks.com/2006/01/spiced-apple-cake.html
So beautiful!
oh my goodness, thank you for posting this! I always hated the cutting of the layers part of making a layer cake…95% of the time, the cut does not come out even! well, i am going to buy that device right now and hopefully my problems will be solved :D *muah!*
I feel I should make a note about the butterscotch cake, here’s what I do:
Bake the cake in 4 8″ pans, you can use Bill Telepans’s recipe, or any trusted yellow-cake recipe. Honestly, I usually just watch to see when they seem done, maybe 15 minutes? Split each cake layer in half. Make the following frosting:
1 cup butter
2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk or whole milk
1 Tbl corn syrup
1 pinch sea salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
In a 3 qt saucepan, combine all ingredients. Cook over low heat on stovetop, stirring until ingredients are dissolved. Continue to stir until it reaches the soft ball stage, 234 F. Remove icing from heat and cool until lukewarm, this can take as long as 20 minutes.
Beat with an electric mixer at high speed until icing is thick and creamy. If icing becomes too thick, thin with a small amount of water or milk.
The icing will continue to harden as it cools, so you have to work very quickly to frost the cake. If it becomes too hard, rewarm it over low heat and then beat it again if necessary.
The frosting is slightly grainy- it’s supposed to be that way, kind of like fudge, it’s part of the appeal of this classic southern cake. Basically, it’s just one giant vehicle for brown sugar.
This was always called 12-layer caramel cake when I was growing up, but I’ve only ever been skilled enough for 8 layers. The thinner the layers- the more frosting- the better.
Hope that helps!!
I had to make this cake as soon as I saw the recipe. Mine didn’t come out as pretty (of course), but it was heavenly. Thanks for the recipe.
Additional things to do with the extra egg yolks besides pastry cream: 1. Caesar dressing. 2. Homemade mayonaisse.
Dental floss (unflavored) works extremely well as a layer cutter too! A genunine pastry chef taught me that one when I was also a pre-adolescent obsessed with cakes.
hey my whipped is never so smooth, could you please tell me where i go wrong…
i generally use the thick layer of cream collected from top of the milk after it has cooled after being boiled for the first time. and then whip it with a balloon whisk and then the buttermilk get separated and if you whip it somemore it start taking it back… and am not able to get it to be so smooth and often of buttermilk remain… and also if i separate the buttemilk, it still wont be smooth and then the cream has more greasy texture coz then its all cream…
and you cake looks so pretty and lovely… and obviously the smooth texture of the cream caught my eye, great camera work as well!
You would love the cake my Mom always made for our birthdays. If you decide to try this …its really easy …I would love for you to share about it here. As soon as I saw the pictures on this entry ..I was transported back to my childhood. There are only three(!) ingredients for the cake itself. There is no exact measurement although each ingredient is equal parts. My mom used to use those old style beer glasses to measure …about 2 cups.
Equal parts:
Sugar
Flour
Eggs (Fill the measuring cup/glass/whatever you are using to measure full of whole eggs …I use around 12)
butter and flour an angel food cake pan …the kind that will leave a hole in the finished cake) and pour in the batter. Bake at 350 for about an hour. After the cake has cooled …slice in as many slices as you like. Put the bottom slice on a serving plate and use about 1/4 – 1/2 cup 7up/sprite/gingerale spooned onto the cake and then spread a raspberry/strawberry jam, or fresh sliced fruit…whatever your fancy on the first layer. Repeat with each layer until you get to the top one where you will have to spoon the 7up on the underside of the top layer before stacking the last layer. Cover in fresh whipped cream and strawberries.
MmMmMM …where is my mommy?
See, I love and am proud to use cake mixes! Every time I make a birthday cake, people compliment me on how moist the cake is…and I never keep the fact that it is a mix, a secret.
Beoootiful cake and you’re an awesome friend to make it.
