Japanese Strawberry Shortcake 日式草莓蛋糕

The other day, my daughter complaint that I have quite a while did not bake a cake. So I ask her to suggest an easy cake, she suggested Japanese Strawberry Shortcake. Since I have all ingredients on hand , quickly search for a recipe and immediate bake this cake for her. Japanese Strawberry shortcake is a layered sponge cake with strawberry and whipped cream filling and frost with whipped cream, and this cake is very famous in Japan.

 

I choose not to frost the whole cake since this cake is not meant for any celebration..

 

The cake recipe requires only 4 ingredients, simple ingredients but resulted very light and spongy cake.
I always prefer to use Not a non-stick pan to bake sponge cake or chiffon cake. Also I prefer not to line any paper in the cake pan (partly due to I am lazy to do so, hehehe) , as I believe chiffon or sponge cake batter need a wall for them to climb up (since there is no rising agent added).



 

Even this cake look girlish, but my son Lucas finished 4 slices from this small cake !!

Japanese Strawberry Shortcake 日式草莓蛋糕

(recipe source: inspired by The Little Teochew, adapted from ochikeron)
*makes a 6” x 2.5” round removable bottom cake pan

 Sponge cake

2 eggs (I used eggs directly from fridge)

60g caster sugar
60g Top flour or cake flour
20g melted unsalted butter

 Syrup

10ml hot water
1/2tbsp sugar
1/2tsp rum ( I used homemade vanilla extract)

Cream

150g whipping cream (dairy)

1tbsp caster sugar
1tsp vanilla extract ( I used homemade vanilla  extract)

125g fresh strawberries  (half-chopped, half- for decorating on top)

 Method

1. Add eggs in a mixing bowl, use a hand whisk, lightly stir well the eggs.
2. Add in sugar, lightly mix well with eggs.
3. Bring the mixing bowl over a pot of hot simmering water, use the hand whisk, continue to stir till sugar dissolved and until the mixture pleasant to touch.
4. Remove the mixing bowl, immediately use an electric handheld mixer to beat the mixture until pale to white or ribbon stage (my mixer- 10mins at speed 3, 5mins at speed 1 (to eliminate large bubbles). In fact, you can beat it even longer than 15mins, to have better result).
5. Sift in flour in 3 stages, cut through the mixture with a wire whisk after each addition.
6. Sprinkle the cooled melted butter over the batter and fold in using a spatula.
7. Pour the cake batter into the cake pan, towards the end, pour batter to one side of the pan (to minimize cake from developing a dome).
8. Lift the tin and drop it gently onto the table top twice to eliminate air bubbles.
9. Bake the cake at pre-heated oven at 170C for 25mins to 30mins (place at middle rack)
10. While cake is baking, now prepare the syrup, dissolved sugar with hot water, add rum and mix well. Set aside.
11. Add sugar, whipping cream and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl. Place the bowl over another bowl that filled with ice water, beat whipping cream till soft peak. Store in the fridge before decorating the cake.
12. Once cake is done, cool it upside down onto a cooling wire rack. Once cake is cooled, slice the cake half.
13. Brush sugar syrup on the first layer, then spread a layer cream on top, sprinkle chopped strawberries.
14. Brush another layer with sugar syrup, then place it on top of the first layer, spread the remaining cream, then decorate with strawberries on top.
15. Chill the cake before serve.