Hello everyone! Today I am making a Japanese-style Christmas cake, which is traditionally a soft sponge cake coated in fresh whipped cream and strawberries.
This is by no means the same as what you would get with an authentic Japanese cake, but a delicious cake that takes inspiration from it.
There are two important things to keep in mind when making this cake:
(1) Keeping the egg whites free of any yolk/fat at all. even a little bit of yolk mixed with the whites can keep them from whipping properly, and same goes for any fats at all.
(2) whipped the cream to peaks that are slightly stiffer than medium peaks. You don’t want it to develop a grainy appearance, but you don’t want it to be too soft to smooth over the finished cake.
Make sure to use fresh and ripe strawberries as well. Half will go in the middle, and the other half go on top for decoration.
You can use vanilla extract, vanilla paste or vanilla beans for the whipped cream.
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Japanese Christmas Cake
Difficulty: Medium10-12
servingsA light and festive Christmas cake, covered in vanilla bean whipped cream and topped with fresh strawberries!
Ingredients
1/2 cup (60g) cake flour
1/4 cup (50g) + 2 1/2 tbsp (31g) granulated sugar, divided
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt
3 eggs, separated
2 1/2 tbsp (30g) vegetable/canola oil
1 tbsp water
1 tsp corn syrup
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Approx. 8oz (227g) fresh strawberries, stems removed
Whipped cream:
2 cups (454g) heavy cream
1/2 cup (56g) powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract or 1 large vanilla bean, seeds scraped
Simple syrup:
1/3 cup (76g) hot water
3 tbsp (38g) granulated sugar
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 7-inch or 8-inch round cake pan, then line the bottom with a parchment round and grease the parchment. Set aside.
- In a large bowl beat together the egg yolks, 1/4 cup (50g) sugar, water, corn syrup and vanilla until pale. In a separate bowl beat the egg whites with a stand mixer, hand mixer or by hand until foamy. Add in the 2 1/2 tbsp (31g) sugar slowly while mixing. Beat to medium peaks.
- Fold half of the whipped egg whites into the yolk mixture. Next combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a measuring cup or bowl and sift into the yolk mixture 1/3 at a time. Fold gently in-between additions. Take out a spoonful (about 2 tbsp) of the batter and mix it with the oil in a separate bowl. Don’t worry about deflating it. Once fully combine, fold into the batter followed by the remaining half of egg whites.
- Transfer batter to the lined pan and bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden on top and a toothpick comes out clean. Remove and let cool for 5 minutes, then run a knife around the edge of the pan and invert onto a wire rack. Remove the parchment round and let cool completely.
- Once cake is cooled, cut into 2 even layers. Whip the cream with the powdered sugar and vanilla in a large bowl to peaks that are in-between medium and stiff. When you lift the whisk(s) the peak should fall over just slightly, but still mostly hold it’s shape. Slice half of the strawberries into 1/2-inch thick pieces. Combine the hot water and sugar in a measuring cup for the simple syrup.
- Spread 1 tbsp of the whipped cream onto a cake turntable, then place the first cake layer on it and brush the cake with the simple syrup. Spread about 2/3-1 cup of the whipped cream on, then top with the sliced strawberries. Cover with another 2/3-1 cup of cream and then the other cake layer. Brush with simple syrup, then cover the whole cake with 1/4-1/2-inch of whipped cream. Optionally, pipe large stars on top and place the strawberries in-between them. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, then chill at least 30 minutes before slicing and enjoying! This cake will last 3 days in the fridge.
Recipe Video
Notes
- If you use vanilla beans in the whipped cream, I recommend adding the beans to the cream ahead of time (about 15 minutes in advance) to let the flavors steep, but this is optional.
Thank you for viewing my recipe! If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to leave them below!
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