I got this recipe ages ago from a magazine & have been making the cake every summer since then. And since I've received emails asking for the recipe, so here it is guys. Let me know how you got on.
1. Preheat the oven to 180℃. Put 100g hazelnuts on a baking tray and cook for 10 minuts until golden. Tip onto a clean tea towel and rub through the cloth, the papery skins should come off easily. Spread the nuts out on a large plate to cool.
When cold, whizz in a processor or blender until ground, taking care not to over process and make them oily.
Grease 2 loose-based 20cm sandwich tins and line the basses with baking paper.
2. Put the 4 egg whites (large) in a large mixing bowl and whisk with an electric mixer until they form stiff peaks. Add 1 tablespoon of caster sugar ang whisk until stiff again. Continue to add the sugar a tbsp at a time, whisking until stiff again after each addition until all the 225g caster sugar have been incorporated. You should have a stiff, glossy meringue.
3. Whisk in 1teaspoon of white wine vinegar and a few drops of vanilla essence and then fold in the hazelnuts, using a large metal spoon. Take care not to knock the air out of the meringue. Divide the mixture between the tins and level the tops.
4. Bake for 40-45 minutes. Leave to cool in the tins for 10mins, then turn out onto a cooling rack and remove the paper. Leave until cold.
5. Whip 284ml double cream until it hold its shape. Set aside 8 berries, then slice the remainder of your 400g strawberries. Fill the cake with most of the cream & slices strawberries.
6. Decorate the top with the reserved strawberries, secured with blobs of cream.
Enjoy!
NB:
You can buy ground hazelnuts in some stores. Also, if you don't have a processor you can use the mortar and pestle. You can do this in advance if you like (coz this is the boring part) & store it in an airtight container & have it ready when you need it.
If you find that the strawberries you bought are sharp/sour, just slice them up, put them on a plate & sprinkle a bit of sugar on top. Leave this in the fridge for a while & your berries won't be so sharp anymore =)
I used 9 strawberries to decorate instead of 8, wala lang- na OC lang ako!
I sometimes use sugar substitute so that I could share it with Papa Erick (diabetic) but I rely on tasting it before baking so I couldn't tell you the exact measurement.
This recipe is from ASDA magazine.
