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| Photo: KeyIngredient |
I have a craving for a slice of strawberry cake and so decided to make one. A majority of recipes call for a box of strawberry jello, dried flaked strawberries, or 6 eggs, but c'mon ... an overabundance of ingredients to buy ... or just too eggy for my tastes. A homemade cake should be light, moist, and simple. Moreover, starting with a box of white cake mix? Fuhgeddaboudit! IMHO: There are 2 instant foods that make no sense to buy. They are: (1) instant rice and (2) cake mix since in using either one the prep isn't reduced, only the flavor. Hey, I say when you don't feel like making a cake from scratch, buy a cake from a good bakery! But finding a good bakery isn't necessary today, my lovelies, as here's an easy-peasy homemade cake recipe to follow using fresh strawberries, all-purpose flour, and only 2 eggs, items often in your pantry:
Strawberry Cake
Ingredients:
16 ounces of strawberries: For 3/4 cup strawberry puree, plus 1/4 cup diced and mashed strawberries. You'll need to prep but can do it ahead of time. (See how-to below.)
1 stick of butter softened
2 large (or extra large) eggs
2 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional: use strawberry extract if you have it).
2 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional: use strawberry extract if you have it).
A squirt of lemon juice (optional)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1) Use an electric mixer to combine the sugar, butter, and 1/2 cup of the strawberry puree. Save the rest of the puree to make the frosting.
Strawberry Frosting:
On Facebook, I learned our neighborhood once had a Ragman (who rode a wagon pulled by a horse) and a Popcorn Man who came around to sell their goods. I remember having a Fuller Brush Man, a Potato Chip Man, an Egg Man, an Avon Lady, and an ice cream truck. If they came to the house at the right time, they ate lunch or drank coffee with us.🏇
A pinch of salt
½ cup buttermilk
½ cup buttermilk
Preparation of the strawberries - Makes (a) 3/4 cup of strawberry puree and (b) 1/4 cup of diced, mashed strawberries: Toss about 12 ounces of strawberries into a blender to get 3/4 cup of strawberry puree. If necessary, add a 1/8 cup of water -- but strawberries are usually juicy enough. Next, simmer the mixture in a saucepan to reduce the liquid, and afterward cool the puree completely. Set aside. Dice and mash the remaining 1/4 cup of strawberries, then sprinkle a tablespoon of sugar on top, and set aside. This 2nd mixture will give your cake some chunks of strawberries in the texture. If you have extra strawberries, feel free to bump the chunks up to 1/2 cup that folds into the batter in step 5 below.
Directions:
2) Add the eggs and vanilla, a squirt of lemon, and beat.
3) Mix in the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and a pinch of salt.
4) Next add the buttermilk.
5) To the batter, fold in the diced, mashed strawberries with juice.
6) Pour the batter into 2-9 inch buttered and floured cake pans.
7) Bake in a preheated 350-degree F oven for 40 - 50 minutes or until done in the center.
Ingredients:
1 stick of butter softened
The remaining strawberry puree
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract (or if you have it, a sprinkle of strawberry extract)
1 box of confectioner's sugar.
Directions:
1) Mix the butter, strawberry puree, and vanilla together, and add 1 cup of confectioner's sugar at a time to the mixing bowl until you get the right consistency of frosting. Use as much of the box as needed. I simply pour it in and stir. When it thickens into frosting without being too stiff or thin, I stop. I also add drops of milk if necessary.
When I was a young child we had a man who grew and sold strawberries by walking our neighborhood and yelling, "Strawberry, strawberry, straw-ber-ry man." This cake reminds me of him, an industrious, hardworking, city farmer.🍓
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