It’s beginning to look a lot like a very stylish Christmas! Ditch the Christmas pudding this year and swap it in for my strawberries and cream sponge cake! I made this using the incredibly cool and stylish Alemais x Kitchen Aid stand mixer – when fashion meets the kitchen! And honestly, pop this one on your wish list because you’ll want it on display every time a guest comes over, it’s just that cool!
Strawberries and Cream sponge cake
Baking cakes from scratch can be intimidating for some. I often hear from people “I’m a good cook but not a good baker.” And, yes. There is a science behind baking. But knocking out a beautiful sponge cake is not as difficult as it looks. For this Strawberries and Cream sponge cake I have even made my own jam, which sounds tricky, right? But it’s actually really easy and will make this cake the centrepiece of your Christmas table.
When making a sponge it’s about patience. But also it’s about understanding that sponges are light, fluffy, airy. So, how do you get it light, fluffy, and airy? Air, of course! Fold in the mixture slowly. Don’t over stir it and don’t over beat them. Just be gentle and you’ll also be enjoying a lovely, fluffy cake.
Decorate it your way!
Decorating a cake is an absolute art but it’s also not that hard – it’s about finding your style. There is one golden rule when icing and decorating – let it cool down! Hot icing or cream on a cake becomes what? Liquid! It will slide down or soak into the cake and look messy. Patience, patience, patience. The best chefs and cooks are the most patient, so take your time and let everything cool down.
Pump up the jam!
Jam, jam, jam. Or, as it’s better known in the States – jelly! Jam is essentially fruit and sugar, and it can be used in sweet and savoury dishes.
In the case of the cake – it’s all about bringing a beautiful vibrant colour and a sweet, acidity to it as well.
If you have any questions or would like to leave a review, please do so here! I always love answering your food and recipe related questions and hearing your feedback on my recipes.
Images by Alanna Penna Photography.
Strawberries and Cream sponge cake
Ingredients
Strawberry jam
- 500 g strawberries sliced
- 3/4 cup caster sugar
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- zest from one lemon
Sponge Cake
- 1/2 cup caster sugar
- 4 eggs
- 3/4 cup white all purpose flour sifted
- 1/4 tbsp baking powder sifted
- 50 g butter melted
- 300 mL thickened cream
- 1/4 cup icing sugar + extra to dust
- 6 tbsp strawberry jam
- fresh strawberries to serve
Instructions
Strawberry jam
- Place the strawberries into a saucepan and cover with the sugar, lemon juice and zest. Massage the sugar and juices into the strawberries with your hands and leave to sit for 1 hour or until as much as the natural juices have been released. This is macerating.
- Place the saucepan on a medium heat and bring to the simmer. Leave to cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally or until the jam is at a consistency you like. If you like your jam smooth, use a potato masher to mash up the strawberries.
- You will not need all of the jam for this recipe. Store the remainder in a sterilised jar and keep in the fridge for up to 14 days.
Sponge Cake
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C / 355 degrees F. Grease 2 x 6 inch baking tins.
- Place the eggs and sugar into a stand mixer and beat on high for 10 minutes or until doubled in size and pale in colour.
- Add the sifted flour and baking powder in thirds and gently fold through with a spatula. Pour the melted butter into the batter and gently fold through with a spatula.
- Divide the batter in half and pour them into the baking tins. Bake for 15 – 16 minutes or until sponge like. Remove from the oven and leave to cool for 5 minutes before removing them from the tin and placing onto a colling rack. Leave to cool for 20 minutes.
- While the cake bakes, whisk together the cream and icing sugar on a medium heat until you have whipped cream.
- Assemble the cake by placing one of the cakes onto a plate. Spread a large amount of whipped cream onto the top of the cake, followed by the strawberry jam. Top with the other cake half and spread the remaining cream over. Sprinkle fresh strawberries over and dusting of icing sugar. Slice and serve.
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