CHOCOLATE STRAWBERRY CAKE…Quite the Ultimate Combination!
William Butler
It was my sis-in-laws birthday a couple of days ago…& it was time to bake a cake again! I was really waiting for this cake baking opportunity because strawberries had begun appearing in the market. The idea had been germinating in my mind for long, & I was actually restless to give it a go! I planned to make 2 sponges; 1 chocolate & the other a strawberry flavoured one; sandwich them with whipped cream & strawberries; & top the cake with a ganache. That’s exactly what I did…& the cake was just too delicious for words. A droolicious combination!! Almost too good to be true! 
A burst of flavour & colour!
Chocolate & Strawberries are quite the ultimate combination…
Strawberries are one of the first fruits of the season and have long been associated with rebirth and Spring. They are the only fruit with seeds on the outside. Strawberries are low calorie and a good source of vitamin C and fiber.The strawberry plant is a member of the Rose family.
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Line & grease a 8″ spring form tin.
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Sift the cornflour + flour + cocoa + baking powder + salt 3 times. Keep aside.
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Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C.
- Beat the eggs & sugar well till it holds thick ribbons; about 10 minutes.
- Beat in the vanilla essence.
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Gently fold in the flour mix, a tbsp at a time, in figure 8 hand movements so that the beaten air doesn’t escape.
- Turn into the prepared tin & bake for 25-30 minutes/ until done.
- Remove from tin after 5 minutes, take off the lining & cool completely on rack.
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Whip cream, essence & sugar till it holds peaks.
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Reserve 1-2 tbsp cream in a baggie for the spiral/ web on top.
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Fold in the strawberries.
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Don’t make this too much in advance, since strawberries macerate with sugar, & might make the cream runny.
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Put the chocolate & cream in a pan. Keep on low heat, stirring constantly, till the chocolate melts. Remove & stir vigorously with a spoon.
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If you want to pipe decorations on top, pass about 1/4 cup through a sieve & reserve separately. I’ve found that unless you sieve the ganache, its not easy to pipe it through an icing set. Its fine for spreading though.
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Set aside to cool. It will thicken as it cools & get a spreadable consistency.
Finishing it off:
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Cut each sponge into 2, so there are a total of 4 layers.
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Sandwich them with the strawberry cream, using 1/3 each time.
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Spread the ganache over the top & sides of cake. Use sprinkles on the sides if desired.
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For the marbling, see pictures. Draw a spiral, with the cream in the baggie reserved from the filling, beginning from the centre outwards.
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Then drag a wooden pick from the centre outwards, at a 60 degree angle, to equal points on the edge.
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Do the same in the opposite direction (ie outwards to the centre) between the earlier lines. This will create a webbed pattern.
- Pipe a ganache edging if you like. Then finish off with sliced strawberries & flaked chocolate etc. Chill till required.
- Note: Serves about 15-18
Many hues & many views…
“Other things are just food. But chocolate’s chocolate.”
Patrick Skene Catling
Deeba @ PAB
About me: I am a freelance food writer, recipe developer and photographer. Food is my passion - baking, cooking, developing recipes, making recipes healthier, using fresh seasonal produce and local products, keeping a check on my carbon footprint and being a responsible foodie! I enjoy food styling, food photography, recipe development and product reviews. I express this through my food photographs which I style and the recipes I blog. My strength lies in 'Doing Food From Scratch'; it must taste as good as it looks, and be healthy too. Baking in India, often my biggest challenge is the non-availability of baking ingredients, and this has now become a platform to get creative on. I enjoy cooking immensely as well.
52 Comments
Purnima
Deeba, there are no words left for praising, its simply beyond superlatives in all respects, thru the making till the piping n decoration!! Lovely stepwise collage, elegant in truest sense and sheer torture to just keep gazing at it and not hv any! Poor tastebuds! 😀 YOU ROCK THE BAKING WORLD, DEEBA!!
Manggy
Deeba, that is honest to goodness pretty. You always make sure your cakes are dressed to the nines 🙂 I love strawberries! I love chocolate! Now, if only someone would fix my family, because my dad dislikes chocolate and my brothe hates strawberries.
meeso
WOW! That IS the ultimate cake…and It’s absolutely beautiful! I can only imagine how amazing that cake would taste! I don’t know that I would ever attempt to make that myself 😀
Latha
oh dear Deeba! I missed your last 2 posts (no I can’t blame food blog desam… that’d be a lame excuse!). Such a beautiful cake with 2 of my fav ingredients… choc and strawberries and a wonderful soup. I know I haven’t tried one single recipe of yours yet… i just can’t seem to make up my mind yet:) now for this beautiful cake (lucky sil sigh…) can it be made 2 days ahead and how many adults did it serve?
