French Strawberry Cake (Fraisier)
The fraisier is a summer classic for Ricardo. It’s a cake of French origin made with two layers of vanilla Genoise cake, filled with strawberries and buttercream, and then topped with a coloured almond paste. It’s delightfully rich and delicious.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (150 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 pinch salt
- 6 eggs, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup (160 g) sugar
- 1 tsp (5 ml) vanilla
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) vegetable oil
- 2 cups (420 g) sugar
- 8 egg whites (see note)
- 1 tsp (5 ml) vanilla
- 1 1/2 lb (675 g) unsalted butter, diced and left at room temperature for 20 minutes
- 4 lb (1.8 kg) fresh strawberries, hulled, plus more for serving
- 14 oz (400 g) almond paste
- 6 drops red liquid food colouring (optional)
- Mint leaves, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- With the rack in the middle position, preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Butter an 18 x 13-inch (46 x 33 cm) baking sheet and line with a strip of parchment paper, letting it hang over two sides.
- In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- In another bowl, whisk the eggs, sugar and vanilla with an electric mixer until the mixture is pale, tripled in volume and falls from the beaters in a ribbon, about 10 minutes. Drizzle in the oil.
- Sift the dry ingredients over the egg mixture and gently fold in using a spatula or whisk. Spread the mixture out evenly on the baking sheet.
- Bake for 12 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean. Let cool completely, about 1 hour.
The fraisier is a summer classic for Ricardo. It’s a cake of French origin made with two layers of vanilla Genoise cake, filled with strawberries and buttercream, and then topped with a coloured almond paste. It’s delightfully rich and delicious.