Butter Sponge Cake {filled w/ strawberry jam}

Butter spongecake filled with homemade strawberry jam and homemade dulce de leche cream covered with fresh Chantilly

(from the book Mastering The Art Of French Cooking)

4 Tb butter

2/3 cup granulated sugar

4 egg yolks

2 tsp vanilla extract

4 egg whites

pinch of salt

2 Tb granulated sugar

3/4 cup cake flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Butter ad flour the cake pan.

Melt the butter and set aside to cool.

Gradually beat the sugar into the egg yolks, add the vanilla, and continue beating for several minutes until mixture is thick and pale yellow.

Beat the egg whites and salt together in a separated bowl until soft peaks are formed; sprinkle on the sugar and beat until stiff peaks are formed. Scoop one fourth of the egg whites over the top of the egg yolks and sugar mixture. Sift on one fourth of the flour, and delicately fold in until partially blended. Then add one third of the remaining egg whites, sift on one third of the remaining flour . fold until partially blended, and repeat with half of each, then the last of each and half of the tepid, melted butter. When partially blended, fold in the rest of the butter but omit the milky residue at the bottom of the pan. Do not overmix; the egg whites must retain as much volume as possible.

Turn into prepared cake pan, tiling pan to run batter to the rim all around. Set in middle level of preheated oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes. Cake is done when it has puffed, is lightly brown, and has just begun to show a faint line of shrinkage from the edges of the pan.

1 cup of homemade dulce de leche or 1 can sweetened condensed milk

4 egg yolks

¾ cup heavy cream

Pour dulce de leche or condensed milk into a medium saucepan and place over medium heat

Add the egg yolks and keep stirring the mixture until it starts to show the bottom of the pan when you scrape it with a spoon. The mixture should be thick enough to show the bottom the pan for a couple of seconds before the mixture back again.

Pour the mixture in a greased bowl and leave aside to cool. When the mixture is at room temperature, add heavy cream and mix until combine. Place it in the fridge until decoration.

1 cup strawberries

½ cup sugar

1 cup water

Bring all ingredients to a boil in a saucepan over moderate heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, about 20 minutes (jam will continue to thicken as it cools).

1 cup heavy cream, cold

2 tablespoons powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

Chill a mixing bowl and wire whisk in the freezer for 10 minutes before beginning. Beat heavy cream in the chilled bowl until it begins to foam and thicken up. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and continue to beat until the cream barely mounds. Do not overwhip.