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Jordgubbstårta (Swedish Strawberry Cake)

Sliced Jordgubbstårta on a cake board.

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This Swedish midsummer cake Jordgubbstårta, or Swedish strawberry cake, is made with three layers of light sponge cake and filled with luscious pastry cream and strawberry filling. It is generously covered with Chantilly cream and topped with fresh strawberries.

Ingredients

Scale

For the sponge cake:

  • 4 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup + 1 1/2 tablespoon (120) g granulated sugar
  • 2/3 cup + 4 1/2 tablespoons (120 g) all-purpose flour

For the vanilla custard cream:

  • 2 large egg yolks
  • 3 1/2 tablespoons (45 g) granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons (14 g) cornstarch
  • 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons (150 g) whole milk
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons (20 g) butter

For the strawberry filling:

  • 1 medium-sized banana (140 g peeled banana) 
  • 5.3 oz. (150 g) fresh strawberries

For the sugar syrup:

  • 1/3 cup (75 ml) water
  • 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For Chantilly cream:

  • 2 cups + 1 1/2 tablespoons (500 g) cold heavy cream, 30% fat (half for frosting and half for decoration)
  • 4 tablespoons (30 g) icing sugar

For decoration:

  • 7 oz. (200 g) fresh strawberries

* If needed, please refer to Baking Conversion Charts.

**Don’t you have the correct baking pan on hand right now? Try this simple Cake Pan Converter!

Instructions

  1. To make the sponge cake, preheat the oven to 355°F (180°C). Butter and flour an 8-inch (20 cm) round cake mold. Beat the eggs and sugar with a hand whisk for a minute. 
  2. Bring the egg mixture in a heat-prove bowl over a bain-marie or water bath. Heat the mixture to 104°F (40°C), constantly beating with the balloon whisk. Remove from the water bath and whisk with an electric or stand mixer for 10-15 minutes until whitish. 
  3. Fold in sifted all-purpose flour with a rubber spatula, carefully working from the bottom of the bowl. Pour the batter into the prepared mold. Bake in the middle rack of the oven for 25-30 minutes.
  4. Check with a toothpick that the cake is ready before taking it out of the oven. Allow to cool in the baking pan for 10 minutes. Then remove it from the tin and allow it to cool down on a wire rack
  5. To make vanilla custard cream, mix egg yolks, sugar, vanilla bean paste, and cornstarch in a mixing bowl. Heat milk over medium-high heat in a saucepan. Once almost boiling, pour milk over the egg yolk mixture, stirring constantly. Bring the preparation back into the saucepan, and simmer the mixture, stirring, until it thickens into a cream.
  6. Remove the pan from the heat and transfer the cream to a clean bowl. Add the cubed butter to the hot cream and mix. Cover it with plastic wrap and allow to cool to room temperature.
  7. To assemble the cake, mash the banana with strawberries using a potato masher or a fork and set aside. Bring the water with sugar to a boil in a small saucepan. Add vanilla extract out of the heat and let the sugar syrup cool. 
  8. Adjust a mousse cake mold to 8 inches (20 cm) and line it with an acetate cake collar. Place it on a cake board or a serving plate.
  9. Cut the cake into three layers with a serrated knife or a cake leveler. Put the first cake layer, soak it with sugar syrup, and cover it with the strawberry filling. Place the next cake layer, soak it, and fill it with the vanilla cream, spreading it evenly. Add the last cake layer. Cover the cake mold with cling film and refrigerate the cake for 2-3 hours or overnight. 
  10. To garnish the cake, wash and pat dry strawberries; then hull and halve them. Use a hand mixer to whip heavy cream with icing sugar until medium-stiff peaks.
  11. Take the cake out of the fridge, and remove the mold and acetate film. Spread a layer of sweetened whipped cream on top. Cover the sides of the cake with cream using an offset spatula.  
  12. Transfer the remaining cream to a pastry bag fitted with an Ateco pastry tip 829. Pipe the cream on top of the cake. Garnish it with strawberries, edible leaves, and flowers: marigold leaves, purple lavender, mint, lilac, marguerite, pansies, forget-me-nots, etc.

Notes

  1. Consider preparing Genoise cake as an alternative to the traditional sponge cake.
  2. Don't oversoak the cake layers to avoid unwanted sogginess. This is particularly important when using a strawberry filling as it releases additional fruit juices.
  3. Don't skip the chilling of the cake before covering it with sweetened whipped cream. The cake filled with strawberry filling and vanilla custard cream must be set for a few hours.
  4. Garnish the cake with fresh strawberries before serving to preserve the freshness of the berries on top.
  5. Recalculate ingredients for cake pans of different sizes using this simple cake pan size converter.
  6. Make ahead option: Bake sponge cake in the evening and store it covered with plastic wrap at room temperature. Finish the cake the next day. Or fill the cake with fruit and cream fillings and refrigerate the cake overnight. The next day, finish the cake with cream and red fruit.

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