Strawberry Yoghurt Chiffon Cake

Recipe adapted from Happy Home Baking.  Instead of using cranberries, I used dried strawberries from Cameron Highlands. 

The strawberry aroma and flavour of this cake was very distinct even while baking in the oven.  Nice.  Only problem was the cake rose very high and cracked.   I should have followed Happy Flour's advice to use a bigger pan [22-23 cm].  Next time must do it.

Here are the ingredients and method.

Ingredients

[for 8 inch tube pan - best to use a slightly bigger pan]

3 egg yolks (use large eggs)

25 gm caster sugar [I used 1 1/2 tbsp]

40 ml vegetable oil [I used 3 tbsp]

80 gm plain yoghurt [I used strawberry yoghurt]

1 tsp lemon juice

80 gm cake flour - sifted

4 egg whites (use large eggs)

55 gm caster sugar [I used 3 tbsp]

60 gm dried strawberries - chopped small pieces [some cake flour for dusting]

Method from Happy Home Baking

1. Sieve flour and set aside. 
2. Chop dried strawberries into smaller pieces.  Coat with flour and sieve to remove excess flour. Set aside.
3. Place egg yolks in a mixing bowl. With a manual hand whisk, whisk the yolks a little. Add in sugar and whisk to combine.
4. Add in vegetable oil gradually, whisk to combine. 
5. Add in yoghurt and lemon juice. Whisk to combine. Sieve over the flour and whisk till the flour is fully incorporated. Do not over mix. Set aside.
6. In a clean, dry mixing bowl, beat egg whites with a handheld electric mixer on low speed until mixture becomes frothy and foamy.  Add half of the sugar amount and turn to high speed and beat the mixture. Continue to add in the remaining sugar and beat until the egg whites reaches the soft peak stage.The soft peak stage is reached when the peaks of the whites curl over and droop slightly. The egg whites should appear smooth and glossy. (Do not over beat the whites until stiff, it is better to beat the whites till soft peaks for easy folding with the yolk batter.)
7. Add the beaten egg whites into the egg yolk batter in 3 separate additions, each time folding gently with a spatula until just blended.
8. Add in the prepared dried strawberries. Fold in until just blended Do not over mix.
9. Pour batter into a 17cm tube pan (do not grease the pan). Tap the pan lightly on a table top to get rid of any trapped air bubbles in the batter.
10. Bake in pre-heated oven at 180 degrees C for 30 mins [lower rack], or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean, when lightly pressed the cake will spring back. Invert the pan immediately and let cool completely before unmould. To remove the cake from the pan, run a thin-bladed knife around the inside of the pan and the center core. Release the cake and run the knife along the base of the pan to remove the cake.