As far as I can remember, there were always strawberry cakes in summer time. The combination of fluffy sponge cake and fresh strawberries never failed to amaze me.
Now I’m growing my own strawberries and I’ve been collecting them patiently. I just wanted to find a way to re-create this recipe suitable for a vegan & gluten-free diet. The first sponge cake that I tried to bake failed quite badly. So did the second one. But all good things come in three (as people say in Germany) and the third cake was a SUCCESS! 🙂
Best result is achieved with a proper flan pan, which creates a border on the outside, so that the jelly filling doesn’t run down the sides. A normal spring-form does the job, too.
For one 23cm spring-form you’ll need:
450g strawberries
1 cup (120g) sorghum flour
1/2 cup (70g) buckwheat flour
3/4 cup (100g) brown rice flour
2 teaspoon fiber husk
1 pinch salt
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 banana (200g)
1 heaped tablespoon egg replacer
4 tablespoon water
2 tablespoon (40g) coconut sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla paste
1 1/4 cup water (or soda water)
For the jelly:
1 1/4 cup water
1 1/4 teaspoon agar agar
leftover strawberries (that won’t fit on the cake)
For the vanilla cashew cream:
3/4 cup (110g) cashew nuts
1/4 cup water
1 heaped teaspoon vanilla paste
Preparation:
1. Preheat the oven to 190°C and grease the spring-form with a little oil. Mix the dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl, stir well and place aside.
2. In a large bowl whisk the egg replacer with the water until well dissolved. Add the banana and mash to a fine cream. Then add the coconut sugar and whisk until dissolved.
3. Transfer the dry ingredients to the bowl with wet ingredients, add the water and stir quickly to mix well. Don’t stir too long or the dough won’t rise as good. Quickly transfer to the spring-form.
4. Bake at 190°C for approx. 20 – 25 minutes (depending on oven type). Let cool down properly, then turn the sponge cake upside down, leaving it in the spring-form.
5. In the meantime mix the agar agar with the water and let soak for at least 10 minutes. Wash the strawberries, remove the leaves and cut them into halves. Place the strawberries on the cake until the whole surface is well covered.
6. If there are any leftover strawberries, they can be blended with the jelly water. Transfer the jelly water to a small pot and bring gently to boil, while stirring constantly. Then let simmer for a couple of minutes.
7. Let the jelly cool down to a lukewarm temperature. By placing the pot in a cold water bath, it will cool down quicker. Make sure to stir the cooling fluid regularly to avoid clumps. Once the jelly is lukewarm, pour it over the cake. Chill in the fridge until set.
8. For the vanilla cashew cream, blend the ingredients to a fine cream. It’s important to soak the cashews for at least 1 hour before using.
Enjoy! 🙂
