This raspberry cake is inspired by two iconic cakes we love: the Halekulani coconut cake and princess cake. It brings together the best parts of both into one raspberry chiffon cake. The cake starts with classic chiffon cake layers. Once cooled, the layers are filled with raspberry jam and vanilla bean pastry cream. After the cake is assembled, it’s topped with vanilla bean whipped cream and fresh raspberries. It’s full of raspberry flavor while still being light and not too sweet.

Cake Components:

Raspberry Jam: We make a simple raspberry jam made with lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla bean paste. It brings a slightly tart raspberry flavor that keeps the cake balanced and not overly sweet.
Vanilla Bean Pastry Cream: This pastry cream is our go to for cakes. It is smooth, creamy, and has tons of vanilla flavor. It adds richness between the chiffon layers without feeling heavy and is perfect with the raspberry jam.
Raspberry Chiffon Cake: Light, airy chiffon cake is the base of this recipe. It’s soft enough to soak up all the flavor from the fillings while still holding its structure once layered.
Vanilla Bean Whipped Cream: Lightly sweetened and flavored with vanilla bean paste, the whipped cream gets folded into the pastry cream for the filling and used to frost the outside of the cake.

Raspberry Chiffon Cake

Prep Time 1

Cook Time 40

Cooling and Resting 5

Servings 12

Ingredients

Raspberry Jam

12 oz raspberries fresh or frozen
¾ cup granulated sugar 150 g
1 tbsp lemon juice
Zest of 1 lemon
Pinch of salt
1 tbsp vanilla bean paste

Pastry Cream:

2 cups whole milk
1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup minus a tablespoon granulated 90 g
¼ cup all-purpose flour
4 egg yolks + 1 whole egg

Cake:

¾ cup cake flour
⅓ cup granulated sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg
⅓ cup water
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 egg whites
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
¼ cup sugar

Whipped Cream:

3 cups whipped cream
1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
2 tablespoons sugar

Raspberries for garnish

Instructions

Raspberry Jam

Combine raspberries, sugar, lemon juice + zest, salt, and vanilla paste in a pot. Toss to coat; macerate 30 minutes.
Cook over medium-high heat until jam reaches 220–225°F, stirring often to prevent burning.
Transfer to a container, cool, and refrigerate until set.

Pastry Cream:

Set aside a bowl to cool the pastry cream with a fine-mesh sieve/strainer on top
In another bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, egg flour and sugar until smooth. Set aside the mixture
In a saucepan, pour in the milk and vanilla bean paste. Add the salt and mix. Place the mixture on medium-high heat until just under a boil. Be sure to stir the mixture occasionally to ensure the milk solids do not stick to the bottom of the pan
When the milk is warmed, add 1/3 of the hot milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly to ensure the eggs do not cook. After it is combined, pour the egg-milk mixture back into the remaining ⅔ of the hot milk. Whisk over medium heat until the mixture is as thick as lightly whipped cream. It should just come just barely to a boil – be sure not to let it get beyond this as the cream will curdle. Remove from the heat and immediately pour through the sieve/strainer into the bowl. Do not leave the pastry cream in the pan as it will continue to cook.
Let the cream cool for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Cover the bowl of pastry cream with plastic wrap. The plastic should press onto the pastry cream to keep it from developing a skin. After wrapping, place in the refrigerator to chill for about 30 minutes – 1 hour while making the other components

Cake:

Preheat the oven to 350 F.
Sift together the flour, ⅓ cup of the sugar, salt, and baking powder into a medium bowl.
Add in the egg, water, and oil and mix until no lumps remain.
In a second bowl with a hand mixture or in the base of a stand mixer, mix the egg whites with the cream of tartar
With the mixer on low speed, slowly pour in the remaining ¼ cup of sugar. Whip the egg whites and sugar together until a meringue forms.
Fold the batter together with the meringue and pour into an ungreased 9 inch cake pan. Do not line or grease the cake pan or it will fall out when it cools. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. It will be golden brown on top
After baking, invert the cake onto a cooling rack to cool

Assembly:

Prepare the whipped cream by whipping together the whipped cream, vanilla bean paste, and sugar until medium peaks form
Take 1 cup of the whipped cream and fold it into the cooled pastry cream. The rest will be used to frost the cake
Cut the cooled cake in 4 even layers. We like to do this by cutting it in half and then each in half again. They will be thin
Place ⅓ of the raspberry jam and spread it in an even layer. Then take ⅓ of the pastry cream on the first layer and spread into an even layer. Repeat 3 times, ending by placing the last layer on top
Frost the cake with the remaining whipped cream and add raspberries to finish. Let it set up in the fridge for 4 hours before serving