Chiffon Cake with Strawberries and Cream

Happy Fall! Yikes! Have I really been away that long? My daily schedule has been pretty hectic this school year. Between Alex’s daily lessons, driving him back and forth to therapies, piano lesson, art lesson, and not to mention other general life responsibilities and commitments, I’m often exhausted and brain dead by the end of the day. How do people do it? How do people do it with more than one kid and both parents working outside the home? (That’s a rhetorical question by the way.) :D

So one day, while I was waiting for Alex to finish his therapy, I spied a Martha Stewart magazine on a rack and on the front cover, there was this oh so gorgeous looking chiffon cake layered with strawberries and whipped cream. I immediately noted the name and looked up the recipe (since I’m a sucker for chiffon cakes) when I got home. However, since strawberry season is officially long over (although you can get strawberries all year long now, they don’t often look very good) and the fact that I’m pretty much brain dead most nights (remember?) :D, I didn’t get around to making the cake until today. I’ve decided not to use Martha’s chiffon cake recipe itself since I have my own go-to chiffon cake recipe. And, as much as I would love that impressive look of layering the strawberries and whipped cream between the cake, I’ve decided not to go that route since it’s not practical to keep it that way (we obviously won’t be eating the whole cake in one sitting). Instead, the strawberries and whipped cream are served on the side, which helps preserve the integrity of all components, and just as delicious that way (if I may say so). :D

For the cake
1¾ cups all-purpose flour
1¼ cups sugar, divided
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
6 extra-large eggs, separated
½ cup vegetable oil
¾ cup whole milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
½ teaspoon cream of tartar

1. Adjust oven rack to the middle position and heat oven to 350ºF.
2. Whisk flour, ½ cup sugar, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk egg yolks, oil, milk, and vanilla extract together.
4. With an electric mixer, whip egg whites and cream of tartar on medium-low speed until foamy. Then increase mixer speed to medium-high and whip the whites until soft mounds form. Gradually add the remaining ¾ cup sugar and continue to whip until stiff peaks form.
5. Whisk egg yolk mixture into flour mixture until smooth. Fold ⅓ of the whipped egg whites into the batter with a large rubber spatula until combined. Then carefully fold in the remaining egg whites.
6. Pour batter into an ungreased tube pan and bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Invert cake pan and let cake cool completely. To remove the cake, run a small, thin-blade knife around the edge (including around the tube) and bottom of the cake and gently tap to loosen it. Serve.

For step-by-step pictures, you can refer to the Orange Chiffon Cake post.

For the berries and cream (from Martha Stewart’s website)
2 pounds strawberries, hulled and sliced thick
½ cup sugar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Pinch of salt
2 cups cold heavy cream
¼ cup confectioners’ sugar
1 package Dr. Oetker Whip it

1. While the cake is baking, macerate the strawberries – combine strawberries, sugar, lemon juice, and salt, and let sit for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
2. Whip heavy cream, powdered sugar, and Whip it (which I’ve added to stabilize the whipped cream so it’ll last longer) until medium peaks form. If not using Whip it, whip the cream right before serving.