Strawberry Yoghurt Cake

Swiss aspargus, rhubarb and strawberries are so much more than just food in Switzerland. Their arrival mean that spring has truly arrived, that the dark and gloomy winter is finally over and that the barbecue, swimming and hiking season is about to begin. We usually consume huge amounts of strawberries, mostly picked ourselves from our local pick-your-own strawberry field (instructions for those fields here).

There are two strawberry cakes I’m making at least once each strawberry season. One is the strawberry swiss roll, and the other one is this yoghurt cake. It’s an easy, fruity and light cake for those sunny spring days. The cake is made of a shortcrust base, topped with fresh strawberries and yoghurt (and gelatine).

Recipe

100g plain flour
pinch of salt
55g butter, cold
1 small egg
900g strawberries
500g full-fat plain yoghurt
200g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla paste or the seeds of 1 vanilla bean
20 grams of instant-gelatine (or any other gelatine)
2.5dl whipping cream

Method

In a bowl, mix the flour, 60g of sugar and salt. Add the cold butter and rub the mixture with your fingertips until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the egg and gently combine to a dough without kneading it. Cover the base of a springform tin (24cm in diameter) with baking parchment and using your hands, press the dough into an evenly shaped base. Let it rest in the fridge for 30 minutes. Then bake at 200C for about 15 minutes. Once the base is cooled down, place it onto a cake plate and put the springform tin wall around it.

Cut in half about a third of the strawberries and place them inside out along the springform tin wall. Place the rest of the berries top up onto the rest of the base. Keep 4 strawberries for decorating.

Mix the yoghurt, rest of the sugar and vanilla. Prepare your gelatine and, using an electric mixer, mix it with the yoghurt. Whip the cream and gently mix it into the yoghurt. Let the mixture rest for about 10 minutes, then pour it over the strawberries. Cover the cake and let it rest in the fridge for three hours, until the mixture has set. Separate the cake from the springform tin with a spatula or knife and carefully remove the tin.