Fluffy Cafe-Style Strawberry Cake
Ingredients
- 440g cake flour (3.5 cups)
- 20g baking powder (4 level teaspoons)
- 4 eggs at room temperature
- 1/4 heaped teaspoon vanilla
- A few drops strawberry flavoring (optional)
- 200-250g sugar (1 to 1.25 cups)
- 220g cream cheese at room temperature (1 cup), or use labneh
- 140g vegetable oil (2/3 cup)
- Sliced strawberries to taste
- Almond flakes to taste
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 180°C and line the bottom of a 23-25 cm round cake pan with parchment paper without greasing the sides.
Whisk together the cake flour and baking powder in a bowl.
Beat the eggs with sugar until light and fluffy, then add vanilla, strawberry flavoring if using, vegetable oil, and cream cheese, and mix well.
Optionally, add a heaped tablespoon of honey to the egg and sugar mixture for a golden color.
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture and stir gently without overmixing.
Quickly pour the batter into the prepared pan and arrange the sliced strawberries and almond flakes on top.
Bake for 60 to 75 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean, reducing the temperature by 20°C for electric ovens or toaster ovens.
Allow the cake to cool in the pan before removing, slicing, and serving.
Tips
Do not overmix when adding the flour mixture to prevent the cake from becoming tough and not rising properly.
Perform the steps of pouring the batter and arranging strawberries quickly to maintain the cake's puff in the oven.
Baking time may vary; in a 23 cm pan, it took about 1.5 hours in this case.
