A cake is a cake, but not all cakes are made alike. After many hours of research, I've come to understand the difference between the chiffon and the sponge cakes. Basically they are the same, with the exception of fat in the chiffon. Sponge cakes do NOT have fat, chiffons have liquid oil. Today I use my sponge cake recipe and added 1/3 cup of canola oil at the end. The result is a very moist cake, its spongy and airy with wonderful flavor. Here it is:
Classic Chiffon Cake
6 eggs separated
1 cup of cake flour
1 cup of sugar
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1/2 cup of milk or water or juice
1/3 cup of oil (canola, vegetable, safflower... probably not olive oil though)
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
PREHEAT oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit
1. Beat egg yolks with half the sugar for about 4 to 5 minutes, to get a very light yellow fluffy mixture.
2. Shift in 1/3 of the flour with 1/3 of the liquid of choice, mix slowly with spatula or whisk, continue with other 2/3 in the same way. Mixture at the end should be fluffy and totally blended.
3. Beat egg whites on low speed for 1 to 2 minutes to foamy texture, add in salt and cream of tartar and vanilla and turn to high speed for 1 minute. Slowly add in the remaining sugar in three portions. Continue to beat on high for 2 to 3 more minutes to get stiff peaks. Totally beating time is about 5 minutes.
4. Pour oil into egg yolk mixture and blend by hand to incorporate, about 20-30 big slow big folds.
5. Scoop 1/3 of the egg whites into the egg yolks and fold to blend, slowly and big strokes, when combined, pour it into the egg whites and continue to fold until everything is even and blended. Mixture should be lightly yellowish and fluffy.
6. Pour into baking pan:
tube/angel food cake pan, bake 35 minutes
9 inch cake pan, bake 25 minutes
8 inch cake pan, bake 30 minutes
Insert skewer stick to test, if it comes out clean its ready.
Immediate turn cake upside down to cool on rack for 30 minutes, this will help the cake keep its volume and shape.
Whipped Topping
16 ounces of heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup of powder sugar (less if you lost your sweet tooth)
Put everything in a large mixing bowl and mix on low speed for 2 minutes, then high for 4 minutes, when its stiff and the cream holds its shape, it should be ready, do not over beat, it will turn back to liquid and then it cannot be used.
