09 Feb Classic white cake with strawberry jam and white frosting
My improved, soft, tender, fluffy and moist white cake with a classic white frosting.
White Cake
Ingredients
- 400g Cake flour or all purpose
- 320g White sugar
- 2 tbsp (30ml) baking powder
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 240g Whole Milk
- 300g Egg Whites slightly beaten
- 2 tsp (10ml) Clear vanilla extract
- 300g Butter at room temperature
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F / 160°C. Grease and flour two round 6 x 3.5 inch / 15 x 9 cm cake pans or four 6inch layer cake tins. ( For the pictures I did half of the recipe using two round 5 inches / 12 cm cake pans).
- Sift cake flour and baking powder together. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the flat attachment, beat butter and sugar on medium speed for 15 minutes until pale and fluffy. - Add lightly beaten egg whites slowly beating at medium speed. Add vanilla extract and beat until combine. (if the mixture looks curdled add 1tbsp. of the flour mixture and beat until combine.
- Add half of the flour mixture, then the milk and then the remaining flour. Beat on low speed just to integrate the flour and the mixture is smooth. No more than 2 minutes.
- Pour the mixture evenly into cake pans and bake about 40-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Cool the cakes in their pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Place a wire rack on top of the cake pan and invert, lifting off the pan. Let cool at room temperature and freeze 30 minutes at least.
Strawberry jam
{ 2 cups }
Ingredients
- 300 g Fresh strawberries
- 40 g White sugar
- 30 ml Lemon juice
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients in a saucepan and cook at medium high temperature until it boils. Whisk constantly.
- Cook at slow temperature 10 minutes more.
Let it cool. Set aside.
White Frosting – Swiss Meringue Buttercream
Ingredients
- 150 g Egg whites ( whites of about 4 eggs )
- 200 g White sugar
- 250 g Pale unsalted butter sightly cold
- 1tsp Clear vanilla extract
Instructions
- Mix egg whites with sugar in a small saucepan and put it over a saucepan with simmering water a few minutes until sugar dissolves or using a thermometer until it gets 64°C exactly. Whisk constantly. Sift the mix through a small sieve if you get any egg white lumps.
- Using a stand mixer, whisk for about 10 minutes or until Swiss meringue is firm and bowl feels cool.
- Once meringue is ready, start adding soften butter slowly until it is fully incorporated. Add vanilla extract.
- Whip 20 minutes at medium- hight speed and the frosting will look bright and white.
White chocolate ganache
Ingredients
- 80 g White Chocolate Best Quality
- 40 g Cream
- Some drops of gel white food coloring
Instructions
- In a small saucepan mix both ingredients. Bring pan over medium heat until both ingredients dissolves completely. Add white food colour and mix.
- Let cool and use it at 30 ° C / 86 ° F. If you don’t have a thermometer, make sure the ganache is at room temperature before using it; so chocolate will not melt buttercream and you will get a more interesting thickness.
To assemble and decorate the cake
- If cakes are domed on top, even out with a knife or a cake leveler (Cold cakes work better here).
- Add a little bit of frosting on a cake board and place the first layer of cake over it. Use your hands to press down over the cake.
- Using a pastry bag, pipe the buttercream around the top, but only around the edges of the cake, so you make a “wall” around the edge.
- Add some cooled strawberry jam into the gap and smooth using a spoon. Place the next cake layer on top and repeat with more buttercream and jam.
- Spread some buttercream all over the cake, just for the crumb coat and then take off any excess with the icing smoother and place the cake in the refrigerator about 15 minutes.
- Bring the cake from the refrigerator and using an offset spatula cover with buttercream. Begin frosting the cake and smoothing slowly. Be patient. Pay attention to get smooth surfaces and sharp edges. Take it to the fridge again for 15 minutes.
- Bring the cake from the refrigerator. Make sure white ganache is at room temperature before using it, so the chocolate will not melt the buttercream and you will get a more interesting thickness. Drip it over the edges of the cake using a spoon.
- Use the remaining buttercream to pipe on the top of the cake. I used Wilton 1M.
- Decorate with some fresh strawberries.
- Enjoy.