Strawberry Cake with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting
Spring has finally started to show it’s beautiful face around here. The birds are chirping and the smell of fresh cut grass is prominent I adore that smell. We’re also seeing strawberries plants blooming earlier than usual. Is there anything sweeter than fresh strawberries on a beautiful day?
This weeks Food Blogger Challenge happens to be for strawberries so I was excited. Sadly we don’t have any fresh strawberries ready for the pickin’ just yet. I used the next best thing, frozen strawberries, for a delicious strawberry cake. Strawberry cake has to be my all time favorite cake.
I can’t think of much that makes me as happy. The frozen berries don’t quite do what I want them to, but they do bring it as close as I’m going to get until I can use some fresh picked berries. I used a simple vanilla cream cheese frosting topped with sliced strawberries to finish the cake and let me just say: “YUM!“
This is a fairly dense cake, but not in a bad way. I know most people use a preserve or puree when making a strawberry cake, but I have to have those strawberry bits so just half mine. Check out the recipe and make sure you hop along to the other strawberry inspired recipes linked up below.
Strawberry Cake with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting
Recipe Type: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Author:
Ingredients
- [b]Cake[/b]
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup vegetabe oil
- 4 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 cups of strawberries, halved
- [b]Frosting[/b]
- 1 8 ounce package cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 cup strawberries, sliced
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour 2 8 inch cake pans.
- Mix together the sugar and vegetable oil. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Slowly add the flour and baking soda and blend until creamy.
- Split the batter up between the 2 cake pans and bake for 50 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool cakes on a wire rack and let them come to room temperature.
- In a large bowl cream together the butter and cream cheese. Slowly stir in the powdered sugar to reach the desired consistency.
- Frost the bottom layer of the cake and spread the sliced strawberries over the frosting.
- Add the 2nd layer to the top and finish frosting. Garnish with berries if desired.
Early Spring Citrus Bars
Spring is in the air! I realized that when I woke up this morning to the sound of grass cutters and birds chirping. It would have been a better morning if I hadn’t woke up to my {male} dog strategically sitting on my hand. But I’m not going to go there; I’m just not.
I woke up craving citrus. I wanted something light and fruity and then I remembered I had a pomelo in the kitchen I needed to do something with. I’m not a fan of grapefruit but do enjoy the tartness on occasion; pomelo is a wonderful substitute. My goal was to find something light and fitting to the day; spring worthy. To do this I went on a hunt for pomelo recipes but was disappointed with my findings. Most what I found were recipes for salads – I wanted a dessert.
I did find a recipe for Pomelo Citrus Bars over at The Kitchn which looked fantastic so I knew it was possible. I decided I wanted to make a Early Spring Citrus Bars. I got busy making my crust, which was a basic shortbread crust. I used a 9×13 inch dish since I couldn’t find anything else (it’s a mess down there!) I put the crust in the oven for 20 minutes and went to work on the filling. Now, I know a lot of people prefer the no bake filling for lemon bars, but I absolutely love that little bit of crispness on the top of mine.
Once the crust had baked and the filling was ready it was time to put that baby in the oven. After about 5 minutes in the oven the entire kitchen had a beautiful yet light citrus aroma; oh it was divine! The next part was the hardest, letting them cool before cutting into them. I did make sure to put some powdered sugar on top before it cooled. This gives it a little more adhesiveness as opposed to putting it on there cold. When I finally did get to cut into them they were absolutely perfect with just the right amount of chewiness. The orange zest helped enhance the pomelo flavor without overpowering it – that was the goal.
Early Spring Citrus Bars
Author:
Ingredients
- [b]CRUST:[/b]
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 stick butter, softened
- 1/3 cup confectioners sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon pomelo zest
- [b]FILLING:[/b]
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup sugar
- 4 tablespoons corn starch
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 cup pomelo juice
- 2 teaspoons grated orange zest
- Powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°.
- In a medium – large bowl, combine the crust ingredients thoroughly; making sure to evenly spread out the butter.
- Press the crust mixture into a 9×13 (or whatever is handy) baking dish. Get the crust as smooth and even as possible, making sure there are no cracks.
- Bake the crust for 25 minutes.
- In a medium bowl beat 3 eggs into the sugar. Carefully add the corn starch & baking powder, incorporate everything together.
- Slowly whisk in the pomelo juice and orange zest and beat until frothy.
- Pour the filling into the crust and bake for 25 minutes or until a nice golden crust starts to form (not too much.)
- Allow to cool for 5 minutes and dust the top with powdered sugar. Cool completely before cutting and serving.
Watermelon Citrus Mint Salad Recipe
Watermelon Citrus Mint Salad Recipe
I love spring/summer season because of all the fresh produce available. Watermelon is in season and one of my favorite watermelon recipe is this Watermelon Citrus Mint Salad Recipe. This is the perfect spring salad, I just love the mix of sweet watermelon, citrus and yummy cheese. Continue reading
Butternut Squash Soup Recipe
They say the world eats with their eyes. The eyes are the window to the soul but they haven’t been warmed from the inside out. The soup that I learned to cook in Barcelona, Spain is a game changer. It bubbles every memory I have on Spain and serves it on a spoon.
Butternut Squash Soup Recipe “Crema De Calabaza”
Continue readingRoasted Brussels Sprouts and Butternut Squash with Cranberries Recipe
Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Butternut Squash with Cranberries Recipe
The hills are alive with the sound of music or maybe that is just me humming. I am not sure why a vegetable I used to hide under the table makes me so happy now. I remember rolling my brussels sprouts deep in a napkin. I would fold it in there and make the cough sound. It would fly into the napkin, and I would crush it as I tried to not let on to the destruction of the sprout in my fingers. What changed?
Why do I love brussels sprouts now?
I found a way to roast them and pair them with some of the sweetest and most savory flavors you can imagine. When you smell this side dish, you will think let’s just forget about dinner and dive into these.
When I make this recipe for my husband, I just leave out the cheese since he can only eat gluten free, dairy free, and egg free recipes. I also put the nuts on the side for my daughter. You see making dinner is always a game of who can eat what. This recipe is a fall favorite, and I dare say my youngest begs for it. I call that a win!