Strawberry and mascarpone cream layer cake

Ingredients

For the sponge cake:

• 4 eggs (at room temperature)
• 100 g granulated sugar (or icing sugar)
• 50 g all-purpose flour
• 50 g potato starch (or cornstarch)
• Zest of 1 lemon

For the cream:

• 400 ml heavy cream (30% fat), very cold
• 300 g mascarpone
• 60 g icing sugar
• 1 vanilla bean (or 1 tsp vanilla)

For the filling:

• 500 g strawberries
• Syrup

Materials

• Electric beaters or a stand mixer
• 3 cake pans, 6 inches in diameter
• Plastic wrap
• Parchment paper
• Spatula
• Piping bag
• Round piping tip
• Star piping tip
• Cake turntable (optional)

Preparation

• For the cake:
  Separate the egg whites from the yolks.
  Place the yolks in a bowl with the sugar and whisk until the mixture becomes pale and creamy.
• Add the flour and potato starch, and mix well.
  Incorporate the lemon zest and mix again.
  
• In another bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form.
  Gently fold the whipped egg whites into the yolk mixture using a spatula.
• Pour the batter evenly into 3 greased molds (about 280g of batter per mold).
  Bake for 13 minutes at 350°F (180°C).
  
• To better preserve the cakes and maintain their fluffiness, let them cool on a wire rack, then wrap in plastic wrap and set aside until ready to use.
• For the cream:
  In a bowl, combine all the ingredients and beat with an electric mixer until whipped.
  Refrigerate to prevent the cream from deflating.
  
• For assembly:
  Place parchment paper on the cake turntable and dab a little cream underneath to hold it in place.
  Place the first cake layer on the paper and spread a little more cream on it to keep it from slipping.
• Brush the cake with syrup (your choice of syrup).
  Use a piping bag to add a layer of cream.
  Place another layer of halved strawberries on top.
  Fill in the gaps with more cream and place another cake on top.
  
• Repeat the process until you finish with the third cake.
  Lightly cover the entire cake with cream, smooth it with a spatula, and freeze for 30 minutes. This will help to finish covering the cake with cream.
• After these minutes, cover the cake completely, smooth it out, and freeze again for 15 minutes.
  
• Finally, pipe a decoration on top using a star tip, then top with halved strawberries. And there you have it! Enjoy!
• The cake should be chilled so it's easier to slice.
  

Observations

Pans: If you don't have 3 pans that are 6 inches in diameter, you can use just 1, but keep in mind that the baking time will be longer. Then you'll need to cut the cake into 3 layers of equal thickness.

For an even fluffier sponge cake, we recommend using icing sugar instead of granulated sugar. It's also a good idea to sift the icing sugar, flour, and potato starch.

Cookware

Questions

Photos of members who cooked this recipe