Mer
This looks fantastic!
Passionate baker...& beyond
You embarrass me Purnima…& put me on top of the world at the same time!
Thanks Manggy…may I say I’m inspired to a great extent by your creations…perfect to the ‘t’!!
Meeso…you gotta try it. It tasted seriously good.
Hi Latha..thanks for the lovely words. This can be made 2 days in advance, but put the strawberries a couple of hours before serving, or they tend to lose their fresh look. The sponge can be made 3-4 days in advance too.
Thanks Mer…:0)
Passionate baker...& beyond
You embarrass me Purnima…& put me on top of the world at the same time!
Thanks Manggy…may I say I’m inspired to a great extent by your creations…perfect to the ‘t’!!
Meeso…you gotta try it. It tasted seriously good.
Hi Latha..thanks for the lovely words. This can be made 2 days in advance, but put the strawberries a couple of hours before serving, or they tend to lose their fresh look. The sponge can be made 3-4 days in advance too.
Thanks Mer…:0)
Maya
Hey Deeba, Is this perfect or what ?? It took me a while to stop looking and drooling at the pics and comment here..U truly amaze me :)..Great job…
Maya
I have a question Deeba, what is the white spiral on the top made of?? U mentioned in the ganache, to mix the cream and the choc. So, wht is the white spiral ?? Sorry, might be a silly question..
Lewis
Deeba – how could I not stop in and say what a beautiful site and dessert you have!
I have added you to my blogroll and subscribed to your feed.
Thanks so much for sharing your recipes with us!
~Lewis
http://tablebread.blogspot.com
Rosie
Hi Deeba, you have taken my breath away with this truly outstanding piece of art work!! You really should be selling your bakes if you’re not already!
Utterly beautiful creation and one to very proud of 😀
Rosie x
Karishhma
Hi Debba,
Excellant stuff,
Really have no words for it.
Even I enjoy baking a lot, bUt iam still trying my hand at it!
I presume you are in gurgaon, Even i stay in delhi, It will be great if I could get in touch with you and get some tips from you, Please contact me at karishhma@hotmail.com.
Hope to hear from you soon.
Passionate baker...& beyond
Hi Maya, have added a cross-ref now. Did you get my mail? it’s done with the bit in the baggie from the topping. :0)
Thank you Lewis…honoured to be on your blogroll & in your kitchen! You’re on mine too..
Everytime I bake a cake,I think of a ‘Peace of Cake’ & you, Rosie. Thanks for the great words!
Hi Karishhma, thanks for stopping by. Have mailed you; did you get it?:0)
Passionate baker...& beyond
Hi Maya, have added a cross-ref now. Did you get my mail? it’s done with the bit in the baggie from the topping. :0)
Thank you Lewis…honoured to be on your blogroll & in your kitchen! You’re on mine too..
Everytime I bake a cake,I think of a ‘Peace of Cake’ & you, Rosie. Thanks for the great words!
Hi Karishhma, thanks for stopping by. Have mailed you; did you get it?:0)
mimikatzchen
wow, debba this cake is amazingly beautiful and i can imagine how delicious too! i can’t wait to try this later in the spring once strawberries come in season over here in new york.
Purnima
Deeba, tom is my son’s bday and I m thru with the sponge. May I please use your pattern on mine(with your permission?) also wd like to know how much time in advance can I prepare the frosting n filling, ie usage of whipped cream (if I ready the cake in morning around 10 am for a 7 pm party, is it fine?) Since its cold here, around 10 deg C -what wd b the refrigeration time and how much time in advance
do i need to take that out of cooling? Pls let me know ganache -when do i need make it? Ho-pe u dont mind my silly queries!!!
Passionate baker...& beyond
Hi Purnima…would be delighted if you use it…I’m fine with it! You can assemble the whole thing now if you like; including the filling & ganache etc. Just put the strawberries about 3-4 hours before to keep them looking fresh. The taste matures as it sits, & the sponge becomes nice & moist if the filling is done the previous day. Make the ganache first, then start the filling, by which time the ganache should have cooled down…eveyrthing can be done a day before!
Will wait to hear the end result…BIG HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOUR SON!!!
