Genoise with Raspberries and Cream ~ #CakeSliceBakers

A Genoise may just be the ultimate afternoon tea cake.  Who could say no to a slice of a delicate, light, ethereal sponge cake traditionally filled with berries and cream?

It is #CakeSliceBakers time, and we are back with our May cake from World Class Cakes by Roger Pizey. A little background on the #CakeSliceBakers ~ each month the Cake Slice Bakers are offered a selection of cakes from the book and we each choose one cake to bake. On the 20th - never before - we all post about our cake. There are a few rules that we follow, but the most important one is to have fun (and enjoy baking & eating cakes!). The choices this month were Genoise with Raspberries and Cream, Lime and Poppyseed Syrup Cake, Pineapple Coconut Cakes with Pineapple Syrup, and a Sacher Torte. All such great choices, but I was drawn to the Genoise Cake with Raspberries and Cream.

A genoise (pronounced ʒenwaz)  originated in Italy, and is a sponge cake named after the city of Genoa in Northern Italy. The cake uses whole eggs, not just egg whites, and there is no added leavener such as baking powder, baking soda or yeast. This cakes beautiful rise is a result of the air that is beaten into the egg and sugar mixture. They are whipped until the mixture triples in volume - which can take 10-15 minutes, so unless you are looking for a great arm workout, a stand mixer is a must for this recipe.

This recipe from World Class Cakes is a much simpler take on the Genoise.  Many recipes call for you to heat the eggs and sugar in a double boiler to a particular heat prior to whipping them, or they instruct you to use a cake flour, or to heat your butter until it reaches the beurre noisette (heat the butter until it looks like hazelnut butter).  Instead, Roger Pizey instructs us to just beat the eggs and sugar in a stand mixer until tripled in volume, to use all-purpose flour, and to simply melt the butter. This certainly made this an easier cake to bake.

Some have called this a challenging, formidable, and finicky cake, but I did not find that to be the case at all. I made sure I had everything measured and ready to go, and then as the eggs and sugar where doing their thing, I prepared the cake pans. I always find it much easier to bake a cake in two pans, rather than have to try and cut them evenly in half later on. I never have been able to cut a straight line - and this is obviously the case with cakes too. To make sure I have cakes that are going to be the same size after baking, I simply weigh the batter in the pans and make sure they have the same amount in each one. A scale in your kitchen in one of the best items you can purchase for yourself.

Once the cakes were in the oven I prepared the stock syrup, and also added a little raspberry extract to it.  The recipe instructs you to boil until it is syrupy, but be warned that if you let it go too far it will create a toffee and it will harden as it cools.  I actually did let it go to toffee stage, then put it back over the heat to soften just before I assembled the cake.  It did not go on as smooth as a syrup would, nor did it absorb into the cake which I suspect is the intended use, but it did form a thin, hard layer which provided a deliciously unexpected crunch to the cake. I also placed a bowl in the refrigerator in preparation of making the whipped cream.  The recipes calls for the cream to be whipped into ribbons, but I took it to soft peaks because I was worried that the ribbons would be too soft and drip off the cake.

I have to say that this is one seriously delicious cake. It barely lasted 24 hours on my house, and another one has been requested.  I loved the tart raspberries with the Crème Chantilly, but it would be equally good with blackberries or strawberries, or even a mixed berry blend.

Please scroll down after the recipe to see all the beautiful cakes that were baked this month, and don't forget to check out our Facebook page. Also, if you are interested in joining the #TheCakeSliceBakers, please send me an email at thecakeslicebakers at gmail dot com, and I will send you more information. 

Genoise with Raspberries and Cream
Printer Friendly Recipe

Ingredients

Cake ~

• 6 eggs
• 200g (1 cup) sugar
• 160g (1 cup) all-purpose flour
• 30g (3 tablespoons) cornstarch
• 30g (2 tablespoons) butter, melted
• 500ml (2 cups) Crème Chantilly
• 100ml (½ cup) simple syrup
• 625g (5 cups) fresh raspberries

Creme Chantilly ~

• 400ml (2 cups heavy) whipping cream, chilled
• 50g 0g (2 tablespoons) powdered sugar
• 5ml (1 teaspoon) vanilla extract

Stock Syrup ~

• 50ml (¼ cup) water
• 70g (⅓ cup) superfine sugar
• 5ml Chambord or raspberry extract

Preparation
Cake ~

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C (325℉).
2. Grease and line two 21cm (8-in) round cake pans with baking parchment.
3. In a large bowl, sift together flour and cornstarch; set aside.
4. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the eggs and whisk until white and foamy.
5. Slowly add the sugar and beat until tripled in size, and have reached the ribbon stage (if you lift the whisk the batter should fall slowly forming a ribbon that will hold it’s shape for a few minutes).
6. Sift the flour mixture directly over the egg mixture in thirds, gently folding after each addition.
7. Lastly fold in the melted butter.
8. Pour the mixture into the prepared cake pans and bake in a preheated oven for 35 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
9. While the cake is baking make the Crème Chantilly and the Stock Syrup.
10. Remove the cakes from the oven, allow to cool for 10 minutes in the pan and then turn out onto a wire rack and remove the parchment.
11. Once the cakes are cool place one cake on a cake stand or plate, and brush the top with half of the stock syrup (bottom layer). Turn the second cake over over on the wire rack and brush it with the remaining stock syrup (top layer).
12. Spread a layer of the Chantilly cream on the bottom layer before carefully arranging the fresh raspberries in concentric circles on top.
13. Cover the raspberries with another layer of cream and then place the top layer on the raspberries. Spread a layer of cream and then place the raspberries carefully on top, again in concentric circles.
14. The cake should be refrigerated if you do not plan on eating it immediately.

Crème Chantilly ~

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer with the balloon whisk fitted, add the cream and beat until ribbons form.
2. Add the vanilla and whisk until combined.
3. Slowly add the powdered sugar, whisking until soft peaks appear.
4. Refrigerate until required.

Stock Syrup ~

1. Place the water, sugar, and Kirsch or extract in a pan and boil until the liquid becomes syrupy.
2. Remove from heat and keep at room temperature until required.

Cake adapted from World Class Cakes by Roger Pizey

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