Strawberry Cake

Strawberry Cake

by Ingrid Beer

Print Recipe

Category: Dessert
Cuisine: American

Yield: Serves 12

Nutrition Info: 770 calories

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Total time: 1 hour

Strawberry Cake Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup cake flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks), softened at room temp
• 1 ¾ cup granulated sugar
• 5 eggs, room temp
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk, room temp
• 1.2 ounce bag freeze-dried strawberries, roughly chopped (optional—I bought mine at Trader Joes)
• 3-4 cups hulled and sliced, fresh strawberries (about 1 -1 ¼ lbs), plus a couple of diced strawberries for garnish

Chambord Simple Syrup Ingredients:

• ½ cup granulated sugar
• ½ cup water
• 2 tablespoons Chambord liqueur

Vanilla Bean Whipped Cream Ingredients:

• 1 vanilla bean, split in half length-wise and the inside “paste” scraped out with a paring knife and reserved
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 quart whipping cream, very cold (4 cups)
• 1 cup powdered sugar

- Begin by preparing the Chambord simple syrup: in a small sauce pan, combine the sugar and the water, and bring to a simmer over medium heat; once it has simmered, turn the heat off and stir to completely dissolve the sugar; cool the simple syrup completely (you can place it into the fridge to expedite the process), and once cooled, add in the Chambord liqueur, stir to combine; keep covered in fridge until you're ready to soak the cake layers with it.

- Preheat the oven to 350°, and prepare two, 9” cake pans by lightly buttering them and lining them with parchment rounds; then, lightly sprinkling in some flour on the bottom and on the sides, and tap the excess out.

- To prepare the cake batter, begin by sifting together the all-purpose flour, the cake flour, the baking powder, baking soda and salt into a medium-large bowl; set aside these “dry” ingredients for a moment.

- Next, add the softened butter and the sugar to the bowl of a electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, and thoroughly cream the two together on medium-low speed until very pale and light and fluffy (for about 5-8 minutes), scraping down the sides about half-way through.

- Once the butter/sugar is thoroughly combined, begin adding the eggs in one at a time, allowing each to be fully incorporated into the butter/sugar before adding in the next one; next, add in the vanilla extract and allow it mix in.

- Reduce the mixer to low speed, and begin adding the “dry” ingredients and the buttermilk, alternating the two, beginning and ending with the flour; mix only until all ingredients are blended in, being careful not to over-mix the batter.

- Gently fold the chopped, freeze-dried strawberries (if using) into the batter.

- Pour the batter in equal amounts into the buttered/lined cake pans, gently tapping the pans several times on your counter to allow air bubbles to come up; place the pans into the oven on the middle rack and bake for about 28-32 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean.

- While the cake bakes, prepare the vanilla bean whipped cream: combine the vanilla bean “paste” and the vanilla extract in a small ramekin, and set aside for a moment.

- Add the cold whipping cream to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whip attachment, and whip the cream until it begins to thicken; next, add in vanilla extract/paste and the powdered sugar, and continue whipping until stiff peaks form; cover and place into the fridge to keep very cold until you're ready to frost the cake with it.

- Once baked, allow the cakes to cool in the pans for about 10 minutes, then turn the cakes out and allow them to cool completely on wire racks before filling and frosting.

- To assemble the cake, cut any unevenness off of the tops of each cooled cake (a “dome” for example, or the bubbly “skin”), and cut each cake in half horizontally through the center to create 4 thinner layers, reserving a flat bottom layer as the final, top layer.

- Place one of the layers in front of you on a cake stand or large plate, and with a pastry brush or spoon, add a generous amount of the Chambord simple syrup to the cake layer to moisten it well.

- Next, add a generous amount of the vanilla bean whipped cream and smooth it out with a off-set spatula or knife, and then arrange about 1 - 1 ¼ cup worth of sliced strawberries over the whipped cream; repeat the process with two more layers.

- For the final top layer, use a “flat-bottomed” layer with its flat side up, and finish off by adding only the simple syrup and then just frosting the outside of the entire cake generously with the remaining vanilla bean whipped cream.

- Garnish the cake with some of the diced strawberries, and store in fridge to keep very cold until ready to serve.