Passionate baker...& beyond
Hi Purnima…would be delighted if you use it…I’m fine with it! You can assemble the whole thing now if you like; including the filling & ganache etc. Just put the strawberries about 3-4 hours before to keep them looking fresh. The taste matures as it sits, & the sponge becomes nice & moist if the filling is done the previous day. Make the ganache first, then start the filling, by which time the ganache should have cooled down…eveyrthing can be done a day before!
Will wait to hear the end result…BIG HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOUR SON!!!
Maya
Hey Deeba, its me again, am bothering you too much. Any cake like this and with marzipan that you suggest or have made for a boy’s birthday ?? How do we shape something with marzipan for a boy’s birthday cake ?? Any suggestions ??
Passionate baker...& beyond
Hi Maya,
Its strange that I’m missing some mails coming intomy inbox. Spotted yrs here by chance. You can either to a ‘Spongebob’ cake;similar till the ganache, then buttercream the spongepob on top OR do a racing track in a figure 8 shape, with marzipan racing cars.Will just try & mail u pics…:0)
Passionate baker...& beyond
Hi Maya,
Its strange that I’m missing some mails coming intomy inbox. Spotted yrs here by chance. You can either to a ‘Spongebob’ cake;similar till the ganache, then buttercream the spongepob on top OR do a racing track in a figure 8 shape, with marzipan racing cars.Will just try & mail u pics…:0)
k
Hi Deeba,
While making pastries, how do we spread the syrup on the cake base evenly? Previously when i did, I tried systematically spreading the syrup all over and the pastry turned out soggy.
Please let me know.
k
Núria
Wow! I just had to leave you a comment here… this cake looks Fantastic and delicious!!! I wish one day I could bake something similar to this. My birthday is getting near, I’m bookmarking it! Maybe I dare to bake it 😀
Miri
What a completely beautiful cake!!! and such a wonderful combination of flavours!
I made a strawberry yoghurt cake (not blogged yet) but there is a light aftertaste to it, sort of bitter but not exactly, would you know why that happens?
Purnima
Hey Deeba, I wish you win the Napa trip ticket, have voted for you already! Tks for letting me know!
ramya
Hi Deeba,
I tried using your recipe for the sponge. I do not have a traditional oven. I have a Samsung oven (ce1031LATB/XTL). In this oven, I tried the convection mode and used the same temperatures that you have mentioned in your link. But unfortunately the cake did not rise. With your baking experience, can you guess what could be the reason?
Thanks,
Vani
Passionate baker...& beyond
Hi Vani,
I think you’ll have to check the recipe book which must have come with the oven for basic temperature guidelines. Every oven behaves differently; was yours a microwave with convection? If yes, then microwave recipes are very different from conventional ones because of time & heat distribution etc., & I’m only comfortable with the latter. Did you remember the baking powder?
Even if it didn’t rise, is it soft? You can still use if it tastes fine. Make a trifle pudding out of it if all else fails, using either custard or whipped cream.
Lemme know
Deeba
Passionate baker...& beyond
Hi Vani,
I think you’ll have to check the recipe book which must have come with the oven for basic temperature guidelines. Every oven behaves differently; was yours a microwave with convection? If yes, then microwave recipes are very different from conventional ones because of time & heat distribution etc., & I’m only comfortable with the latter. Did you remember the baking powder?
Even if it didn’t rise, is it soft? You can still use if it tastes fine. Make a trifle pudding out of it if all else fails, using either custard or whipped cream.
Lemme know
Deeba
Mansi Desai
wow, that looks so pretty Deeba!! man, you can really bake beautiful cakes:) I made a molten chocolate cupcake with raspberry filling yesterday..check it on my blog!
Rachel
Sigh!! awesome..can I have a piece????
Lovely presentation!
Waiting to see your DB presentation :DD
TBC
That’s a cake that’s too beautiful to be eaten!:-)
bee
what a stunner that cake is!!
familiabencomo
HOLY-MOLY! I wish I were there…. Oh, if only this were not a “virtual” contest. However, your photos & descriptions give the reader full flavor. Thank you!!!
Proud Italian Cook
A true work of art! Your cake is gorgeous!!! Absolutely beautiful!!!
SHUBHA
wow us the only word i can say for this…. amazing blog… too good… pictures… i dunno wtelse to say… the cake is a masterpiece… i love chocolate and my hubby loves strawberry… looks as if the cake is made just for us….. love it…. really amazing….. will surely try to make it…dunno if i can even reach a bit to what u have come out with … toooo good…
do check my blog too whenever u can…. would love u comments
Denise
Your food all looks delicious! I was wondering in this particular cake…you wrote sugar-75 grams/powedered. And later wrote powdered sugar for the filling. Is it just regular sugar for the sponge and cake and confectioner’s sugar (powdered sugar) for the filling or powdered sugar for all? Sorry, not great with baking yet…still trying to learn!