Long time reader of your site, which has some of the most gorgeous food-related photographs I have seen on the Web. I recently made this cake and while everyone loved the flavors of the cake, cream, and strawberries, the cake itself came out with a rather hard crust (exacerbated by then sitting in the fridge for a few hours). I was wondering if you could provide some insight as to why the cake layers developed a hard crust during baking — would it have something to do with the cake pans I used (9″, non stick) or maybe I overmixed when incorporating the egg whites into the batter? Oh, and I only baked the cake layers for 45 min as they were getting quite brown.
yum yum yuuuuuuuuuuumy
you r amazing
I thank the chance that made me came across your site
i wish u the best
We made this for my husband’s birthday and it was a HUGE hit! So delicious! Thanks, Deb!
Hello there, I just had this cake last night. It was amazing. The first time I’ve made a cake and actually liked the taste! Nix that, I *loved* the way this cake!!
Your cake looks awesome! I’ve been trying out baking chiffon cakes in normal cake pan, with the bottom with parchment paper. But always the cake sink in the middle after it cools off (i inverted it). May I know if u do invert ur cake? Urs look so nice and level, not sinking at all! How do u achieve that?
Beautiful web site…beautiful cake. I just found your site and I love it. Thanks for sharing!
I am so happy that I found this website. I’ve been lurking and cooking from it for a while. I had to post to say this cake was awesome. I managed to layer all four cake layers using a long sharp knife to split them since my dental floss is mint. The cake only took 30 minutes to bake. I divided the berries in half letting half sit with a sprinkle of sugar and a squeeze of lemon; the other half plain sliced. I didn’t want an overwhelmingly sweet filling and this was perfet. It’s peak strawberry season so it may not have been necessary to add the sugar. Thank you for your great website!!
Great cake – I made it for our Easter/Birthday Bruch and everyone loved it! I managed the 4 layers and the cake looked beautiful. Cutting the individual slices at the table was a bit of a challenge, not so pretty.
This was the second recipe I made from your site and so far I’m a fan! Thank!
Deb- cutting the layers from a single cake terrifies me. Can I cut the recipe in half and divide between 3 equal-sized pans, then bake briefly? I think I could handle lopping off a little from the tops to make the layers flat after baking.
Christina — Yes. However, this cake recipe actually makes four half-layers, so if you divide the batter across three pans, your layers will be thicker. (My cake was getting too tall for my cake carrier, so I only used three of my half-layers.)
Deb, sorry, just checking. So should I halve the recipe and divide among three pans? Or the full recipe makes 4 layers?
You could divide it into three pans, and end up with thicker layers or four pans, and get the same size I did. Hope that helps!
P.S. If there is any cake to practice splitting layers on–which I know can be intimidating!–this is it. It’s quite sturdy. Just wanted to throw that out there, too.
Still getting questions about this cake a year later, huh? It must be good.
My question also is about pan size. I want to make this for a gathering this weekend and plan to make it in a 9×13 size pan and split it in half one time. Do you think that will work or should I stick with round pans?
I’m going to try it today with 3 slim layers and blueberries, strawberries, and peaches, provided I can find some nice ones at the market. I’ll macerate the strawberries and peaches together and keep the blueberries as a separate layer…unless you sense imminent disaster and warn me of such!
Thanks for the great recipes.
I reduced the recipe to 2/3 the original amount (love the calculator) and split between three 9″ pans. They took 23 min. to bake at 325F. They look awesome– here’s hoping they taste great!
Deb, thanks for all the advice! The cake turned out great. Not nearly as pretty as yours, but hey— it tasted fantastic. I love the texture of the chiffon. I guess cake flour and egg whites make a big difference!
The layers were blueberry (brushed with the sugar and lemon juice they were macerated in), and strawberry-peach (brushed with their sugar-lemon sauce). I added a teaspoon of gelatin to the whipped cream to help stabilize and avoid disintegration since we couldn’t finish the whole cake in one night.
