Strawberry Shortcake Cake

Sorry I haven't been posting much lately. Lots of stuff going on...in addition to the World Cup's games at 4:30 am, my usual baking time. I apologize for missing several Tuesdays with Dorie weeks, and hope to get back into the swing of things soon. And special thanks to a few readers who sent me emails asking if I was okay! That was so thoughtful!

Remember Team Dave and the Los Angeles Marathon? I brought this lovely dessert to the post-marathon party. It's a great summer cake for a casual dinner party or way to highlight beautiful strawberries!

I adapted the recipe from Sky-High: Irresistible Triple Layer Cakes by Alisa Huntsman. Man, you have to get this book. It is Delicious with a capital D.

This cake is light (made with cake flour) and just delicious. Get her book for the filling which includes rose water. I didn't do that for this version, just macerated some strawberries in sugar.

Here is the Sky-High cake in three layers...see post here.

I've make this in a 6" triple layer before and it is quite lovely, but does NOT travel well at all. So this time I decided to make two 8" layers and assemble it at the party. Nothing like pulling out a whisk at the party...makes you look like a baker! :)

Strawberry Shortcake Cake
Adapted from Sky High: Irresistible Triple Layer Cakes by Alisa Huntsman, page 89

Cake:
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups cake flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2/3 cup buttermilk

1 1/2 - 2 cups heavy cream

Fresh Strawberry Filling (See the book for this recipe that includes rosewater...I just macerated some strawberries with sugar)

Whole strawberries, for garnish

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. I made mine with two 8" cake pans. The original recipes calls for three 6" pans.
2. Cream butter, 3/4 cup sugar and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition.
3. Sift together cake flour, baking powder, and salt.
4. Add dry ingredients to the batter, alternating with the buttermilk in 3 additions. Divide among the prepared pans.
5. I don't remember how long I baked my 8" pans. The 6" pans bake for 20-25 minutes. I pulled them out when a toothpick came out clean. I let them cool for 10 minutes and then cooled them on a cake rack.

Assembly:
1. In a large chilled bowl, whip the cream with the remaining 2 tbsp of sugar until stiff.
2. Assemble the cake with cake, strawberries, whipped cream and repeat. Finish with your best strawberries on top. Enjoy!
Again, the book has a recipe for fresh strawberry filing that includes rose water.