Strawberry cake recipe?

[techno foodie]

Hello! I'm searching for a recipe for a from-scratch strawberry cake. The only discussion thread I've seen on this site that is somewhat related to this topic dealt with strawberry mousse cake. That's all well and good, but what I'm looking for is an honest-to-goodness strawberry cake (pink in color and flecked with bits of strawberry) that can be made into a layer cake or cupcakes.

I've searched the Web with little to no luck, so if anyone here would be able to help me out, I would greatly appreciate it!

[Patrick S]

Here's one. It has strawberry gelatin and strawberry puree in the batter. A lot of recipes seem to just use the strawberry gelatin, which Im sure is convenient but something just seems wrong about a strawberry cake without real strawberries. I'm looking for a good strawberry cake recipe too, so if you try this one, let us know how it turns out. Edited February 16, 2005 by Patrick S (log)

[achevres]

Here is a recipe that starts with a white cake mix, but you could use your own from-scratch white cake recipe: Strawberry Cake. I'm not sure if you consider strawberry gelatin a from-scratch ingredient, though.

[ludja]

Here's one that uses strawberry preserves in the cake batter. The recipe is for cupcakes but I suppose it could be used for cake layers as well.

I think most recipes incorporate strawberry as a non- or slightly-cooked ingredient to preserve the flavor of the fruit. (strawberry pie being one of the more common exceptions). It would be interesting to hear if any of these turn out good!

I saw some recipes with the strawberry gelatin as well. Some of those recipes add fresh pureed strawberries to the frosting or add them between the cake layers.

[techno foodie]

Thank you all for your help!

I think I'll try one of these gelatin-filled recipes, but also think I'll - eventually - try messing with a white cake recipe in some way. Maybe add preserves and/or puree in some combination? As Patrick said, it just seems a bit odd to use gelatin.

I'll report back at some point with my results!

[middydd]

Hello!  I'm searching for a recipe for a from-scratch strawberry cake.  The only discussion thread I've seen on this site that is somewhat related to this topic dealt with strawberry mousse cake.  That's all well and good, but what I'm looking for is an honest-to-goodness strawberry cake (pink in color and flecked with bits of strawberry) that can be made into a layer cake or cupcakes.

I've searched the Web with little to no luck, so if anyone here would be able to help me out, I would greatly appreciate it!

←

I've been looking for the same recipe. I've been meaning to try the recipe here:

http://magazines.ivillage.com/countrylivin...,637388,00.html

But haven't gotten around to it yet.

[Wendy DeBord]

One of our office ladies made a strawberry cake from The Cake Doctor cookbook that wasn't bad. I know it involved a mix.......possibly a container of frozen sweetened strawberries too. I know that book is in all the bookstores if your interested.

[Patrick S]

Here's one that uses strawberry preserves in the cake batter.  The recipe is for cupcakes but I suppose it could be used for cake layers as well.

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That recipe calls for 1/2 cup ground nutmeg. I can just see the kiddies pelting the humble cook mercilessly with brown 'spiceberry' cupcakes. Hehe.

I made a big batch of strawberry preserves with framboise to use for cake making. I think I'll try the first posted recipe, and use the gelatin for one of the cakes and leave it out of the other, so I can compare.

[ludja]

Here's one that uses strawberry preserves in the cake batter.  The recipe is for cupcakes but I suppose it could be used for cake layers as well.

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That recipe calls for 1/2 cup ground nutmeg. I can just see the kiddies pelting the humble cook mercilessly with brown 'spiceberry' cupcakes. Hehe.

...

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Whups. Doesn't instill a lot of confidence in the recipe, does it... (looks like it would be 1/2 tsp).

Your comparison 'bake off" sounds interesting. I'm intrigued by what the rasberry gelatin adds to the mix, so to speak.

[chefcyn]

Hello!  I'm searching for a recipe for a from-scratch strawberry cake.  The only discussion thread I've seen on this site that is somewhat related to this topic dealt with strawberry mousse cake.  That's all well and good, but what I'm looking for is an honest-to-goodness strawberry cake (pink in color and flecked with bits of strawberry) that can be made into a layer cake or cupcakes.

I've searched the Web with little to no luck, so if anyone here would be able to help me out, I would greatly appreciate it!

←

This should work fine, and is suitable for all sorts of flavors and variations:

Generic Quick Cake mix:

INGREDIENTS:

* 10 cups flour

* 4 tablespoons and 4 teaspoons baking powder

* 5teaspoons salt

* 5 cup sugar

* 1 1/4 cup nonfat dry milk

* 2 1/2 cups oil

PREPARATION:

In a large mixing bowl, with a pastry blender, or in a food processor, mix ingredients until fine. Store in an airtight container or plastic bag and use within 2 months. (Keep in refrigerator)

*******************************************************************************************

Strawberry Cake:

* 4 cups Quick Mix for Cake

* 2 eggs, separated

* 1/3 cup water

* 3/4 c mashed frozen strawberries (thawed)

* 1 teaspoons vanilla

* 1 tsp strawberry extract or 2 Tbs strawberry liqueur

* couple drops red food coloring (optional, depending on the color you want)

* pinch salt

* 1/4 cup sugar

Heat oven to 350°. Grease and flour 2 round cake pans or a 9x13x2-inch pan.