Stellathomas
Strawberries when baked tend to lose their sweetness a little, hence rolling them in sugar at the beginning is recommended. Plus, the cardamom adds a wonderful aroma and a hint of flavor to the vanilla batter which beautifully compliments the strawberries. Its a great way to enjoy a guilt-free treat any time you want, without compromising on the taste!
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Stellathomas
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Neha Bighane
Thanks Deeba!
I baked the Chocolate Strawberry cake and the Chocolate Coffee Almond Meringue cake for two of my closest friends’ birthdays. Both the cakes turned out amazing!
In fact, I had made the Chocolate Strawberry cake eggless(replaced with condensed milk).
Sunshinemom
One look and I am knocked out cold! Stunning, just stunning – thanks for the excellent step by step photography and details that went in!
shalu
Woooow!!i baked tis choco-strawberry cake and its simply out of the world.will send u the snaps as soon as possible.Thank u so much its becoz of u im almost baking like a professional.God bless u. I recommend everyone to try tis cake out.And its the 1st time ive succeded in makin whippin cream too…Love u so much for ur yummolicious cake.
ARUNA
OMG this is an awesome cake, i wonder will i ever be able to bake this!!!
elephunkstrunk
Wow! This is an amazingly beautiful cake! I am going to try to make it for my husband's birthday I think. I'm sure mine won't look this nice, but hopefully it will taste good!
MADHU
Hi deeba, all your recipes are so nice and the presentation is awesome…..I hope you dont mind if i use your decoration ideas..Your blog has got me hooked to baking!
FoodLovers
Hi Deeba,
Loved ur blog i can say addicted dear
and once again thanks for clearing my doubts regarding mascarpone cheese and giving great confidence to try with ultrapasturied cream but the results were in vain i really appreciate your time and effort in exchange of mails regarding making mascarpone cheese i truly appreciate it dear
Courtney Champion
I made this and blogged about it today. Wow, it's so fantastic! I loved the lightness of the cake and the whipped cream filling. Mine doesn't look nearly as beautiful as yours, but it still tastes great. 🙂 Thanks for sharing all your wonderful recipes and for being such an inspiration to me.
SANIA
Wow!
I simply love the look of this cake!!! It looks so so amazing and when I first saw it, my first thought was, I can never pull off such a presentation of cake, with the web and all but when I went thru the recipe, it seems quite simple to me! :)Cuz I bake sponges all the time, plus I also make chocolate ganache (though I dint know the name till I read its recipe and I realized that I already use it in my chocolate cake! :)) and the web thing also looks achievable mostly because you have explained it so well! 🙂
I HAVE to try this SOON!
muffin receptek
So pretty. And I'd imagine it tastes fantastic too. Any frosting that starts with a stick of butter is bound to be the best ever.
Anu Menon
Hey Deeba…
Maybe just maybe its because i should have used baking Soda instead of baking powder…
I was going through this recipe http://smittenkitchen.com/2010/08/everyday-chocolate-cake and noticed how i was using non-dutch cocoa… which means i should have used baking soda and no baking powder…
Ohh i hope im not bugging you with the questions… But maybe i should try it that way…
This is how my cake came out:
Anu Menon
Deeba…
I was going to start out with this cake and i dont have a weighing machine… So when you say 75 grams – 3 Tbspns i am not really clear what you mean… Please help in Tbpsn wise measurement cause im going to bake this for my hubby's bday and today is the test bake…
Anu Menon
Hey Deeba… Just out of the kitchen after a test bake… As i was preping the ingredients I noticed that this cake is butter-less n oil-less 🙂 As this was a test bake i tried to use half of what you mentioned except the eggs.
Eggs -2
Sugar – 2 Tbsp
Cornflour – 1/2 Tbsp
Cocoa – 1 Tbsp
Flour – 1/2 Tbsp
Baking powder – 1/2 tsp
Pinch of salt
Vanilla essence – 1/2 tsp
Now this cake took me exactly 30 min in the oven at 320F and it rose to double its size. But i still felt it stick a tiny bit to my mouth. The cocoa was a bit strong so i decided to reduce it a bit. But it was definitely spongy except at the center which it was very very slightly sticky. Any ideas/suggestions?… I really want it perfect for the hubby n the guests who are gonna eat it 🙂
Animor
I am planning to bake this for my daughter’s bday but I don’t know where I can get cornflour. help please!