Bon Appétea: Strawberry Cake Sando with Chamomile Whipped Cream

With Children’s Day celebrations round the corner, assembling the different layers of the cake sando makes for a perfect afternoon activity with the little ones clamouring for attention. Whether it’s customising the flavours of the wrap or arranging the strawberries on the spongy batter, let the little ones tap on their imagination and share a sweet treat together afterwards.

Instead of the cloyingly sweet cream filling found in confectionaries, the sweetness evoked through the double cream is delicately balanced with soothing counterpoints of herbs in Whitetree’s Shiny Blend. Infused with feverfew and rosemary, the sugar and caffeine-free blend is specially formulated by herbalists designed to strengthen hair growth and brittle nails.

The airy, whipped cream sandwiched within a spongy batter is packed with juicy strawberries and infused with a hint of herbs, a treat that rejuvenates and refreshes the palate. Pair the fruit sandwiches with a freshly brewed cup of Whitetree’s blend for a comforting accompaniment.

Strawberry Cake Sando with Chamomile Whipped Cream

(makes 3 whole + 2 halves)

Ingredients

White Cake

• 3 egg whites, room temperature
• 3/4 cup cake flour
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
• 1/4 cup + 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 2 1/2 tbsp milk, room temperature
• 8 strawberries

Chamomile Cream

• 2 Whitetree The Shiny Blend teabags
• 1 cup double cream
• 2 tbsp sugar

Crepe Wrap

• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tbsp melted butter
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp matcha powder
• green food colouring, as needed
• 1/8 tsp rose flavouring
• pink food colouring, as needed
• 1/2 tbsp butter, to cook

Method

1. Preheat oven to 170°C. Line a 20cm x 30cm rectangular cake pan with baking paper.
2. In a clean and dry bowl, whip egg whites on low speed until frothy then add cream of tartar and whip till soft peaks form.

3. Slowly add 1/4 cup sugar and whip on medium speed until stiff peaks form. Set meringue aside.
4. In another bowl, cream butter and 1/4 cup sugar together. Add vanilla essence and milk. Sift in cake flour and baking soda. Mix well.
5. Gently fold 1/3 meringue into egg mixture. Avoid over-mixing.
6. Once incorporated, gently fold in 1/3 meringue and then another 1/3 till completely combined. Avoid deflating the whites.
7. Gently spread batter evenly into prepared pan. Shimmy and gently tap the pan on counter to release air pockets and smooth out top.
8. Bake for 10-12 minutes at 170°C until inserted toothpick comes out clean and top of cake springs back when gently prodded.
9. Remove pan from oven and gently tap on counter to release cake. Cover the pan with baking paper and a chopping board or any item with a flat surface. Flip the cake over and set aside to cool completely, around 1 hour.

10. For cream filling, heat up double cream to a small simmer then turn off heat. Add in teabags and steep for 30 minutes then discard. Let cool completely.

11. Add sugar and whip cream till stiff peaks form. Set aside.
12. Remove stalks of strawberries and core them.

13. When cake is completely cooled, slice cake horizontally to form 2 long strips. Gently spread cream onto both strips.

14. Arrange strawberries on one strip taking into account the orientation when slicing later. Fill in spaces between the strawberries with more cream. Cover with the other strip and press down gently. 

15. Wrap cake tightly with cling wrap and daw with a marker the strawberries’ placement to remember the orientation. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

16. For crepe, blend milk, eggs, melted butter, sugar, salt and flour in a blender till smooth. Divide the batter into 3 clean bowls.

17. Sift cocoa powder into one bowl. Sift matcha powder and add in green food colouring into another bowl. In the last bowl, add rose flavouring and pink food colouring. Whisk batter well till smooth. Cover the bowls and let batter rest for at least 15 minutes.

18. Heat up a pan and brush a thin layer of butter.
19. Always mix batter before making crepe. Pour around batter into pan and swirl to coat. Let crepe cook for 30 seconds till edges are lightly browned. Flip and cook for an extra few seconds then remove from pan. Repeat for each colour.

20. Once cake sand is firm, remove from fridge and unwrap. Cleaning the knife between each slice, slice the long strip into 6 equal triangles in a zig zag pattern. You will have 2 small triangles on both ends of the strip. 

21. Trim crepes edges for clean rectangles. Wrap each triangle cake sando with the crepe and refrigerate wrapped in plastic for at least 10 minutes. Serve cold and fresh.
22. Store any leftover cake sando in fridge for up to 2 days.

Baking Tips: 

Batter for crepe can be made beforehand and stored in fridge overnight to save time. Assembled cake can be the night before and sliced into sando the morning after to save time too. 

Spray the baking pan with non-stick spray or grease with butter, line it with baking paper and give it one more spray coating to fully ensure that the white cake seamlessly releases.