Strawberry Cake

Doesn't this look amazing?  I made this for my old boss's birthday.  He is one of my favorite people to work with at my plant; he gets things done that I need to be finished and he does it correctly more often than most people I work with.  For that, he gets a cake.  ha. We also talk about food often.  He said he asked his whole family to bring some sort of dish that included fruit for his birthday, but they all refused.  Personally, I thought it was a great idea.  I can think of a lot of dishes that I make that have fruit in it. I make a really awesome stuffing that has pork and apples in it.  I love cranberries and chicken.  Anyhow, that is beside the point.  I wanted to make this cake and I was glad to have a reason to make it.  The end.  

This is how my cake turned out:

This is how it was supposed to look, but I changed the frosting:

REVIEW:  The icing is INCREDIBLE!!! The batter tasted amazing too.  I had to keep reminding myself that there was raw egg in the batter... someday I am going to have a bad case of food poisening and I will stop eating raw egg ... for a few months.  :)   Ha.  I found the recipe to be TOO sweet and strawberryish.  So I added the extra drizzle of chocolate icing to give it just a hint of something else.  I think chocolate chips baked in the cake next time would be delicious.  I will definitely make this cake again.


Strawberry Layer Cake with Whipped Strawberry Frosting



Strawberry Layer Cake
Yield: 3 x 8" round layers
Ingredients:
1 cup whole milk, room temperature

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup strawberry puree made from frozen strawberries (puree itself should be closer to room temp, not frozen or icy)

1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1 package strawberry flavored gelatin (such as Jell-O)
1 cup butter, softened
4 eggs (room temperature)

3 cups sifted cake & pastry flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt


Method:
1.  To make your own strawberry puree, place in blender and puree until smooth. Measure out 1/4 cup for cake and 3 tablespoons for frosting, and make a strawberry smoothie with the rest (add a banana and some yogurt if you need a bigger smoothie).
2.Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour three round 9-inch pans (the recipe calls for 8", but I only have 9").
3. Combine milk, strawberry puree, and the vanilla.
4. Sift dry ingredients together.
5. Cream the sugar, gelatin, and butter on medium speed until light and fluffy--about 5 minutes.
6. Add the eggs. Scrap sides of bowl with spatula.
7. Add the wet & dry ingredients. Do not overmix.
8. Divide the batter in three.
9. Bake 25-30 minutes or until a cake tester comes clean when inserted into the center. Be so careful to not overbake. Check cakes at 20 minutes, but not before, and once you feel it's almost ready, set the timer for 2 minute intervals. Let cool on racks for 10 minutes before loosening the sides with a small metal spatula, and invert onto greased wire racks. Gently turn cakes back up, so the tops are up and cool completely.


Whipped Strawberry Frosting
Ingredients:
2 cups heavy whipping cream + 1 package vanilla pudding (recipe calls for 3 sticks + 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened and cut into cubes + 1 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract + 1 T milk)
4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar 
pinch of salt
5 - 7 tablespoons strawberry puree

Method
1. Whip butter for 8 minutes on medium speed (I use "4" on my KitchenAid). Butter will become very pale & creamy or whip heavy whipping cream for 4 to 7 minutes.
2. Add remaining ingredients, except strawberry puree, and mix on low speed for 1 minute, then on medium speed for 6 minutes. Frosting will be very light, creamy, and fluffy.
3. Add strawberry puree (can be cool, but not frozen or icy) and mix until incorporated.
4. Best used right away, but can be covered in an airtight container at room temperature for a day or so.

Chocolate Icing
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup boiling water
pinch salt
1 T flour
1/2 tsp vanilla

Mix (whisk) everything, but the vanilla, on top of the stove until it thickens.  Remove from heat. Add vanilla.  Drizzle on top of cake. Strawberry Layer Cake Assembly
1. Place a cake layer face-up on cake plate or 8" round thin cake board.
2. Place 1 cup of frosting on top, and spread evenly with a small offset palette knife.
3. Repeat step 1-2.
4. Place final layer, frost, and chill. With the whipped topping you will not be able to frost the sides. 
5. Drizzle with chocloate icing.

adapted from source