Vanilla & berries layer cake, inspired by Norway’s ‘world’s best cake’

Norway holds a special place in my heart. It was the very first country I’ve ever been to, outside Romania, when I was 15. It was deep winter in Northern Norway, and the Norwegians hosted an international cultural exchange focused on winter activities. I remember it was such an experience, so many firsts for me. Also food wise. It was the first time I ever tried crisp bread, elk meat, brown cheese, even salmon. But there was one thing that stuck with me from the intercultural dinner we served at the end of the exchange. A delicious mysterious Norwegian cake. Little did I know back then that I will rediscover and start baking myself this ‘Kvæfjordkake’ 13 years later 🙂

Is it really ‘world’s best cake’?

So, years later, life brought me here in Denmark, closer to Norway. And it is also here that I discovered I have this thing for baking. When I was in my first to second year of living in Denmark, I randomly stumble upon an article about this national cake of Norway, that they call the world’s best cake. And then I realize that this is the cake I tasted more than 10 years ago. I knew that my boyfriend had a Norwegian colleague at work at that time, so I asked him to kindly ask her to give me a good recipe for ‘kvæfjordkake’. With my level of Danish at that point, I knew I could understand written Norwegian. I was therefore after a recipe as authentic as possible. Something like grandma’s or mom’s recipe for the infamous Norwegian cake.

And I got 3 of them – one from a grandma, one from a mamma and one from a friend. So I did a mix and match and chose the parts I liked better from all of them. And started trying. That moment when I tasted my first self baked ‘kvæfjordkake’ – it was love at first bite. Well, at second bite to be more accurate. It was finally that Norwegian cake of my memories all over again. That combination of vanilla sponge that blends in so well with the delicate meringue, and the light vanilla cream… Not too sweet, perfectly balanced with some fresh berries on the side. Just the way I like a desert. So it might just as well be ‘world’s best cake’.

The ‘kvæfjordkake’ layer cake

After baking and sharing the Norwegian cake with friends a few times, someone that just like me fell in love with it, asked me if I can make a ‘kvæfjordkake’ birthday cake. Normally I would make this cake simple, in a rectangular form, but it was supposed to be for a child’s birthday this time. So I worked my head around it and adjusted the recipe so I can make a layer cake out of it. Plus I started adding extra berries in between the layers. And it was a success. This is actually one of the birthday cakes I’ve been baking the most over the last couple of years.

Have a birthday party coming up soon? Why not try surprising your guests with this utterly delicious Norwegian cake? Check out the recipe below.

Ingredients (makes a 26cm Ø cake, 16-18 servings)

For the vanilla sponge:

• 200g all purpose flour
• 1tsp baking powder
• 200g butter (room temperature)
• 170g sugar
• 1tsp good vanilla sugar
• 6 egg yolks (large)
• 90-100ml milk

For the meringue:

• 6 egg whites (large)*
• a pinch of salt
• 300g sugar
• 50g almond flakes

For the vanilla cream and filling:

• 500ml milk
• 1 vanilla bean
• 6 egg yolks
• 30g sugar
• 1-2tbsp corn starch
• 1tsp good vanilla extract
• 400ml whipping cream (chilled)
• fresh berries of choice – for filling and to decorate if you’d like

Tools:

• 3 x 26cm Ø spring forms or cake ring(s) – I have 2 spring forms of the same size and I adjust my cake ring to the same size as well, so I get 3
• baking paper
• stand or hand mixer
• 1-2 large mixing bowls
• pastry spatulas
• a casserole
• a whisk

Notes

*Try to use eggs as fresh as possible, the older the eggs, the more difficult it will be to get the right results with the meringue.

**Please be aware that I am using a very old oven, that only heats from above, and can’t do ventilation, therefore my meringue is always getting a bit ‘tanned’. And since meringue is very sensitive, you might need to try and adjust baking temperature and times according to your own oven.

Instructions

1. Weigh the flour, add the baking powder and stir with a dry whisk. Set aside. In a mixing bowl of a stand mixer place the butter at room temperature and the sugar (including the vanilla one), and beat with the paddle attachment until light and fluffy (about 4-5min). Add the egg yolks one by one, and beat well after each. Then set the mixer on low speed and easily pour the flour mixture and the milk simultaneously. It’s easiest done with a stand mixer, if you are using a hand mixer, you’ll need someone to help you with this. Mix just until everything is incorporated. Transfer in another bowl and set aside. This is also when I like to weigh the batter, so I’ll now how to divide by 3, to get equal thin sponges.

2. Preheat the oven at 170C. Line the spring forms bottoms with baking paper, and/or place the cake ring(s) on an oven tray lined with baking paper.

