In 2007, when this web site was nonetheless in its infancy, I shared a recipe for a layered strawberry chiffon shortcake. I’d by no means made a chiffon cake earlier than, however I introduced it to a good friend’s rooftop birthday BBQ, appropriately assuming that nobody can be sad with a towering, featherweight cake sandwiched with whipped cream and contemporary strawberries, nonetheless inexpertly made.
Whereas I might recognize a chiffon cake again then, I wasn’t a superfan. Chiffon muffins appeared a little bit stiff and lean. Plus, they’re fussy: there’s sifting; cake flour as a substitute of all-purpose flour; superfine sugar as a substitute of standard granulated; an uneven variety of egg whites and egg yolks; cream of tartar; and a minimal of three bowls only for the cake layers. Oh, and chiffon muffins generally tend to dip within the heart as they cool. Gosh, the place can we enroll!?
Nineteen years later, when the cake resurfaced within the “Might Use a Refresh” queue, I knew Deb of 2026 wished to eradicate as a lot of that rigidity as attainable to create a chiffon cake recipe for actual life — this one, even. Alongside the way in which, late to the sport as ever, I fell deeply in love with chiffon muffins. [I’ve told friends I’m now in my Chiffon Cake Era and they were so sweet to wait until I turned around to roll their eyes.] However I get it now, I actually do. Not solely are they mild as air, so wonderful as a summer season dessert, however the layers preserve phenomenally nicely, nearly as good on day six as they’re the day they’re baked.
At my party on Friday night time, I blew out the candles on a supersized model of this and walked my mother out to her automotive. Once I got here again, solely a single piece was out on the tables and the plates have been untouched. I panicked. “The place is the remaining? Are they nonetheless slicing it? Did you get any? Did you?” Apparently, within the minutes I used to be outdoors, the cake had been “devoured frantically straight from the serving platters” the second they have been set down, bypassing endurance and plates. A good friend described it as a “weightless, melt-in-your-mouth dessert.” One other good friend informed me to make twice as a lot subsequent time, as a result of she was unable to have thirds. I feel we all know what must be carried out.
Listed below are a couple of of the 2026 updates:
- All-purpose flour as a substitute of cake flour: I discovered that leaving off a pair tablespoons of flour saved this cake delicate and dreamy with out requiring a specialty flour buy, or aspect method.
- Granulated sugar as a substitute of superfine sugar: Works simply fantastic right here, promise.
- An excellent variety of egg yolks and egg whites: I do know this makes you as comfortable because it makes me.
- No cream of tartar. Have you learnt what cream of tartar is? It’s a pure acid (potassium bitartrate), that may strengthen the protein bonds in whipped egg whites, serving to them resist deflating. Have you learnt what else is an acid? Lemon juice, and it additionally goes excellently with this cake taste. Plus, we have been already utilizing the zest and I do love nose-to-tail ingredient utilization.
- No sifting: It’s simply fantastic with out it.
- Fewer bowls: And also you solely want an electrical mixer for the egg whites.
- Slimmer cake layers: The unique cake was enjoyable, however too tall, to the purpose that I photographed it with out its remaining layer.
- Higher whipped cream: Including a little bit crème fraîche or bitter cream to whipped cream stabilizes it.
- Much less baking powder: I used to be a couple of retests in once I realized I’d unintentionally been utilizing a lot much less baking powder than known as for. Including extra didn’t enhance the cake, so I’ve left it decrease.
- A trick to stop shrinkage: I realized from King Arthur that as quickly as your chiffon cake layers come out of the oven, you may drop them a couple of instances on the counter. This releases a number of the trapped steam and results in muffins that shrink much less from the perimeters as they cool.
- A trick to scale back dipping within the heart: As chiffon muffins generally tend to dip within the heart — i.e. don’t fret if yours do — I discovered mine dipped much less and generally under no circumstances if I cooled them upside-down, as you may a tube chiffon or angel meals cake.
Strawberry Chiffon Shortcake, Perfected
- 5 massive eggs, separated
- Finely grated zest of half a lemon
- 1 1/4 cups (250 grams) granulated sugar, divided
- 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon (80 grams) vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (150 ml) chilly or room-temp water
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cups (230 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons contemporary lemon juice
- 2 1/3 cups (550 ml) heavy or whipping cream
- 1/4 cup (30 grams) powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons (45 grams) bitter cream or crème fraîche
- 2 kilos (905 grams) contemporary strawberries, trimmed, sliced skinny
Cake Layers
Meeting
Warmth oven: To 325°F (165°C).
Make the cake layers: Coat the underside of two 9-inch spherical cake pans frivolously with nonstick spray and line every pan with a fitted circle of parchment. (The oil is simply there to carry the parchment in place.) Do not spray the perimeters of the cake pan. Flippantly coat two cooling racks with nonstick spray, too; you’ll use them later.
In a single massive bowl, whisk collectively yolks, lemon zest, and 1 cup of the granulated sugar. It’ll appear stiff and dry at first, however preserve whisking (1 minute) and the batter will loosen and develop into a pale yellow and thick like frosting. Whisk in oil, then water and vanilla extract. Sprinkle half of flour over batter, then salt and baking powder, adopted by second half of flour. Whisk to mix, till easy. This batter will likely be very thick for now.
In a second massive bowl, use an electrical mixer to beat the egg whites till thick sufficient to carry agency peaks. Add remaining 1/4 cup sugar regularly, beating the entire time. Proceed to beat egg whites till very thick and holding agency peaks; if you pull the (turned off) beaters away, the tip of the peaks will flop over barely. Add lemon juice and beat to mix.
Add 1/4 of egg whites to yolk combination and whisk to mix; you’re simply utilizing this to loosen the batter. Fastidiously fold the remaining egg whites in in two additions, doing all of your finest to not deflate them.
Divide the batter between the 2 ready pans and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, till a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clear.
As quickly as you take away every layer from the oven, drop it a couple of instances onto your counter from a couple of inches above. (Sure, actually! This helps stop shrinkage.) Cool cake layers utterly of their pan the other way up on the cooling racks you sprayed earlier. (This helps stop the facilities from dipping.)
Assemble the cake: With an electrical mixer, whip heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla till delicate peaks kind. Add bitter cream or crème fraîche and beat till combination is thick sufficient to carry form, however creamy and never grainy.
When cake layers are utterly cool, fastidiously flip pans again over. The highest of the muffins may have caught to their racks, however much less so than in case you hadn’t sprayed them. Run a knife round every cake layer, separating it from the perimeters of the pan, and prove onto a rack. Utilizing a protracted, serrated knife, fastidiously reduce every cake layer into two thinner layers.
Place first cake layer on a serving platter or cake stand. Unfold one barely heaped cup of whipped cream over the layer and prepare roughly one-quarter of the sliced strawberries over the cream. Repeat this course of thrice. You’ll have a small quantity of whipped cream left; you may switch it to a piping bag with a star tip to brighten the highest of the cake.
To serve: Serve the cake in wedges — it’s wobbly and doesn’t like to remain upright however that’s half the enjoyable.
Do forward: This cake retains! You may make the cake layers even 5 to six days earlier than needing them and preserve them wrapped at room temperature. (I used to be shocked mine didn’t get stale in any respect.) The freezer would work for longer. The absolutely assembled cake retains within the fridge for five to six days (theoretically; we’ve by no means had one final this lengthy).
