Flotkake or Blotkake by John Anvik
Flotkake or Blotkake
by John Anvik
Country: Norway
Prep./cook time: 1.5 - 2 hours
Ingredients:
Cake
- 3/4 cup cake flour
- 1 + 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 4 eggs (separated)
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 4 tablespoon cold water
Filling
- 3 egg yolks
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 + 1/2 cup half-and-half (half cream, half milk)
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup strawberry (or apricot) jam (warmed and strained)
- 1 pint fresh strawberries
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- Topping
- 1 + 1/2 cup whipping cream
- 2 tablespoon powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
Image
Steps:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees celsius.
Cake
- Blend flour and baking powder.
- Whip egg whites until fluffy.
- Gradually add sugar and beat until stiff and meringue-like.
- Beat egg yolks until frothy.
- Fold egg yolks and flour mixture into the egg whites.
- Divide batter between two pans.
- Bake layers for 30 minutes or until center springs back.
Custard Filling
- Mix egg yolks, butter, cornstarch, half-and-half and sugar in a small saucepan.
- Cook, stirring over medium heat until the mixture is smooth and thick.
- Remove from heat and cool.
- Stir in vanilla.
Assembly
- Cut layers into two.
- Put a bottom layer on the plate
- Moisten with orange juice.
- Spread with 1/2 custard.
- Top with a layer.
- Moisten with orange juice.
- Spread with jam.
- Reserve a few nice strawberries for garnish on top.
- Slice strawberries and place on top of jam.
- Top with a layer.
- Moisten with orange juice.
- Spread remaining custard on layer.
- Top with final layer.
- Moisten with orange juice.
- Whip cream and flavour with powdered sugar and vanilla.
- Ice with whipping cream.
- Garnish with preserved strawberries or other fruits: grapes (cut in half), kiwis (sliced), mandarin oranges (from a can works) and blueberries. Bananas can work also but they go brown after a while.
Tips/Tricks:
I haven't mastered getting the cake to be as thick as I remember Grandma's being (might be an Alberta/BC thing), so I do two layers and have the middle be both custard and jam. In which case you could half the custard (but I like custard, so I make what is here and only use half).
Why this recipe?

My father's family immigrated from Stavanger, Norway to British Columbia, Canada in the 1950s. I grew up with my grandmother making this cake for special occasions, most especially for family birthdays.
John Anvik - Assistant Professor, A&S