Chiffon Cake

It is the season of baking here! Started it with Honey's birthday.Birthday cake poses a complex problem. There are so many parameters to be considered- should look good and cute, should taste good, should be tender and should be good made-ahead. I love butter cakes. They taste awesome when fresh and warm, they are sturdy and stand up well for hardy frosting-fondant etc. But they are not very good made ahead. They sort of become dry and caked up if kept in the refrigerator for a while. On the other hand, Chiffon cakes are not all that yummy or buttery but are good  made ahead and popped in the refrigerator. They remain tender for days, they to hold up to frosting and light, very light, something that does not make you cringe at the end of a heavy meal. The disadvantage of a chiffon cake is that it can be a little 'eggy' if not flavored well.
I have always loved Chiffon cakes because they are like a blank canvas, paint your mood and it will hold up. This time it was all fruits. Me and Sunny boy put together the cake. Well Sunny boy sure is not old enough to beat eggs, but he does runs around me in the kitchen as I go about the cake. He did pick a few strawberries  for me. In fact Strawberries were his idea.  He had grown very fond of them (for now, that is!).
After a long days wait, it was indeed hard to keep Sunny boy from knocking the cake down or to take a picture. I wish I had a better shot. But for now this is all I have.

We will need,
All Purpose flour 1 cup minus 1 tbsp
Corn Starch 1 tbsp
Baking powder 1/2 tbsp
Sugar 6 tbsp
Salt a pinch
Refined sunflower oil 1/4 cup
Extra large eggs 4
Orange zest 1 tsp + juice 3 tbsp
Vanilla 1 tsp

Method:

• Pre-heat oven to 350F. Line a piece of parchment onto an 8" baking tin. Do not grease the tin.
• Sift the flour, cornstarch and baking powder multiple times and set it aside. Stir in the sugar and salt gently.
• Separate the eggs and beat egg whites till stiff. 
• Mix the egg yolks, oil, orange juice, zest and vanilla. Beat till combined.
• Stir in the wet ingredients into dry ingredients gently.
• Fold the egg whites into flour mixture very gently. 
• Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake till a toothpick inserted in the center comes clean.
• Frost the cake as desired. My favorite is the fresh whipped cream and cream cheese frosting. 
• Decorate it with assorted fresh fruits, chocolate, nuts as desired.