Strawberry Strawberry Cake - New Methods for Baking Cake

Strawberry cake! Strawberry cake!
Strawberry cake for a wedding cake!

Cotton candy pink! Puckered cream cheese!
Whipped snipped buttercream, light as a feather please!

Slivered livered berries, snuck between each square!
The flavors a bloomin, a soury sweet strawberry air!

Cake batter face and egg shell hair
Add more berries, were almost there!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Strawberry wedding cake, the bride wants? Hey, Why not? We've been dressing up trashy dishes for the past few years now: Coco cola braised shortribs, goat cheese/gruyere mac n cheese, mayonnaise boldly parading around as aioli!

Lordy, it is time for some good upscale strawberry cake! Schmancy enough of a banquet, locavorish enough to quell my inner snob!

Eeek, minor setback. Strawberry cake has no humble beginnings! Its conception occurred during a menage-a-sexy time between white cake mix and jello pudding mix. Just add eggs!

I consult the internets to find luke warm recipes for strawberry cake bearing only hints of strawberry flavor. What is a girl to do? Less than a month before the wedding and no recipe?

Hit the deck. Its recipe invention time...

Task 1: Choosing a base (don't re-invent the wheel)
- I used the Martha Stewart's Yellow Butter Cake as base for my cake because it yielded great results for my past wedding cake.

Task 2: Identify the Strawberry Component
- Puree
- I was also MASSIVELY inspired by marc from norecipes. He used powdered Just Strawberries, freeze dried strawberries from Just tomatoes! for his Strawberry Melting Moments. This was instrumental in impartinf a large strawberry flavor without the added water weight.

Away we go!

Trial 1: (+) 1 c puree (+) 2 T heavy cream (-) milk = didn't rise! too strawberries and cream like
Trials 2: (+) 1/2 c strawberry powder (+) 1 c puree = still didn't rise! I suspect tht my baking powder is old, buy new baking powder
Trial 3: (+) 5 T c strawberry powder (+) egg white = great lightness/texture, but the strawberry is weak
Trial 4: (+) 8T strawberry powder (+) egg white (-)25% sugar = greater strawberry flavor, but dense and hard inside
Trial 5: (+) 1/2 c strawberry powder (+) 1 c 2 T buttermilk (+) 1 egg white= So close! great texture, and quality wedding cake, but there is still something that urks me in the clarity of flavor. The flavor is being muddled by the distinct fullness of egg yolk clashing with higher pitched strawberry. The color is also a deeper purple, almost borderline brown. Yick.

I go back to the internet for ideas, but all I see is boxed white cake + jello pudding mix... And then it dawns on me (like finding my glasses on my face): I must switch the base to white cake! That will eliminate the offsetting yolk flavor. Woo, problem solved...

Trial 6: (+) 8 T strawberry powder(+) 2 T milk (+) 1 t vanilla (+) 1 egg white, lower baking temp = PERFECTION! soft pillowy crumb. moist moist. strawberry tangy. an innocent pink. Light but firm. Sigh--just 3 days before the wedding I settle on a recipe.

So here goes...

Strawberry Strawberry Cake (6 cups - 8 inch cake) Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes

Ingredients

- 3 1/4 c cake flour, sifted and then measured
- 1 1/2 T baking powder
- 1/4 t salt
- 14 T unsalted room temperature butter
- 1 3/4 c sugar
- 8 T powdered Just strawberries!
- 1 T vanilla
- 1 1/4 c whole milk
- 6 egg whites, room temperature
optional: pink dye (3 drops)

Preheat the oven for 325F.
1. Sift flour and measure. Combine sifted flour, powder, and salt. Sift 3 more times. Set aside in a small bowl.

2. In a large bowl, beat the butter and the sugar on high until fluffy. 3-4 minutes. The mixture should change to a lighter shade of yellow, almost white.

3. Beat in powdered strawberries for a minute. The mixture should be pink.

4. In a large glass combine vanilla and milk.

5. Beating the butter mixture on medium-high, add 1/4 of the flour mixture and blend until incorporated. Add 1/3 of milk mixture. Beat until fully incorporated. Continue to alternate the flour mixture and the milk until you end with flour.

6. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites to stiff peaks. Do not over beat!!! Fold a third of the egg whites into the strawberry gently to loosen the batter. Continue to add the egg whites. Be careful not to deflate the cake from overzealous hands.



7. Pour into a lined 8 inch pan. If you are cooking a thick cake, back for 45 minutes. If you are dividing amongst 2 pans, bake each at 20-25 minutes.

Enjoy! Now for that pesky but miracle Swiss meringue cream cheese buttercream...