3. In a clean mixing bowl add the egg whites and a pinch of salt. Make sure both the mixing bowl and whisk attachment are completely clean, no signs of fat on them, the meringue is not coping too well with that. Beat on medium speed until soft peaks form. Then start adding the sugar, one spoon at a time, separated by at least 30sec. Once you finished adding the sugar increase the speed to medium-high and beat until glossy and stiff peaks form. Make sure the sugar is dissolved. You can check that by rubbing a tiny bit of the mixture in between your fingers. If the mixture is still grainy, give it a minute more, or just until it feels smooth.

4. Distribute the vanilla sponge batter equally in the 3 spring forms and level it with a small pastry spatula. Then add the meringue on top of the vanilla sponge (also equally distributed) and also try leveling it with a clean small spatula. Sprinkle almond flakes on top of all of them.

5. Place the first one on a lower rack in the preheated oven and bake for 22-25 minutes. You’re looking for a meringue that’s set, slightly changing colour. Repeat until you have baked all three layers of your Norwegian cake. Let them cool, then remove from spring forms/ cake ring(s).

6. In the meantime, prepare the vanilla cream. Place the milk in a casserole, then cut open a vanilla bean lengthwise and with a small knife tip scrape the small vanilla seeds and add to the milk, together with the vanilla bean. Place over medium heat and bring it just to a boil, then remove from heat and let sit for a few minutes, so the milk will infuse with vanilla.

7. Meanwhile, add the egg yolks, sugar and corn starch to a small mixing bowl, and whisk by hand until everything is incorporated. Add half of the warm milk to the egg yolks mixture and continue whisking just until the sugar is dissolved. Pour this mix back in the casserole together with the rest of the milk, and return it to the stove, on medium heat. Make sure you stir the mixture continuously while on the heat, so it won’t stick. Keep stirring until it thickens and once it gets a thick creamy consistency, turn off the heat. Add the vanilla extract and incorporate. Place some plastic cling film on top and let it cool down. That will prevent it from forming a skin on top.

8. Once your vanilla custard has reached room temperature, it’s time to finalize the cream. Whip the cold cream with a stand or hand mixer until stiff peaks form. Be careful to not over beat it, as you don’t want that cheesy/buttery texture. It’s time to incorporate the custard in the whipped cream. I recommend doing that by hand, with a silicone spatula, to avoid over beating. Use slow bottom to top folding movements, just until you get a nice smooth mixture.

9. Rinse and pat dry your desired berries and you’re ready to put your layer cake together. I love the way raspberries pair with this cake, but I’ve made it also with a mix of blueberries, raspberries and blackberries, and it turned out great. And online I’ve seen it with strawberries most often.

10. Have a look at your 3 vanilla sponge-meringue layers and choose the prettiest for the top. I like to use the thicker one as the base. Place the the base layer on your serving plate, then add a few tablespoons of your vanilla cream, just enough to cover the cake and not too much for it to drop on the edges. Sprinkle a few berries (cut into pieces if needed) and gently push them into the cream. Use two long pastry spatulas (or 2 knives) to place the middle layer on top of that. Add again a few spoons of the cream and the berries. Then gently add the top layer. You can either serve your Norwegian cake like this, or decorate with a generous pile of berries on top.

And there you have it – your ‘kvæfjordkake’ inspired layer cake! A really nicely balanced and fresh cake that will blow your mind. Especially if you’re a vanilla lover. Let me know what you think, if you give it a try.

Baking it as a casual cake?

Do you like how it sounds, but you’d rather bake it as a casual weekend cake? Nothing easier! Depending on the size of you oven tray, you can keep the measurements or go down to 2/3 of each. Then just bake everything at once in a large tray, cut the large sheet in two equal pieces and place on top of each other with the vanilla cream in between. That’s actually how the original Norwegian cake recipe is – simple and ready in just one bake. And of course, don’t forget about the berries. Or maybe try it both ways and then you’ll know which way is your way. Should you need help with adjusting the ingredients quantities and adapting to your trays, do not hesitate to write to me, I’ll be happy to help.

Leftovers dessert? Yes, please!

As you might already know, I hate food waste. So I always try to use as much as possible in my kitchen. That’s how I’ve been raised and I believe it’s a little thing I can do for us and this planet. Plus it kind of forces you to experiment, and become more creative in your kitchen.

So here’s a tip, in case you have some vanilla cream left for example, as you don’t want to over load your cake either. It sometimes happens to me, so what I do is that I place the vanilla cream in a whiskey glass or two and top it with some berries. Then let it sit and set in the fridge for a few hours. That’s basically a vanilla mousse with berries – a nice easy breezy dessert to have on a summer evening, after dinner. Enjoy!

Happy baking, everyone!