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=33534327&id=2602192
looks fairytaleish<3
Wow made this cake for my wife for her birthday because she does not like icing. I know she is a freak nature in that aspect. But that is why I married her. I get my cake and get to eat it to. Then I get double icing. Can’t beat it. Anyway cake was amazing. I think this made up for me sitting around watching football and drinking beer on Saturdays! Well somewhat.
Somehow, even though I am someone who does not enjoy frosting in the least, i WANT to see that rainbow cake. I would totally eat it. Demolished.
Thanks for the randomizer! I would have never found this entry otherwise.
Hey deb:
I just made this last night for a birthday and I must say it looks fabulous! This was my first attempt at cutting cake layers with decidedly mixed results…I think I will try some fishing line or something next time.
My only qualm was that for four layers there was not quite enough whip cream for me…I think next time I’ll use 3 cups of cream instead of two.
Can’t wait to try it! yummm
aaaaagh i made this tonight
but im putting it together tomorrow
im really worried about the strawberries, because i cut them tonight
uuuugh
ill post a picture of how it looks
wish me luck
Made this cake for my granddaughter’s birthday. Baked the cake Friday night. Covered one layer with a regular cake dome and the other with a bowl. Got up Saturday morning and the one covered with the bowl was loaded with ants! Oh well, we’ll have one layer split. Proceeded with the whipped cream and strawberries, refrigerated about 5 hours. Took it out of the fridge and the top layer had slid a bit but pushed it back, put the candles on and had the regular birthday do. Everyone loved the cake. It was truly good. After the party, put the cake back on the dr table. Heard my grandsons screaming and laughing – dog had licked one side clean of straberries and whipped cream. Cut that side off and sent the good side home with the birthday girl. I’m going to try this again and hope the critters will leave it alone!
It was not a pretty as yours, but it was delicious. It MADE Mothers Day for my Mom. Chalk another great recipe up to Deb.
http://dandelionsandfireflies.blogspot.com/2009/05/strawbetty-shortcake.html
Deb, I’m makin’ this Strawberry Cake today, but in reading the comments I became very interested in Jane’s “BigFatMuffinCakewith RaspberryOnTop.” Did I miss it somewhere? WOuld like to try it another time, if I can. Thanks :)
Mindy — Ha ha. I think that comment was snuck in from my sister, who was pining for me to make a giant cake-sized version of this muffin for her birthday. Didn’t happen for whatever reason but I’m sure it’d be a delight.
I made this cake for my husband’s first father’s day (our Maxence Tao was born on April 6, 2009) and for my dad, who both love strawberries, cake and whipped cream.
I had a few variations:
> I used all four layers of cake because I had no room in the freezer to store the extra layer. The cake was as tall as those I get from the pastry chef I used for my wedding cake. It was awesome to behold (sorry no photos posted to our Flickr stream yet).
> I filled two layers with a vanilla bean and lemon peel pastry cream.The middle layer was strawberries and whipped cream.
> I macerated the berries in sugar and lemon juice. I drizzled some of this juice onto each cake layer to add flavour and moistness.
> I covered (iced?) the whole cake with whipped cream.
> I used local Ontario strawberries, which are just coming into season now. I aim to only make strawberry desserts when the berries are in season in my area and the result is always fantastic.
The cake was a huge hit with my whole family at the father’s day BBQ at which it was served. I liked this recipe especially because the cake was super light and fluffy. If I wasn’t so full from the meal, I am sure I would have eaten more. My dad, husband and brother-in-law were all eager to split the leftovers.
Thank you for this awesome variation on shortcake. :)
I realize this is coming a bit late–it’s now 2009!–but thank you, Mercedes #43! Your 12-layer butterscotch cake is “… just one giant vehicle for brown sugar”? I think I must have died & gone to heaven! I will try it soon…just as soon as I’ve finished Deb’s delish Strawberry chiffon. And Deb, thank YOU for giving me the details I needed to make a version of the strawberry whipped cream cake we used to get every birthday when we lived in LA. Haven’t found anything like it here in North Carolina, but now I’ve no excuse not to make it myself!
