Strawberry and vanilla crown cake
Feel royally proud of yourself by whipping up this show-stopping crown cake
Whether you’re baking for a birthday bash or hosting a sedate afternoon tea, this cake is sure to wow a crowd.
STRAWBERRY AND VANILLA CROWN CAKE
You will need two 20cm, loose-bottomed sandwich tins.
INGREDIENTS
For the sponge:
225g butter, softened
225g caster sugar
4 large eggs
225g self-raising flour
2 level tsp baking powder
For the meringue:
2 egg whites
115g caster sugar
For the Chantilly cream:
300ml double cream
1 vanilla pod, halved lengthways and seeds scraped (or ½ tsp vanilla extract)
25g icing sugar, plus a little for dusting
To serve:
2 tbsp strawberry jam
250g fresh strawberries, hulled and halved
METHOD
- Preheat the oven to 190°C/fan 170°C/gas 5.
- Grease and line the tins with baking paper.
- Cream the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy.
- Beat in the eggs one at a time.
- Fold in the flour and baking powder.
- Spoon mixture into the prepared tins.
- In a clean bowl, quickly whisk the egg whites until soft peaks form. Whisk in the sugar, one tablespoon at a time.
- Carefully spoon onto one of the uncooked sponges. Use a spatula to spread almost to the edge and create peaks in the top.
- Bake both cakes for 30 mins. Remove the plain cake from the oven and set aside. Bake the meringue-topped cake for a further 15-20 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the sponge comes out clean. Remove both sponges from their tins and cool on a wire rack.
- Meanwhile, make the Chantilly cream: in a large bowl, whisk the cream, vanilla and icing sugar until soft peaks form. Refrigerate to firm up.
- Once the sponges have cooled, place the plain cake, base uppermost, onto a plate. Spread over the jam and then top with the Chantilly cream, spreading it almost to the edge. Arrange the strawberries around the edge, leaving a couple for decoration.
- Sandwich with the meringue-topped cake. Slice the remaining strawberries and scatter over the meringue. Dust with icing sugar and serve.