Thursday, April 20, 2017

Japanese Strawberry Shortcake



Japanese Strawberry Shortcake is what I baked this month with the Cake Slice. I chose this recipe because it calls for a sponge cake, my chance to test one. The recipe also uses gelatin to stabilize the whip cream, also something I've been wanting to test. 


The sponge cake took a little longer to bake than the time it called for, but I was happy with the outcome. The texture and flavor of the sponge was good. I skipped making the syrup only because I decided to macerate the strawberries and use up all the juice from them to soak the cake with. I had about 1/2 cup of juices from the strawberries, I suggest using a full cup of juice, the cake texture is strong enough to hold the liquid, and the cake does need the moisture. 


Making the whip cream was a challenge. I was unsuccessful incorporating the gelatin. The gelatin clumped up immediately after mixing it with the cream. I had an awful mess trying to strain the gelatin out. I refused to let the whipped cream to go to waste. I think the problem was that the gelatin slightly set after leaving it to cool the ten minutes it called for. I'm not going to give up though, I really want to be able to learn this process. I love icing cakes in whipped cream and stabilizing it would make icing the cakes a lot easier. 
I was so frustrated when I was done with the cake that I didn't realize I didn't take a picture of the finished cake, but I did take one of my slice. 
Not my favorite Strawberry Shortcake recipe, but not a total fail either. It was actually better the next day, the juices softened the cake a bit more, and the flavors got to merry a little longer. 





7 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm so sorry you struggled with gelatinizing the whipped cream!Once you get the hang of it, it's super simple for not only whipped cream, but also mousses of all sorts. It still looks lovely!

SusanB said...

Those strawberries look amazing! Kind of glad I didn't choose this one now - sounds like a lot of trouble.

Carlee said...

This cake was definitely tempting. I would like to play with gelatin stabilized whipped cream too. I like the idea of the cake for sure, maybe I'll have to tinker with it one of these days.

Emily said...

Anabel, you will need to make it one more time, sure to get it right then! At least, you know the rest of the cake are good! So gonna miss you!

All That's Left Are The Crumbs said...

If you had not mentioned your struggles with the cream I would never have guessed as your cake looks so delicious. I haven't worked a great deal with gelatin, but this is a technique I would like to master too. Thanks for inspiring me to give this cake a try and learn a new technique.

Fearlessly Creative Mammas said...

I think it looks pretty tasty! This was a scary looking recipe for me... You persevered and I am impressed. I will miss reading about your bakes. But congrats as well ;)

Elle said...

You will master the gelatin/whipping cream thing, but it is tricky. I've done it when it worked and when it didn't with no seeming reason for it not working, but then I may have not been paying attention.
Love the layers and that the sponge was a good one. Strawberries always say 'spring' to me!