Me again. Deb, I just wanted to say how much I not only love your site but also love your readers/commenters. Yours are the only ones I read all the way through– and all the way to the last comment!–bcz I’ve learned so much, found so many wonderful suggestions, and even found many great RECIPES. So thanks to everyone! Dying to try the 12-layer Butterscotch Cake AND the version of the Strawberry Whipped Cream Cake posted here by Vintagevendor (#48)–can’t imagine what a cake with that many eggs in it will be like but might be a good excuse to have it for breakfast (not that I need an excuse). Thanks, ladies!
As always, this recipe looks amazing! Deb, I love your commentaries. It is fun to see you insert so much personality into your posts.
Like Cheryl, I’m a bit late to this party (oh, only like… TWO AND A HALF YEARS), but I wanted to thank you for another wonderful cake recipe! I always come here first when I want a good cake recipe to wow people. I made this for a Valentine’s dinner and it was a smashing success. Nice and light and perfect after a heavy dinner. I added a thin layer of strawberry-rhubarb jam in between the layers–would have been fine without it, but I liked the subtle flavor it added. Thanks again!
I made this along with your chocolate butter cake recipe for my friend and her hubby to be’s birthday bash. OMG! It was a showstopper! People were asking for the name of the bakery I bought them from! The reason I made this cake is, for some reason, my friends always buy these ridiculously expensive birthday cakes to serve at birthday parties. Like $100+ on a birthday cake! They’re basically chiffon cake, whipped cream, and mixed fruit. And now that we’re in a recession no one can afford to buy them. So I figured hey I can attempt at making one similar to the ridiculously expensive bakeries. This recipe was perfect. I didn’t have cream of tartar on hand and still was just fine. I was just very gentle in folding in the whites.
I divided the recipe in half to make a 2 layer 9″ round cake. I baked mine for 35 minutes. I did find it was just a bit dry so I used a sugar syrup with a few drops of lemon and brushed it on the cake layers. I mixed strawberries, kiwi, and nectarine in the whipped cream for the filling. I used sliced almonds to decorate the sides of the cake and sliced fruit on top. People loved the cake, I’m really glad I made both this cake AND the chocolate cake. It was the best of both worlds!
Pics of the cakes: http://www.flickr.com/photos/46126045@N06/4386081812/
Hey! I love your blog: your photos, the detail in all your recipes, and the beautiful things you create. I wanted to make this cake for a birthday this weekend and I was wondering if the cake layers could be made the night before and frozen? Thanks!
Hello, a few years late as well! I am looking for a good cake recipe for a pear-caramel trifle. The classic seems to be pound cake, but I worry about that being too heavy. Since you seem so very talented in cake baking, I was wondering if you had an oipinion or advice on that? Thank you in advance, I just adore your website! Best wishes form Montreal.
Mmmm! We made this last night and it was delish! Nice and light and fluffy- we loved it! I halved the recipe and baked it in a 9″ round cake pan, then we topped it with fresh strawberries and whipped cream. One question, though- the cake kind of overflowed the pan, so there was some cake baked up over the rim, any idea why? Didn’t you use 2 round pans, so shouldn’t half the recipe have worked in one?
I did so it should have. Of course, I made this eons ago but from looking at my picture, mine looks up near the top of my pan so maybe with a little more oomph in the egg whites or even slightly larger “large” eggs, it could have gone up higher.
I just made this – the cake has the most delicate, fluffy, beautiful texture. It was so perfect, I was kind of impressed with myself. Thank you!
(Also..I did bake it in 8.5″ pans and it was done in 30 min.)
Wilton makes those cake leveler/slicer thingies–best $3.00 you’ll ever spend! I’ve also had great luck using dental floss. I’d always heard it was good for cutting cheesecake, but it is also great at cutting through butter cakes, genoise, etc.
