Strawberry Shortcake Cake
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Pages 246-249 from The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Food From My Frontier. Makes one ten-inch cake. To skip to the unadorned recipe, just scroll down the page until you see “Ingredients”.
@recipe The Pioneer Woman
@ingredients Ozark Natural Foods
@story Marla Cantrell
It was one of those glorious summer nights. My house swelled with friends and family. The kids were playing ball outside. The dogs and chickens and what-not were being, well, dogs and chickens and what-not. My point is, it was a great night, and in the middle of it all I was baking this cake.
Who would not love a dessert that has the word cake in it twice?
It was a tower of goodness, but the next time I’ll cut down the amount of frosting. I think it would look great without the sides frosted. (Kind of like this!)
The other thing I did differently than the PW is that I baked two layers, so that I wouldn’t have to cut one layer cake in two. That sounded difficult, and I’m not a fan of difficult.
Let’s get started.
Gather your ingredients. Mine were from the Ozark Natural Foods in Fayetteville. So good.
Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9-inch (or 2 8-inch) cake pan(s). Must be at least 2-inches deep, if you’re using one pan.
To make cake batter, beat together 3 large eggs, 1 ½ cups plus 3 Tablespoons granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Add ½ cup sour cream (at room temperature) and 1 teaspoon vanilla, then mix until just combined.
Sift together 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon salt, 3 Tablespoons cornstarch, and 1 teaspoon baking soda and add it to the bowl.
Mix together until just combined. The batter appeared a little thick but it turned out fine.
Spread in a pan or pans and bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the cake is no longer jiggly.
Carefully remove the cake from the pan and allow it to cool completely.
Next, mash 1 pound strawberries with a potato masher or fork (I used a fork). Reserve a few for garnish if you like.
Sprinkle the strawberries with 3 Tablespoons granulated sugar. Set aside.
To make the frosting, combine one 8-ounce package cream cheese, at room temperature, 2 sticks unsalted butter, 1 ½ pounds powdered sugar, sifted. (I didn’t have a sifter, and this still turned out great.) 1 teaspoon vanilla, and ¼ teaspoon salt in mixing bowl.
Mix until light and fluffy.
Here’s where I saved time. I didn’t have to cut a one-layer cake in two. I made the two layers, cooled them , and I was good to go.
I put each layer on a separate plate and poured the strawberries and the juice that had accumulated onto the cakes.
Freezer time! Put the cakes in the freezer for 20 minutes to firm them up. You’re going to be frosting ON TOP of the strawberries, so don’t skip this step.
Take the cakes out, placing on layer on a cake stand. Ice the top, over the strawberries, plop on the other layer, and do the same.
Carefully ice the outside with the remaining frosting.
Store leftovers (if there are any!) in the fridge.
Enjoy! I loved the cake, my company loved the cake, and Rudy, the rowdy schnauzer who stole some off a plate left on the coffee table, loved it too. Bad dog!
Strawberry Shortcake Cake Ingredients
Cake
1-1/2 cup Flour
3 Tablespoons Cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 stick (1/2 cup) plus 1 Tablespoon Unsalted Butter, Softened
1-1/2 cups plus 3 Tablespoons granulated Sugar
3 whole Large Eggs
1/2 cup Sour Cream, Room Temperature
1 teaspoon Vanilla
Strawberries
1 pound Strawberries, hulled and halved
3 Tablespoons granulated Sugar
Icing
One 8-ounce package Cream Cheese, Room Temperature
2 sticks (1 cup) Unsalted Butter
1-1/2 pound Powdered Sugar, Sifted
1 teaspoon Vanilla
¼ teaspoon Salt
Preparation Instructions
IMPORTANT: Be sure to use a cake pan that’s at least 2 inches deep! Before baking, the batter should not fill the pan more than halfway. (Or use 2 pans – an @Urban recommendation)
Sift together flour, salt, baking soda, and corn starch.
Cream butter with the sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well each time. Add sour cream and vanilla and mix until combined. Add sifted dry ingredients and mix on low speed until just barely combined.
Pour into greased and floured 8-inch cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes, or until no longer jiggly like my bottom. Remove from cake pan as soon as you pull it out of the oven, and place on a cooling rack and allow it to cool completely.
Stem strawberries and slice them in half from bottom to top. Place into a bowl and sprinkle with 3 tablespoons sugar. Stir together and let sit for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, mash the strawberries in two batches. Sprinkle each half with 1 tablespoons sugar and allow to sit for another 30 minutes.
Make icing: combine cream cheese, 2 sticks butter, sifted powdered sugar, vanilla, and dash of salt in a mixing bowl. Mix until very light and fluffy.
Slice cake in half through the middle. Spread strawberries evenly over each half (cut side up), pouring on all the juices. Place cake halves into the freezer for five minutes, just to make icing easier.
Remove from freezer. Use a little less than 1/3 of the icing to spread over the top of the strawberries on the bottom layer. Place the second layer on top. Add half of the remaining icing to the top spreading evenly, then spread the remaining 1/3 cup around the sides.
Leave plain OR garnish with strawberry halves.
IMPORTANT: Cake is best when served slightly cool. The butter content in the icing will cause it to soften at room temperature. For best results, store in the fridge!