Kiwi Layer Cake

Kiwi Layer Cake Light fluffy sponge with some tasty kiwi. Best if eaten soon after assembled.

1. Sponge [makes 1 jelly roll sheet]

  • 112g cake flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 5 large eggs, separated
  • 156 g granulated sugar
  • 60 g whole milk
  1. Oven at 400F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or silpat.
  2. Whisk together sifted flour, baking powder, and salt.
  3. In a different, large bowl, whisk egg yolks, sugar, and milk until pale.
  4. Separately, whisk egg whites until medium stiff peaks.
  5. Add dry mixture to wet mixture and fold together. Then slowly fold in the medium stiff egg whites. I usually add 1/3 of the meringue first to make the batter light, then fold in the remaining egg whites.
  6. Pour batter onto the baking sheet and then rap the sheet down a few times to release any big air bubbles.
  7. Bake for 10ish minutes (a toothpick should go in and out cleanly).
  8. Using a knife or something thin, move along the edge of the pan and cake. Remove cake from pan and silpat and let cool.

2. Stabilized Whipped Cream Frosting:

  • 470 g heavy whipping cream
  • 10 g powdered sugar
  • 10-20 g powdered sugar (depending on your sweetness preferences)
  • 5 g corn starch
  1. Whenever whipping your own cream, make sure the first thing you do is throw your bowl and whisk attachment into the fridge or freezer. Cold is your best friend.
  2. First make your corn starch paste. Add corn starch, 10g of powdered sugar, and about 100 g of cream and stir in a pot.
  3. Heat over medium, stirring constantly. When it just becomes paste-like (you will see a drastic change in the consistency from very liquidy to a little custard like), take the pan off the heat and continue to mix until smooth. You want to make sure the cream doesn’t seize, so don’t leave it on the stove. Cool to room temperature.
  4. Take out chilled bowl and whisk and add the second powdered sugar and remainder of the cream. Whisk until soft peaks.
  5. Whisking at a fast speed, add in the paste (make sure it’s not hot!), a bit at a time.
  6. Whisk until stiff peaks and corn starch paste is well incorporated.

Assembly:

  1. Peel kiwis (I used a spoon, pressed up against the skin to scoop them out). Slice several kiwis into thin rectangles (1ish kiwi per layer).
  2. Slice cake into thirds. Remove any obvious crumbs.
  3. Smooth out a layer of whipped cream on the first slice of cake.
  4. Add the kiwi pieces and press in a stripe like pattern down the length of the cake (or however you like).
  5. Add the next slice and repeat.
  6. Once all layers are assembled, finish off by coating the cake. I go slowly to not get crumbs showing. You can add a small amount then throw it in the fridge. Then add the final amount to cover any crumbs. As a final smoothing out process, I like to use a heated up angled spatula and run it across each side.
  7. Add cut up kiwi to decorate the top.
  8. Once finished frosting, chill the cake in the fridge.

Final Notes

  1. Most fruits will taste great in this sort of preparation! The freshness is a great juxtaposition to the heavy whipped cream and light sponge.
  2. You don’t have to add the cornstarch paste, normal whipped cream with just heavy cream and powdered sugar will do fine. I use the stabilized so that it holds extra well.
  3. I found that the cake was sweet, but there was a tartness about the kiwis. You could possibly try making a simple syrup and dipping the kiwis in before lying them onto the whipped cream for the layers. I highly doubt this will cause the cake to become overtly sweet.

Gluck and enjoy!
-Mario

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