It sounds like your childhood experiments were much tastier than mine. At least they were edible. I put together some kind of flour-sugar-water-red food coloring nightmare that looked like Pepto Bismol. Then, I made my mom drink it for a “tea party.” Poor mom. ;)
I’m currently in the process of making this, and it looks delicious! Thank you for the recipe!
This cake is amazing!!!! We loved it. It is now the family favorite, and everyone has been asking me to make this cake for their birthday!!!!!
Thank you, Thank you, thank you for sharing, and posting the photographs. I loved seeing the process of it!
Blessings,
Lisa Baker
I’ve read every post, and I plan to make this for my strawberry shortcake obsessed mother for her birthday. I’m wondering if it would hurt to make the cake using 3 9″ pans yielding slightly thicker layers, or if you think I’m better off slicing 2 for thin layers? Silly question I’m sure – I’m new at this. :) I must say that I’m happy to have found this site. It has become my “go-to” for all things tall, beautiful and sweet. The raspberry almond layer cake was super. Thanks.
Just made this for the first time, my fiancee and I both LOVED it! Thanks!
I recently had a whipped mascarpone/cherry dessert and quickly fell in love with the whipped portion (and sweet talked the pastry chef into giving up the recipe). It’s simply 2 c. mascarpone, 1 c. heavy cream, 1/3 c. sugar and then whipped ferociously. It’s got a slightly denser consistency than whipped cream and a richer flavor… but still very fun n dainty. I think I’ll try to sub the whipped cream portion with this whipped mascarpone obsession… any suggestions?
It’s pretty telling how great this cake is that you’re still getting comments on it 3 years later! I have always preferred the lighter angel-food style of cake for my strawberry “shortcake” desserts (rather than the heavy scone-style of actual shortcakes), and this version is perfect.
I’ve made this twice in the last few weeks, both times to rave reviews from friends and family. I will admit I did not attempt the layers, just served it in wedges with fresh farmers market strawberries and soft home-whipped cream drizzled over top. Both times I made the half recipe, using only 2 egg yolks (I rounded down from 2.5). My cooking times were close to 30 mins in a 9″ pan with no spillover (though placed on a cookie sheet just in case as the pan did look a mite full). The first time, I added a 1/2 tsp of lemon extract along with the zest to bump up the lemon flavor, which came out really nice. Yesterday, I was in the process of making this again to take to a barbecue and realized, oops! no lemon zest on hand and too late to go get a lemon at the store (if it was even open on the holiday). So I subbed in a 1/2 tsp of almond extract, which also tasted pretty good. The flavor was recognizable, yet subtle.
I’m thinking I might try orange extract next time and then add a bit of Cointreau to my strawberry mixture to pick that flavor up. I am also thinking about trying other berries/fruits, maybe peaches? And that mascarpone idea just above sounds amazing as well. I can already tell this is going to be a go-to summer dessert for me! Many thanks for the recipe, deb!
Hi deb,
came across your website while i was researching celebration cakes for my boyfriend’s birthday. When asked about what kind of cake he wanted, he answered with ‘ anything with a massive load of strawberries and cream!!!!’. As he said this, he had this twinkle in his eye that just made him look like i promised a 5 year old some ice cream after dinner.Lol.
Anyway, i’m having a trial run of baking the chiffon cake this weekend and since this is the first time i’m making it, just wondering if it would be fine frozen until i need it. And when i do, what would be a good and safe way of doing it – leave it at room temperature, low setting in oven? any additional advice on making this as a first timer?
Thanks in advance, deb!
AMAZING!!!!!
