Pink Post: pink chiffon cake

Today is the day of the Italian pink wave, the day the foodblogger world get pink, thanks to an initiative put together by Carolina, from Semplicemente Pepe Rosa, Chiara from Ma che davvero? and Mammafelice. Nearly 250 bloggers responded to the call and committed themselves to post today their personal contribution with a pink shade, a post to remind that October is the month dedicated to the prevention of breast cancer.

From the website Pink Ribbon: the brightness of pink at the same time stands for hope and strength of each individual to fight its personal fight. It stands for the community making this personal fight a community responsibility. It stands for all the efforts of people; fund raisers, medical staff, researchers, students, and volunteers worldwide, working together to find the cure. It stands for the industry proving its mature responsibility towards manufacturing processes, ingredients and products. It stands for equal fundamental rights for all breast cancer survivors whether born in richness or in poverty anywhere on mother earth.

It regards all of us closely, and each one today will try to make a contribution, based on her sensitivity and her own experience, in order to color this day with bright pink shades!

My pink post gathers a multiplicity of voices, all represented into my pictures by pink traces. They belong to important women in my life, precious and fundamental people, friends who are close to me every day, relatives who constitute a personal milestone with their example, women who become my daily inspiration with their work and their passion.

Let’s start with this recipe, a chiffon cake, taken directly from Sigrid’s book, Il libro del cavolo, who never more than now is pink with two hearts beating all together with a remixed rhythm (by the way, many many wishes here as well, for your little bavaresino).

The pink caster sugar is a gift from Claudia, my favorite sister (OK, I have just one sister, but even if I had one hundred sister, she would always be my favorite) brought from Paris, a gift that I use sparingly, as it’s so precious to me.

The pastry stand is a birthday present from Laura, my best friend, the one who always knows exactly what I need, what worries me, what makes me happy, what goes through my head and even what I don’t even realize that I have in mind.

The moka pot is Simona’s wedding favour. It was an occasion that gathered together once again the Three Graces, one acting as a wonderful bride in a pink dress, the other two acting as proud maids of honour, longtime friends from high school time, the ones that used to exchange notes and messages during  History of Art class.

The polka dot napkins are a war trophy, one of the articles brought home from the compulsive shopping tour made in Florence with my foodie friends Caro and Fra, a beautiful day spent with friendship and laughter .

And finally, the pink cup, belonging to Aunt Teresa, a tea service with delicate colours, perfect for the sweetest hour of the afternoon.

::::: PINK CHIFFON CAKE :::::

Ingredients:

• flour, 135 g
• sugar, 130 g
• egg whites, 5
• egg yolks, 4
• blueberry syrup, 50 ml
• water, 50 ml
• vegetable oil, 60 ml
• baking powder, 1/2 tablespoon
  
• vanilla salt, 1/2 teaspoon
• pink food colouring gel, 1/4 teaspoon

Per la decorazione:

• cream, 200 ml
• icing sugar, 1 1/2 tablespoon
• pink food colouring gel, 1/4 teaspoon
• pink caster sugar, 2 tablespoons

Preheat oven to 150°C. Sift flour with baking powder. Add sugar and salt and stir.

Whisk egg yolks with water, blueberry syrup and food colouring gel, drizzling them in a thin stream, so that they can emulsify. Add the egg mixture to the flour. Finally, beat egg whites until firm and fold them lightly into the batter. Pour into a chiffon cake mold, preferably small (about 20 to 22 cm, with high sides), greased and floured.

Bake for about 50 minutes or until the top is lightly browned. Turn the mold upside down on a wire rack and let the cake cool without removing it from the mold. When completely cool, turn out the cake, using a sharp knife.

Dissolve food colouring into cream, whip cold cream until stiff and add the icing sugar. Spread the entire cake with whipped cream, then sprinkle with pink caster sugar and leaves it in the fridge for 30 minutes. Cut into thick slices and serve.

Tasting test. The softness of this cake is unimaginable. It’s like sinking into a wad of cotton, into cotton candy. The mustache made of cream that remain on your lips are one of the most sweet and adorable things in the world! I made it again the next day with lemon syrup, drizzled with yellow royal icing (icing sugar + water). Equally good, equally beautiful!