Strawberry Quark Cream Cake

                                Birthdays are nature's way of saying eat more cake! 

So it was hubby's birthday last week and of course there had to be cake! With the pretty blush of strawberries dotting the carts and supermarket aisles all around,  a strawberry cake was waiting to happen. Baking layered cakes is fun but involves time and effort.  Nothing that can't be planned ahead and spread over a couple of days to make it easier though. If you want homemade quark in the filling, pre-planning is absolutely necessary. I made the quark first (you will need at least 40 plus hours for this!), baked the sponges later,  struggled to get neat layers (and failed), made and filled the strawberry filling the next day. Let it sit in the fridge a good 16 hours and decorated it on the birthday.  Turned out to be a light and moist, slightly tangy, relatively low fat Strawberry Quark Cream Cake we enjoyed.

This sponge has been a favorite,  one I have been using since ages.  About time I stopped just saying and actually tried a new recipe ! Finally tried a slightly more substantial fat less sponge from Deeba's blog.  The eggs are warmed over simmering water and then beaten,  a touch of baking powder lightens the cake.  Love these sponges as nothing soaks and holds up syrup better. If you are yet to try one of these, please do! I like having pieces of this cake in my freezer for trifles and would probably store whole ones too if I had a freezer big enough!  

Strawberry Quark Cream Cake

Ingredients:

For the sponge from here: ( You will need 2 of these if you want a large 6 layered cake)

• Eggs - 4 large / 192 grams 
• Sugar  - 100 grams, I used powdered, Deeba uses granulated
• Vanilla extract - 1 teaspoon
• Plain flour - 100 grams
• Baking powder - 3/4 teaspoon
• pinch salt

For the Strawberry Puree

Fresh strawberries, hulled and chopped roughly - 12-15 

Butter - 1 teaspoon

Sugar - 3-4 tablespoons (adjust depending on the tartness of strawberries)

Vanilla bean - 1/2 scraped

Strawberry Quark Cream (You may need all of this baking a 6 a layered cake, better more than less)

Strawberry puree - 1/2 cup

Homemade Quark- 2 cups (from about 1 liter milk) 

Sweetened Whipping cream ( I use non-dairy) - 2 cups (to make 4 cups of whipped cream)

Powdered sugar - about 1/3 to 1/2 cup as needed depending on the proportion of quark to cream

Vanilla extract - 2 teaspoons
Pink Gel color - a couple of streaks (optional)

Simple syrup 

Water (1 1/2 cups) and sugar ( 3/4 cup) heated together. Cool and stir in a bit of vanilla. Make more if needed.

Method to make the sponge :  

It would help to remember that it is most important to whip the eggs to the specified stage and so is folding in the flour right. The baking powder helps make the sponge lighter, a saving grace! I need more practice, it petrifies me each time! Watch this and this video of Rose Levy Beranbaum if you will baking this kind of sponge for the first time. 

• Preheat oven to 190C. Line a 9'' (Deeba uses 8'' loose bottomed tins) round baking tin with parchment paper. Grease the bottom and sides, dust sides lightly with flour.
• Make 1 sponge at a time 
• Sift the baking powder, salt and flour together. Set aside.
• Place the eggs, vanilla and sugar in a large steel bowl. The bowl should sit snugly in a preferably heavy, sturdy bowl with a handle. I used my pressure cooker.  The bowl with the eggs should not touch the hot water in the bowl below. 
• Whisking constantly, heat until the eggs are slightly warm to the touch (it was about 102 F on my instant read thermometer)
• Take off the heat. Using a hand mixer on highest speed, beat the eggs until they have tripled in volume, and become very thick and mousse like, 5-8 minutes. 
• Sift 1/3 of the flour over the eggs, fold in with a large spatula or slotted skimmer gently till you see most of the flour disappear. Repeat with 1/3 more of the flour. Add the remaining flour and fold in making sure all flour is mixed thoroughly with no lumps. Please do watch Rose's videos for this technique. 
• Turn batter into the tin (do NOT rap the tin) and bake for 25-30 minutes, until lightly colored and a tester comes out clean. If in doubt, err on the side of over baking slightly.
• Run a sharp knife around the sides to release the cake, immediately invert it on a rack, then re-invert so that the cake cools top crust up. When completely cool, trim the top and bottom crusts, cut the cake into 2 or 3 layers as needed. If you do not trim the crust, the syrup won't be absorbed well. 