I have been a headoveerheels smitten girl for awhile now and this is my first comment. I am an inept baker but this cake delighted me to no end. It did take me about 1.5 hours from clean kitchen to putting the cake in the oven, but every moment is worth it. I made the full recipe in 2 springform pans, big round possibly 9 inches. one we cut in half, slathered the layer with the delicious marscapone cream creation a commenter above shared, closed up the top and ate it with plum jam, never even getting to plate stage. it was that good. even though i managed to under cook it…. what can i say… the cake is a dream. the other one is magically well-cooked, and tomorrow will be a birthday cake for a very lucky girl.
this is airy, delicious, lightly sweet and everything you want a strawberry and cream delivery cake to be. i admit that i put some chocolate chips in the batter before folding the egg whites in. the little smudges of chocolate through this amazing cake are kind of divine.
thanks deb <3
I’ll see what the result is, but when I lightly press on the cake in the oven, it’s more like a tempurpedic mattress…maybe something about the egg consistency? My fingers are crossed.
Hi! I want to make this for my daughters 2nd birthday party, she loves strawberries! My question is the serving, does it get refrigerated til just before you serve it? or can you have it out on display?
Im just worried how the whipped cream holds up if it gets to room temperature. We live in bushwick and I am thinking of having a “smitten kitchen” inspired menu for her party! thanks for the terrific blog, we love it!
Keep it in the fridge until needed. I hope she likes it!
thanks deb!!!!!!
hi deb, what proportions would you suggest to make this in a 9×13 glass dish? I’m looking for a cake to make for my college roommates birthday, and we only have that one pan to bake a cake in!
Hi Kate — This is a great resource for pan size conversions.
just made this cake for my fiance’s birthday this weekend. delicious! your blog is always my go-to for special meals.
Hi Deb! Love Love Love your site, I have tried this recipe once and I LOVED it. I was wondering just the actual cake batter could I use it to make cupcakes? I love the taste of the sponge and I am making cupcakes for a party and I didn’t know if you had ever used this recipe for cupcakes before? If not do you have another good sponge recipe for cupcakes? Thanks!!!
I made this cake this past weekend for a baby shower and it was FANTASTIC and PERFECT!
I did macerate in sugar and made a total for four layers with the two cakes. It looked awesome, and massive and everybody loved it so much. Thank you Deb for this awesome recipe.
I just finished making this cake. It was a lot of work but it does look awesome. I only made it with 3 layers and it is a monster cake. My cake lid just fits over it!Using it to sell at bingo tonight. I also made another one with my last layer. Going to keep that one for dessert for tomorrow nite with friends. Can’t wait to try it!
Well I made this cake for my daughter’s fourth birthday (for which we happened to be in Maui). I was just about out of white sugar at the condo, but had plenty of brown on hand for coffee. So, I made it with brown and you know what? It still turned out beautifully! Fluffy, airy, scrumptious, just a little….brown. Also used brown sugar for the whip cream, which actually gave it a pretty color. Chopped the strawberries fairly small and muddled them with just a touch of honey. Everyone declared it the best cake they ever had (four kids, dad, and grandparents…) and I declared it the easiest cake I ever made. Win-win. Thanks for the great recipe!
Thank you for this recipe. I made it on Friday for my mum’s birthday and it turned out beautifully. The cake was soft, light and loved by all. Instead of strawberries I made a thick raspberry syrup to spread on the cake along with the whipped cream. I whipped the rest of the cream with some raspberry jam until it was stiff enough to cover the cake completely. I also wrote a birthday message with some buttercream. My family was very impressed. It’s my brother’s birthday in a few days and I’ll be making him your cappuccino fudge cheesecake. :)
Hi Deb! This cake looks so delicious and I can’t wait to try it. I wanted to know if you thought it would be okay to leave out the cream of tartar?
Cream of tartar is an acidic ingredient that plays a chemical role in baking. You should use it. Or, if you search about, you might find another recipe for chiffon cake that doesn’t use it and you can use that cake in this cake’s place in the recipe.
hey!
this recipe is delicious.
do you have any tips on how to make an easy home-made filling/icing/etc nozzle to decorate cakes and such? or one i can buy that isn’t too expensive? i always end up using a plastic bag with a hole in the corner.
