You'll Want To Bury Your Face In This Raspberry & Rose Chiffon Cake

There’s something magical about the ethereally airy texture of a chiffon cake. Pandan and orange are delicious. But when you want something more elegant, something to go all domestic goddess with at your next party — make this raspberry chiffon layered with luscious rose water-scented cream. The light fruitiness of the cake and the faintly floral cream, which tastes like a more sophisticated bandung, are lovely. A couple of things to note: we always use ultra-fine top flour for a silkier crumb. And whipping the egg whites to just short of stiff peaks produces a moister cake.

Raspberry & Rose Chiffon Cake

Makes a 24cm or 25cm cake

Ingredients:

For the cake:

Mixture A:

185g top flour

¼ tsp fine sea salt

1 ½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

5 large egg yolks

190g caster sugar

120m fresh raspberry puree (fresh berries blitzed in a blender and sieved, mixed with 1-2 tbsp water)

1 tsp raspberry extract

120ml corn or canola oil

Mixture B:

8 large egg whites

½ tsp cream of tartar

70g caster sugar

For the rose cream:

800ml whipping cream

4 – 5 tbsp icing sugar, sifted

¾ tsp rose water (try Nielsen-Massey)

¼ tsp pure vanilla extract

A few drops rose pink food colouring

A handful of dried organic rose buds, to decorate.

Method:

For the cake:

1. Preheat oven at 170°C.
2. Sift top flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Set aside.
3. Combine MIXTURE A (except for the sifted flour mixture) into a bowl and whisk until the sugar dissolves. Add flour mixture and stir till smooth. Set aside.
4. Beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar in MIXTURE B in an electric mixer at medium-high speed. When it turns foamy, add sugar gradually in three additions and continue beating until medium-stiff peaks form (the meringue should curl down slightly when you invert the whisk).
5. Add 1/3 of MIXTURE B to MIXTURE A and fold in lightly. Next, add the rest of MIXTURE B and incorporate completely. Use a light and quick hand to ensure you don’t release too much air.
6. Pour batter into an ungreased chiffon tube pan. Tap pan against the counter twice to get rid of air bubbles. Bake for 55 – 60 minutes or until a skewer inserted gently into the cake emerges clean.
7. Remove cake from oven and immediately invert onto an elevated rack. This ensures it doesn’t sink while cooling.
8. When the cake has cooled completely, carefully run a spatula around the sides, inner column and bottom of the cake to loosen it from the pan before inverting onto a plate.

For the cream frosting:

1. Combine ingredients in a chilled bowl. Adjust sugar/rose water to taste.
2. Using an electric mixer, whip cream to medium peaks and refrigerate for about 20 minutes before frosting cake.

Assembly:

1. Carefully slice the cake horizontally into three equal layers with a serrated knife.
2. Using a spatula, smear cream generously onto bottom later of cake, stopping at 1cm around its circumference. Position second layer of cake carefully on top of this and repeat. Crown with top tier of cake, and gently press down with your hands to bind everything together.
3. Top entire crown with cream. Use a smaller spatula or tablespoon to make slight indents.
4. Scatter with rose buds and chill at least an hour before serving.

Don’t like roses? Replace the rose water in the frosting with raspberry puree. After the cream, sugar and vanilla have been whipped to soft peaks, fold in puree by the tablespoonful. Adjust amount of puree and sugar to taste, then whisk to medium peaks.

Photo by Ealbert Ho