Nadiya Hussain’s strawberry chiffon cake recipe
If you are yearning for a light, airy cake that screams summer, this is the one for you. It is so simple to make but looks stunning and tastes every bit as good.
The sponge is made using a custard-style mix that gives it that slight richness, but then you fold in whisked eggs to create a beautiful pillowy texture.
The best cakes can be adapted to suit different occasions and seasons and this is definitely one of those. The recipe I’ve given here is finished with strawberries and lemon curd, but you can use different fruit as the year goes on. Raspberries and blackberries would both be delicious, and in the winter months it would work well covered with chocolate and decorated with slices of crystallised orange.
Serves 10-12
Ingredients
For the cake
• 210g plain flour, sieved
• 250g caster sugar
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 7 eggs, separated
• 120ml vegetable oil
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp Sicilian lemon extract
• ½ tsp cream of tartar
To finish
• 200g lemon curd
• 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
• 227g strawberries, halved with the tops still on
• White chocolate, grated or curls
Method
1. Remove all but the lowest shelf from the oven. Preheat to 160C fan/gas 4. Have a ring cake tin ready. You can use a specialist ring cake tin with feet or a non-decorative bundt tin.
2. Add the plain flour, caster sugar, baking powder and salt to a bowl and mix together thoroughly.
3. Add the egg yolks to a bowl with the vegetable oil, 180ml cold water, the vanilla extract and lemon extract and whisk for about 1 minute until the mixture is light and fluffy.
4. Add the egg whites to a clean bowl with the cream of tartar and whisk for about 8 minutes until you have stiff peaks.
5. Tip the dry mixture into the egg yolk mixture and beat until you have a smooth paste. Using a metal spoon, fold in the egg whites, a quarter of the mixture at a time, until well combined and there are no white egg streaks.
6. Pour the batter into the tin and leave it to settle until the surface is level. Transfer to the oven and bake for 1 hour.
7. As soon as you take the cake out of the oven, turn the tin upside down on a wire rack and leave to cool completely — about 1 hour.
8. Once cool, take the cake out of the tin and place on a serving dish. Mix the lemon curd with the vanilla bean extract and drizzle over the cake. Decorate with strawberries and white chocolate.