Strawberry and Whipped Cream Cake

Ingredients:

For the biscuit:

• 1.5 tsp vanilla bean paste (or seeds from 1/2 vanilla bean)
• 2 beaten eggs at room temperature
• 3/4 cup milk at room temperature
• 1/2 tsp lemon zest, finely grated
• 5 tablespoons melted unsalted butter, plus more for greasing the baking dish
• 1 and 1/3 cups flour, plus a little extra for dusting
• 1 and 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 and 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt

For filling and decoration:

• 1.5 cups chilled heavy cream
• 1.5 liters of strawberries without stems
• 1 tbsp. strawberry jam
• 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175 degrees Celsius). Grease a 20-centimeter (8-inch) baking pan with butter. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper. Grease the parchment paper with butter and dust it with flour.
2. Prepare the sponge cake: In a medium bowl, combine the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt. In another bowl, whisk together the melted butter, crushed vanilla bean, eggs, milk, and lemon zest until smooth. Add the resulting liquid to the dry mixture and mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon.
   
   Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 35-40 minutes. Insert a toothpick into the center. biscuit, should remain clean. Remove the sponge cake and let it rest in the pan for 10 minutes. Then remove it from the pan and let it cool completely.
   
   In the article you will read What to do with vanilla beans.
3. Meanwhile, prepare the filling: Halve 16 strawberries. In a medium bowl, whisk together 1 tablespoon of water and strawberry jam until smooth. Add the halved strawberries, stir, and set aside.
   
   Thinly slice the remaining strawberries and combine them in a separate bowl with 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar and lemon juice. Set aside.
   
   In a bowl, beat the cream, the remaining 1 tbsp powdered sugar and vanilla extractYou should get a thick foam. Put the whipped cream in the refrigerator.
4. Carefully cut the sponge cake into two layers. Place the top layer cut-side up on a plate. Sprinkle both layers with the juice from the sliced ​​strawberries.
   
   Add a few tablespoons of whipped cream to the sliced ​​berries. Spread the mixture on the bottom layer of the cake. Cover it with the top layer and spread the remaining whipped cream on top. Garnish the cake with strawberry halves and their juice.