Cherry Blossom Strawberry Roll Cake

This Cherry Blossom Strawberry Roll Cake is a light and delicate sakura-scented chiffon cake filled with freeze-dried strawberries and whipped cream. With a beautiful pink hue and subtle flavor, this roll cake is perfect for springtime or any special occasion that calls for something soft, sweet, and elegant.

Course Dessert

Cuisine Asian, Japanese

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 14

Chilling Time 2

Total Time 2 34

Servings

Calories 162kcal

Author Michelle

Ingredients

For the chiffon cake:

Egg yolk base:

3 large egg yolks
30 g granulated sugar
30 ml neutral vegetable oil
30 ml whole milk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon sakura powder or ½ teaspoon sakura extract
60 g cake flour sifted
dab of pink gel food coloring optional

Egg white meringue:

3 large egg whites at room temperature
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
30 g granulated sugar

Filling:

125 ml heavy whipping cream cold, 36% milkfat
15 g powdered sugar
2 tablespoon freeze-dried strawberries
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon sakura extract optional

Garnish: (optional)

pickled or candied sakura blossoms
freeze-dried strawberries or fresh strawberries
additional whipped cream

Instructions

Prepare the cake:

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a 9x13" baking tray with parchment paper.
In a bowl, whisk together egg yolks and sugar until pale.
Add vegetable oil, milk, vanilla extract, sakura powder (or sakura extract). Add in a dab of pink food coloring, if using.
Sift in cake flour and mix until just combined (don't overmix).

Make the meringue:

In a clean stand mixer bowl fitted with a wire whisk attachment, add in the room temperature egg whites.
Whip egg whites until foamy. Gradually add sugar and beat until medium-stiff peaks form.
Once the egg whites become foamy with bubbles, add in a little cream of tartar (or lemon juice/vinegar).
Gradually increase the speed of the mixer, and slowly pour in the granulated sugar.
Continue to whip the egg whites until fluffy, shiny and reaches a soft peak. (The egg whites will form a curved tail at the end of the whisk).
Using a spatula, fold about ⅓rd of the egg whites into the egg yolk batter. This will help to loosen up the egg yolk batter.
Note: Folding is different than stirring. It takes a lighter hand to not deflate the whipped egg whites.
To fold, take the spatula to the bottom of the mixture, and scoop up (a slow flick of the wrist) while turning the bowl about 90 degrees.
Continue to turn the bowl and fold until the mixture is almost homogeneous.
Add the next 3rd of the egg white mixture, folding it into the egg yolk mixture. Continue to fold until all of the remaining egg white mixture is incorporated into the batter, but be sure not to overfold or the egg whites will be deflated.

Bake the cake:

Transfer and pour the cake batter to a 9″ by 13″ baking tray lined with parchment paper. Spread evenly with an offset spatula.
Give the tray a few taps to release any trapped air bubbles.
Bake at 375°F/191°C for 14-15 minutes, until the cake surface is golden brown and dry to the touch. The cake should be bounce back when lightly pressed with a finger tip.
Remove the cake from the oven and immediately drop it from a height of 1′. This prevents the cake from shrinkage.
Let the cake cool on a wire cooling rack for 10-15 minutes (just until it’s the slightest bit warm -- not completely cool).

Make the whipped cream:

While the cake is cooling, make the whipped cream.
Tip: A chilled bowl (in the fridge) will help the cream to whip up with volume.
Pour the heavy cream into the chilled bowl, add in the powdered sugar and use a whisk to whip to stiff peaks. (Don’t overwhip or the cream will turn into butter).

Fill:

Invert slightly warm cake onto a new sheet of parchment and peel off the bottom liner.
Use an offset spatula to spread the whipped cream evenly onto the surface of the cake.
Gently roll the cake from the short end, using the parchment paper as a guide.
Make sure the seam-side is facing down, wrap tightly with the parchment and chill in the fridge for 1-2 hours to set.

Decorate:

Decorate the cake with piped whipped cream, sakura cherry blossoms, and freeze-dried strawberries, or as desired.

Serve:

Trim the cake ends off with a serrated knife.
Use a damp, warm towel to clean the knife in between slices.
Cut into slices and serve.

Notes

Sakura is the Japanese term for cherry blossom.

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