Last May on Tous en Cuisine, celebrated French chef Cyril Lignac shared his foolproof vanilla cake recipe. Home bakers loved it for its rich flavor, perfectly paired with a luscious strawberry-vanilla syrup—pure indulgence!
How to Master Cyril Lignac's Vanilla Cake
General Information
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 35 minutes
Recipe for 4 people
Ingredients
- 3cl milk + pulp of 2 vanilla pods
- 150g flour
- 200g softened butter
- 100g + 50g sugar
- 60g ground almonds
- 4 eggs
- 8g baking powder
- 1 pinch of fine salt
Syrup: 9cl water + 30g sugar + 3cl rum + 1 vanilla pod
Glaze: 90g icing sugar + 15g strawberry purée + 1 vanilla pod
Butter for the mold
Step-by-Step Preparation
- Preheat oven to 180°C.
- Butter the mold. Warm the milk with pulp from 2 vanilla pods, then cover to infuse.
- In a bowl, whisk egg yolks with 100g sugar using a hand mixer until pale and creamy. Add softened butter and infused milk; mix well. Sift in flour, baking powder, and salt. Fold in ground almonds with a spatula.
- In another bowl, beat egg whites with 50g sugar to stiff peaks. Gently fold into batter in two additions. Pour into mold and bake 30 minutes until golden and set.
- Meanwhile, for syrup: Heat water, 30g sugar, and 1 vanilla pod in a saucepan, stirring until dissolved. Off heat, add rum. Set aside.
- Transfer baked cake to a wire rack. Trim top for evenness, invert, and brush syrup generously on all sides.
- Mix icing sugar, strawberry purée, and 1 vanilla pod pulp for glaze. Let thicken slightly, then drizzle over cake.
Enjoy this bakery-worthy treat! Bon appétit! 😉