Katie — You can make a pastry bag from a piece of parchment paper as well. Here’s a great video on how to do it. I worked at a bakery in high school and they almost always used paper cones for colors and details.
i really want to make this cake! i live in alaska in the summer and dont have many resources (like a mixer) so i’m wondering two things. can i beat the egg whites by hand with a whisk? also wondering: what do you mean when you said line the cake pan with parchment paper? i’m guessing the obvious: put the paper in the pan and then pour the batter on top of it…. will the parchment paper be sticking up out the sides of the pan? thanks. i really hope i can make it and it turns out!!
sorry, one more question. when you say 2 1/4 cups sifted flour, do you mean to sift the flour before measuring? sorry for the dumb questions, i’m a pro at cookies but a novice at cakes!
The egg whites can be beaten by hand but it will be exhausting. You line the inside bottom of the cake pan with a circle of parchment paper, not the sides. It should fit in the bottom. You butter the top of the paper, and the bare sides of the pan. The flour should be sifted before measuring. (Otherwise the correct way to write it would be “2 1/4 cups flour, sifted”.) Hope that helps!
Attempted to make this today for the first time. First time ever making a cake, I usually bake cookies. The first time it was a complete mess. I didn’t mix it thoroughly with the egg whites. I ended throwing it all out and going to the store for more eggs. The second time while mixing I transferred the mix to a second bowl to make sure it was well mixed. They looked awesome in the oven beautifully risen gorgeous. Then I took them out within seconds the dome shape deflated and both cakes shrunk. Given this is the hottest day since the beginning of time and I have my air conditioner running non-stop but could a sudden shift in temperatures be the reason they deflated so drastically? I will assemble tomorrow cover with whip cream and strawberries and hopefully it will cover up the strange shape.
deb-
thanks so much for the tips! luckily I did find a mixer to borrow. despite a lack of parchment paper, I was able to make the cake and it came out great! an awesome treat for us alaska-seasonals who rarely get a true taste of summer or home-baked goods!
i’ll be making this cake this weekend. i only have a 9″ pan, is it possible if i bake them all at once instead of separating the batter into two pans? do i need to lengthen the baking time?
The cake looks magnificent. I love it how at the bottom of recipe when I looked at it, the ads called up one for Jenny Craig.
Thank you! I made this cake for my daughter’s birthday this weekend. It was just gorgeous, the chiffon so light! Everyone loved it and it looked so impressive. I used macerated strawberries and it worked really well.
I just made this cake today for Mother’s Day and it was fabulous! I used a traditional tube pan and cooked it for almost 70 minutes. The final product was heavenly! So light and fluffy! One thing I recommend, if you bake the cake the night before you assemble the whole thing, leave it turned upside-down the whole night to help preserve the puffiness of the whole thing. Watch out though! My cake fell out of its pan and was stuck to the counter when I found it in the morning. I’m not sure how to avoid this but it still remained tasty and fluffy. Overall, a fantastic recipe!
Is there a way to make this a chocolate chiffon cake? Could you mix dark chocolate baking powder into the cake batter? I have a vision of a dark chocolate strawberry chiffon cake, but I’m not sure it’s just a lovely dream. Any thoughts would be appreciated!
You could probably swap 1/4 to 1/2 cup of the flour with unsweetened cocoa powder, in theory. I haven’t tested it in my kitchen, however, so I can’t say for sure if it would give you the desired results. Good luck!
Hi :) I made a variation on this cake where I did the traditional four layer, but used the filling as an overall frosting and made a strawberry/pastry cream filling. I garnished with pirouettes along the side and chocolate dippe strawberries (picture can be found here- http://instagr.am/p/MLxMi0Nio4/). Everyone loved it! Thanks so much for the recipe :)
I made the 4 layer version and it was huge! I just had to tent some plastic wrap over it and hold it in my lap in the car to bring to a party because my cake dome was not nearly tall enough. The cake turned out good despite the fact that I accidentally used all 8 egg yolks after I separated my eggs. I macerated the strawberries with some sugar but I still wished they would have been a little saucier. Next time I might make a sort of simple jam to spread between the layers in addition to the sliced berries. Overall it was good though and everyone liked it.
