Citrus Chiffon Cake

by Kate | Feb 19, 2021 | 0 comments

Light as air and loaded with zesty citrus, it’s hard to find a more perfect cake than a chiffon. It’s also extremely hard to have just one slice! 

Chiffon cake is probably the perfect tea-time cake. It’s relatively easy to rustle up with short notice, not too much fuss (in terms of layering and frosting) and EVERYONE loves it. While the ingredients and method are pretty straight forward, don’t make the mistake of skipping over the ‘chiffon tin’ requirement. A chiffon tin is a ring-shaped cake tin with little feet on the side. Because chiffon cake is so very light, it requires cooling upside-down to stop it from falling in on itself. These little feet make it possible to flip the cake upside down on a cooling rack without the cake weighing itself down. It really is a diva of a cake! 

Another important step is to NOT grease the chiffon tin. It feels odd, I know. But because the batter is so very light, it NEEDS to stick to the sides of the tin in order to climb and rise well. Greasing the tin (or using a non-stick tin) would simply give you a dense cake. 

BUT if you don’t have a chiffon cake tin (and aren’t willing to invest in one just yet), there IS a way to get around this…

To make a DIY Bundt Tin/Angel Food Cake/Chiffon Tin 

Use a tin can – this could be a can of Coke or an empty tin from baked beans (with the label removed). The size of the can depends on how big you want the hole in the centre to be. Ideall your tin should be higher than your cake tin. This will make it easier to cool the cake upside down later. Make sure it’s clean, then wrap the outside of the tin in foil.  Weigh it down by filling the can with dried beans or rice so it doesn’t move around.  Place the tin in the centre of a normal round cake tin. Fill the cake tin with the batter but remember that you’re DIY’ing it so the amount of cake batter might not fit the tin you’ve created. Always fill any cake tin ⅔ of the way up the sides to be safe. Use any leftover batter to make cupcakes! 

Citrus Chiffon Cake 

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 55 minutes

Serves: 6-8 

Chiffon Cake:

225g cake flour

250g + 50g Natura Sugars golden caster sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp fine salt

1 tbsp orange zest

1 tbsp lemon zest

1 tbsp grapefruit zest

6 large eggs, separated

60ml orange juice

60ml grapefruit juice

60ml lemon juice

120ml vegetable oil

½ tsp cream of tartar

Glaze:

250g Natura Sugars Demerara icing sugar

1 tbsp orange juice

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp grapefruit juice

1 tsp orange zest

Dried citrus slices, to garnish (optional)

Special equipment: 24cm chiffon tin

Preheat the oven to 170°C, gas mark 3. Using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the cake flour, 250g sugar, baking powder, salt and zests. Beat until combined. Add the egg yolks, juices and oil and beat until smooth.  In a separate bowl, whisk egg whites until foamy, add the cream of tartar and remaining 50g of sugar and whisk to make a meringue which forms soft peaks. Fold the meringue through the cake batter using a metal spoon, in three batches.  Pour into an ungreased 24cm chiffon tin and bake for 55-60 minutes or until springy to the touch. Remove from the oven and immediately invert onto a wire rack. Allow to cool completely. To make the glaze, gently whisk the juices and zest into the icing sugar to create a lump-free glaze. Spread the glaze over the cooled cake. Decorate with dried citrus slices. 

DOWNLOAD OR PRINT THE RECIPE CARD HERE:

Strawberry Tres Leches Sheet Cake 

by Kate | Feb 1, 2021 | 1 comment

Tresh leches, meaning ‘three milks’ is a refreshing, chilled dessert that’s perfect for hot weather. A sponge cake is soaked in a combination of evaporated milk, condensed milk and full cream milk and then chilled. 

I first fell in love with milk cakes on a trip to Dubai in 2019. Milk cakes were so popular there and I can totally understand why – they are served chilled and make for a refreshing treat with tea especially on hot days. The milk cakes I tasted were heady with saffron, rose water, orange blossom and pistachio which gave me the inspiration to infuse the traditional ‘tres leches milk’ mixture with other ingredients so this version has fresh strawberries blended into the milk.If you want to ramp up the strawberry flavour, spread a layer of homemade strawberry jam between the cake and the whipped cream! 

With so many milk alternatives available these days, it would also be fun to change up the cow’s milk and experiment with oat, coconut, almond or even hazelnut.  One thing’s for sure though, this cake MUST be served straight from the fridge to enjoy it at it’s best!

Note: Don’t be alarmed at the amount of soaking milk this recipe makes – the cake needs it! So trust the process and give the cake time to soak it all up.med at the amount of soaking milk this recipe makes – the cake needs it! So trust the process and give the cake time to soak it all up.

Strawberry Tres Leches Sheet Cake 

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes  

Serves: 10-12

Cake:

10 large eggs, (separated) room temperature

300g Natura soft brown sugar

250g cake flour

2 tsp baking powder

Pinch of salt

Tres Leches Mixture:

200g fresh strawberries, topped and roughly chopped

1 x 380g evaporated milk

1 x 385g condensed milk

310ml full cream milk (coconut milk would also be delicious!)

5ml vanilla extract 

Topping:

500ml cream, chilled

200g fresh strawberries, topped and halved

Edible flowers, to garnish (optional)

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180°C, 160°C fan-forced. Grease and a 23cm x 33cm sheet tray.  In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the egg yolks and sugar together until very light and fluffy, about 8 minutes. Whisk the egg whites, in a separate bowl, until they form soft peaks.  Sieve the dry ingredients together. Gently fold a third of the whisked egg whites into the beaten egg yolk mixture and fold in a third of the dry ingredients. Alternate between the egg whites and dry ingredients until everything is folded in completely, taking care not to knock out the air that you’ve incorporated.  Pour the batter into the prepared baking tray and bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden and a wooden skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.  Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely. Place the strawberries and milks in a blender and blitz until smooth and combined. Strain through a sieve.  Using a skewer, poke holes into the cake and slowly pour ⅓ cup of the milk mixture over the cake allowing it to soak in. Do this until all the milk has soaked in. Refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight before serving. Just before serving, whip the cream until soft peaks form. Remove the cake from the tray and top with the whipped cream and strawberries.

DOWNLOAD OR PRINT THE RECIPE CARD HERE: