Cocoa Heavy-Duty Chiffon Cake Extra-High Version (6-inch & 8-inch)
Original plain chiffon recipe (with step-by-step photos): https://www.xiachufang.com/recipe/103471568/?group=share_title_a Make sure all tools are completely free of oil and water before use. Cocoa powder must be scalded with hot/boiling water first. If you sift it directly together with the cake flour into the yolk batter, it will deflate very easily! This recipe has great load-bearing strength, so it works well for multi-layer cakes or for holding heavier decorations 🤪
Ingredients
Steps
Separate the egg whites and yolks, and put the whites in the freezer to chill until partially frozen.
Put the cocoa powder into the mixing bowl, then pour in the hot water and stir thoroughly. While still hot, add the vegetable oil and granulated sugar and mix well. Make sure it is fully combined so that the oil does not float on the surface and the sugar is dissolved. Add the egg yolks and mix very thoroughly to fully emulsify the batter.
Sift the cake flour into the cocoa yolk batter, then mix using a straight "I" or "Z" motion. Do not stir in circles, or gluten will form. The batter should be smooth and flowy; when you lift the hand whisk, it should fall in a smooth, layered, continuous ribbon.
Desired batter consistency.
Preheat the oven to 150°C with top and bottom heat!!! Take the egg whites out of the freezer. The ideal state is when there are icy crystals around the sides of the bowl. Add a few drops of lemon juice to the whites and start whipping. Add the sugar in three additions.
When the egg whites reach a coarse-foam stage, add the first one-third of the sugar. Continue whipping.
When the egg whites turn white, become finer and smoother, and light streaks start to appear, add the second one-third of the sugar.
Continue whipping until, when you lift the whisk, the egg whites form large, soft hooks, then add the last one-third of the sugar. Switch to low speed and whip until you reach firm medium peaks, just a bit earlier than stiff small peaks. (I find that baking at the small stiff-peak stage tends to cause cracking.)
Final meringue consistency.
Add one-third of the whipped egg whites to the yolk batter and fold gently using a whisk or spatula until evenly combined.
Pour the batter back into the remaining meringue and fold gently until evenly combined.
Pour the cake batter from a height into the mold, then gently tap the mold on the counter a few times. Reduce the oven temperature to between 120–150°C (top and bottom heat) and bake on the lower-middle rack for about 40 minutes. (Adjust temperature and baking time according to your own oven.)
Spread a thin layer of cream between each layer; it looks beautiful and tastes rich but not greasy. You can slice and eat it as is, or decorate it a bit. This sponge base is great for multi-tier cakes and has excellent load-bearing strength. I made this for my sister’s 11th birthday; she celebrated with her classmates, and all five kids said it was super delicious.