For the fresh  strawberry puree / compote - To make a generous half cup

Put all ingredients in a heavy saucepan. Cook on low heat for 5-8 minutes till the mixture is thick and syrupy. Be sure this is not watery as it will thin your cream. Mash roughly with a fork to keep it chunky or puree in a blender for a smoother puree. 

Strawberry Quark Cream 

Whisk the quark, vanilla and powdered sugar till well blended. Fold in the strawberry puree. Mix in half cup of whipped cream to lighten the mixture.  Gently fold in the whipped cream in the proportion you desire. ( Try with a tablespoon of quark, sugar, 2 tablespoons whipped cream and some puree to get an idea about the proportion you will prefer. More quark makes the cream tangier as the puree will be tangy too. Use sugar as needed)

To assemble :

Place one layer of the sponge on a platter, brush the simple syrup over it, making sure it is thoroughly moistened or the cake will be dry. Dollop some cream in the center, spread evenly using an offset spatula. ( I will never learn this in a 100 years!!) Repeat with two more layers. Frost the top and sides. There are always chocolate collars to the rescue! Chill at least overnight or even up to a day to let the flavors meld. Decorate as you wish. Serve chilled. 

Please note : If making this sponge first time, it s a good idea to use the extra layer of cake to test how much syrup it will absorb. Brush and chill, top with some cream, chill for an hour or so, then check the taste and texture.  Alter the amount of sugar in the syrup if needed. The sponge will be moist but not soggy or pasty. One of the layers here is very similar sponge from Roland Mesnier. Deeba's is easier and faster. 

The fresh strawberry puree lent a nice but subtle flavor and tang to the filling. If strawberries aren't quite your thing, just wait for the mangoes to arrive or use chopped ripe sweet kiwi fruit instead (do not cook either fruit). That should be delicious too!  

Adore strawberries and love tangy sweet ? Try this cake before the season is over! I liked the sponge too, a Tres Leches next perhaps?

Kiwi Quark Mousse - With Zespri Kiwifruit!

Kiwifruit aka Chinese gooseberry.  Familiar, but not quite.  But fascinating it has always been!  The egg shaped, far from attractive fuzzy exterior, reveals a pretty seed flecked interior in an intriguing shade of green.  And now a gorgeous yellow too I discover, thanks to this event by Zespri International at ITC Gardenia last month.  I know this post comes late, blame it on the festive season, the inevitable sweets and savories galore.  And then some!

At ITC Gardenia, Chef Yogen Datta and team demonstrated a few recipes to showcase the versatility of the fruit which can be used in everyday dishes as well as exotic ones.  Kiwi Cheesecake, Carpaccio of Kiwi with Silken Tofu,  Rucola, Kiwi & Rosemary Salsa,  Sushi with a Kiwi twist,  Kiwi Caprioska and Kiwi Sangria were among those demonstrated to us. 

Zespri International is owned by over 2,500 kiwifruit growers of New Zealand.  They claim that the fruit they grow comes with the highest assurance of quality.  Along with the conventionally grown fruit, they also sell organic kiwifruit, both green and yellow.  The fruit always comes with a Zespri sticker, so be sure your fruit has it if you are looking for those grown by them. 

Zespri Green Kiwifruit  are tart-sweet, sweeter when ripe.  The yellow ones, Sun Gold Kiwifruit are sweeter with a tropical flavor.  The green ones sometimes may need to be stored for sometime before they are ripe enough, whereas the yellow ones are always ready to eat. 

Choosing and storing : Look for plump fruit with a smooth skin and no bruises.  If you are looking for ripe ones, choose those which yield to gentle pressure.  Those not ripe yet can be left on the counter for a couple of days to ripen.  If you want to hasten the ripening process, put the kiwi in a paper bag with a banana or apple. When it is ripe enough and you  don't want it to ripen further, store in the refrigerator for 1-2 weeks.  I gather, the fruit is enjoy best chilled and is ripe enough, but not mushy! Mushy ones can probably be used in smoothies.

To eat the ripe fruit, just cut it into half, scoop the flesh out and dig in!  The flesh of the Kiwi fruit is very soft and you could cook it into mush in a matter of seconds.  I prefer to eat it as is or as a topping or in a salad or just pureed to use in a dessert.  

Nutrition : Nutrition dense kiwi fruit is supposed to be very rich in calcium,  potassium and fiber.  It has a very low glycemic index too, perfect for the health conscious!

