Recipe
Chiffon-Sponge Cake
5 eggs (separated at room temperature)
100 grams of granulated sugar (75g for the egg yolk, 25g for the merigue)
1/4 tsp of salt
3/4 tsp of baking powder
60 ml of milk
60 ml of neutral oil
1/4 tsp of cream of tar tar
75 g of cake flour
Instructions
Whisk the egg yolks with 75 g sugar until pale and slightly thick. Mix in milk and oil.
Sift in cake flour, baking powder, and salt, then mix until smooth.In a separate bowl, whip egg whites with cream of tartar. Slowly add 25 g sugar and whip to soft peaks.
Gently fold the meringue into the batter in batches.
Pour into a pan and bake at 325°F until set and lightly golden.
Cream Cheese Buttercream
2 sticks of butter (room temp)
8 oz of cream cheese (room temp)
342 g powdered sugar (adjust to taste)
1 tblsp of vanilla extract
Instruction
Beat butter and cream cheese until smooth and fluffy.
Add powdered sugar gradually, then mix in vanilla.
Whip until light and spreadable.
Guava Jam/Syrup
For the syrup
Mix guava paste with hot water in a 1:1 ratio until smooth.
For the jam
Microwave guava paste for 15–30 seconds, then mix with hot water until it reaches a jam-like consistency. Add a squeeze of lime if you want to brighten the flavor.
Put it all together
Brush each layer cake with guava syrup.
Pipe a buttercream dam, then spread guava filling in the center.
Stack and frost as desired.
Guava is one of my friend’s favorite fruits, and for her birthday I wanted to try making a cake centered around it. It’s a chiffon-style sponge layered with guava and cream cheese buttercream. One thing I knew going in was that guava pairs really well with cream cheese, which is why I went in that direction. For the buttercream, I used salted butter to help balance out the sweetness from the guava.
Chiffon Cake
Whenever I make cakes with fruit, I tend to lean toward chiffon-style cakes. I think it’s just my preference because I grew up eating Asian bakery-style cakes. They’re super light and not too sweet, which makes them perfect for letting the other ingredients shine.
Guava
Guava, the star of the cake! I used Iberia Guava Paste, which came in a block.To turn it into a syrup, I mixed it with hot water in a 1:1 ratio. I brushed this guava syrup between each layer to keep the sponge moist and to infuse more flavor into the cake.
For the filling, I microwaved the guava paste for about 15–30 seconds, then mixed it with hot water until it reached a jam-like consistency. I also added a squeeze of lime since the acidity helps brighten the guava flavor. To assemble, I piped a dam with the cream cheese buttercream and spread the guava filling in the center.