I know it’s not necessarily intended for this, but this has become my go-to white/yellow cake. It holds frosting nicely and is so light. I get compliments every time. I’ve used it cubed as a base for a quick strawberry shortcake as well and also for cupcakes. Also used it for my rum cake and it worked so well with the rum, custard, cream and fruit. Am planning on using it for my daughter’s bday cake too.
hey!Any substitute of creme of tartar??
I’m excited to give this recipe a try tomorrow! One question, one comment:
Minor TYPO: ‘cake carried’ should be ‘cake carrier.’ No judgement, just wanted to let you know. :)
Do you think you could use this recipe for a multi-tiered cake? Or is it too fragile? Would it hold up under fondant?
Beth — Thanks. I haven’t used fondant, so I cannot say, but chiffon cakes are generally very light but sturdy. I think there’s potential.
I’ve got my mind made up to make this for Easter dessert. We are having ~25 people for dinner, and I’m trying to figure out how many duplicates of the recipe will feed such a crowd. Would two cakes be sufficient? Or maybe turn it into a sheet cake of sorts? This cake looks so delicious, I can’t wait!
This cake looks delicious and absolutely perfect for my friend’s bridal shower, for which I volunteered to bake a dessert. The shower will be in mid May, at a BBQ, in upstate New York. As we live in the city, traveling there would involve taking the Metro North. So my main concern is if this cake will survive the trip. If I were to chill it after assembly, for, say, a couple of hours? Or if this could be disastrous, I could easily find another cake on your site.
Thanks so much for any advice you might have! Or any desserts that would survive a trip and is great for a BBQ.I love your blog and have never commented, but I’d appreciate any input :)
Juanita — I think it would be just fine if it were kept in the fridge until you left and put back in the fridge as soon as you arrived.
This cake looks fantastic. I am planning to make it for a baby shower and I have 2 questions. 1) How many people do you think a four layer version will serve? I need to serve 22 people – should I make two? Actually since I only have one cake carrier, perhaps I’ll make a second version as cupcakes. 2) How well does this cake hold up? Can I make it the day before, keep in the fridge overnight before serving the next afternoon? Or, should I assemble it the morning of?
Thank you for all your wonderful recipes and detailed instructions. Everything I’ve made from your site has been delicious!
Heather — It should be okay the day before but if you can wait until the day of to assemble/slice it, it will be more moist. How many cakes are going to be served? If this is the only one, you’ll want more. If there are others, I am sure people will just cut it into thinner slivers.
Can this cake be made in to cupcakes? I am looking for a light not too heavy yellow cake for one of my friends birthdays. Any suggestions would be great.
Hi Deb – love your site and your book!! I am having a problem with sloping sides with my chiffon cakes. It’s fine as it bakes, but as it cools it shrinks and I wind up with sloped sides. i think I am doing everything correctly (not over/underbeating the whites, folding carefully, oven temp thermometer) etc. I am only buttering the underside of the parchment paper. Do you have any thoughts/suggestions? Thanks again!!
jackie — Hm. I’m not the chiffon expert that I should be by now, but my understanding is that shrinking comes from oiled sides (maybe some is slipping out?). I’ve also read that too much liquid can lead to shrinkage… Actually, let me interrupt myself with a better question: are you at a higher altitude? This can affect a lot.
deb, thank you for responding. No, am not at high altitude at all. I will check % of liquid to flour and eggs, etc and see if there is something off with the cake. Thx again!
jackie — Just wanted to add that mine does/did shrink slightly (you can see the sides pulling away in the cake pan photo, and that the cake sides are not fully straight) but not significantly. Slightly shrinkage is normal.
I’m wondering what the best way to frost the sides of this cake would be, if I wanted more of a finished, fancy look. Just more whipped cream all over? Some kind of frosting?
Devorah — You could double the volume of whipped cream and use it to cover the sides.