Here is what I made with the fruit.  As I mentioned earlier, the kiwis got my attention a bit late! A simple yet refreshing Quark Mousse topped with Kiwi Fruit.  I have been dreaming of this as a filling in my cake since the time I made this mousse. 

Kiwi Quark Mousse : Inspired By Deeba Rajpal. 

Serves 6.

Ingredients: 

Homemade Quark, well drained : 1 Cup

Whipping cream - 1 cup to get 2 cups whipped cream ( I have used sweetened non-dairy)

Sugar - 2 tablespoons or more to taste (read note)

Pure Vanilla extract : 1 teaspoon

Kiwi fruit puree - 1/2 cup

Sliced Kiwis and fresh mint for garnish.

Method : Whisk together the quark, sugar, vanilla and kiwi fruit puree.  Whip the cream to soft peaks.  Gently, fold it into the quark.  Spoon into dessert glasses. Cover with cling film and chill for 4-5 hours.  Garnish with fresh kiwi slices and fresh mint leaves just before serving. 

Please note : If using unsweetened cream, add more sugar as needed.  You may also need to stabilize the mousse with agar agar or gelatin. In the picture above is with Amul cream which did not hold up very well. It works very well with non-dairy cream though. 

Add a touch of wholesome green or yellow to perk up your salad or dessert with some kiwifruit for a change!  For more information on Zespri Kiwifruit, please do check their website.

Homemade Quark

And I am back with some homemade cheese!  After ricotta ricotta and mascarpone, here comes quark.  Making cheese at home is a pleasure, the versatility of use a bonus.  Nothing really that needs you to set up a laboratory, understand complicated procedures and enzymes. Simple stuff we can do at home using pantry staples like milk, cream, yogurt vinegar and the kind.  What I love most is I can use them in both sweet and savory dishes and as an ingredient in bakes too.  Right up my alley, both for ease and the endless possibilities!

A moist, creamy textured fresh cheese with a gentle tang, Quark is of European origin. Apparently quark is the German word for curd.  There are different versions of making this cheese, with a wide range of fat content.  I gather you can make quark with whole milk,  low fat milk or even buttermilk! 

I came across quark first on Deeba's gorgeous Passionate About Baking.  It goes into her cakes,  mousse,  ice creams and countless desserts ever so often.  Simple and easy, how can I resist trying this?  I  could eat it by the spoonful,  but I hope I will save enough to find a more delicious home for it!

Homemade Quark : Recipe from PAB.  The below recipe gave me about 480 grams of cheese.

Ingredients:

Whole milk (I used 4% fat) : 7 cups / 1680 ml (Cups easier I know!)

Cultured buttermilk - 1 cup / 240 ml

Method:  If the milk you are using is not pasteurized, bring it to a boil,  cover, let it cool to room temperature.  Stir in the buttermilk.  Cover the container and keep in a warm place for about 24 hours or till the curds and whey separate.  I kept mine for more than 24 hours,  the mixture looked thickened, like set yogurt, with a little whey on top.

Drain into a cheese cloth lined sieve suspended over a deep dish.  Tie up the cheesecloth with a rubber band.  Refrigerate the entire apparatus overnight or longer.  (I left mine to drain about 17 hours) The whey will have drained and there you have your quark!

Quark can be refrigerated for about 3 days.  I would expect it to get tangier and drier as you store.

Please note: 

Deeba says the whey floating on top is more likely in warmer weather conditions.

In warmer weather, you may want to check on the culture earlier,  so start the process accordingly. Unless of course you don't mind tangy quark or setting your alarm to check the curd at 2 am.

The color of the cheese may vary with the percentage of fat in the milk.  Whitish  if the milk is skimmed or low fat,  slightly yellowish if the milk is of higher fat percentage.  I would also expect the yield to differ slightly too.  Some cream whisked into the milk will give you richer quark.

I have used 3/4 cup Nandini curd, about 3% fat I guess (as the one I make at home is low fat) mixed with 1/4 cup water to make 1 cup of buttermilk.  This was at room temperature too.

If you drain the cheese longer it may be drier.  This was moist enough and very creamy when stirred, but I will drain for about 10 hours next time I make it.  In case your cheese feels very dry, you could probably try stirring in a tablespoon or so of the whey.

Do you make your quark? Tell me your most favorite way to make it and eat it please?