Pour 4 cups of Cake Mix into a large mixing bowl. Mix yolks with 1/3 cup water, strawberry extract and vanilla; beat well and stir into dry mix in bowl. Beat egg whites until foamy and add salt and sugar; beat until meringue forms stiff peaks. Fold beaten egg whites into the cake batter. Pour into pan(s) and bake for 30 to 35 minutes.

Edited February 18, 2005 by chefcyn (log)

[CanadianBakin']

chefcyn - if I wanted to use your recipe to make just a plain cake would increasing the water to 1 cup be about right?

[Patrick S]

Here's one. It has strawberry gelatin and strawberry puree in the batter. A lot of recipes seem to just use the strawberry gelatin, which Im sure is convenient but something just seems wrong about a strawberry cake without real strawberries.

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To follow up, I tried this recipe yesterday. I creamed the butter and sugar, then split that in two, and made 1/2 the recipe with strawberry Jello and the other 1/2 without. I added about 1/4C extra preserves and some red gel color to the no-Jello cake. Bottom line is that the cake is pretty good, but all 3 people, including myself, who tried both cakes said that the cake with Jello was better.

Edited February 20, 2005 by Patrick S (log)

[browniebaker]

Has anyone ever tried strawberry Koolaid? You would get the intense flavor and color that you get with Jello, minus the gelatin. (Is the gelatin a good thing?)

[Patrick S]

Alright, I think that the second cake I tried beats the last cake. This is a 'chiffon' strawberry cake- the whites are seperated, whipped firm and folded in, and the fat is from vegetable oil. Because strawberry Jello gave an edge in my last cake, I added half an envelope of it in this cake. The recipe is on this page. I used 8 whites, and covered it with a strawberry 'boiled icing' that tastes like strawberry marshmallow cream.

Edited February 21, 2005 by Patrick S (log)

[techno foodie]

Wow, Patrick - as always your pictures are *divine*! Makes me want to go make one of the cakes right now :)

A few questions for you:

1. What size pan did you use on the second cake (the chiffon)? At what temp did you bake it and for how long?

2. Why did you like the chiffon cake better than the first cake you made (with the jell-o and puree)?

3. Any chance you could point me to the boiled icing recipe you used for the second cake?

Thank you for trying out these recipes and for sharing the results!

Bryan

[Patrick S]

Wow, Patrick - as always your pictures are *divine*!  Makes me want to go make one of the cakes right now :)

A few questions for you:

1. What size pan did you use on the second cake (the chiffon)?  At what temp did you bake it and for how long?

2. Why did you like the chiffon cake better than the first cake you made (with the jell-o and puree)?

3. Any chance you could point me to the boiled icing recipe you used for the second cake?

Thank you for trying out these recipes and for sharing the results!

Bryan

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1. I used a 9" springform, and baked at 330F. The recipe said to cook for 30-35 minutes, but it was closer to 45 for me to get a clean toothpick.

2. I liked the chiffon cake better because it was more spongy and less crumbly. I used a little more oil (2/3C) than the recipe called for, but I still want to increase the moisture a little more, maybe add 1/2C of buttermilk or sour cream.

3. To make the boiled frosting, I cooked 1.5C of sugar and 1/2C water to 240F. While the sugar is heating, I beat 4 whites to soft peaks. When the sugar was ready, I turned the mixer on high and poured the hot sugar into the side of the mixing bowl in a slow stream. Leaving the mixer on high, I dropped a tablespoon or so of strawberry preserves at a time into the mixer. I think I used maybe 1/3 to 1/2C. I think I beat for like 5 minutes. Just go til the frosting is thick enough to put on the cake, but not so thick you can't get it on the cake without tearing it up.

EDIT to add that I incorrectly stated that the fat in the chiffon comes from vegetable oil. Actually, it had 6 yolks as well.

Edited February 22, 2005 by Patrick S (log)

[Patrick S]

With the third cake I've tried, I've hit the mark. At least, I've found what I'm looking for in a strawberry cake -- exceedingly moist, dense, and flavorful. Of the three I've tried so far, this is the only one that I'm sure will get eaten to completion. Tasters at home and work also think its easily the best of the three. The only drawback --and to me its not a drawback at all-- is its density. If you want a light and airy cake, this is not the one for you.

Ingredients

1/2C vegetable oil

1 2/3C sugar

1 3oz package strawberry Jello

1 1/2C strawberry puree

1C sour cream

3 large eggs

1t baking soda

3/4t salt

2t vanilla

2 1/4C cake flour

Preheat oven to 350F.

Line bottom of 13x9 pan with parchment, and spray sides with veg oil spray or coat with butter.

Mix oil, sugar, Jello, vanilla, and puree until smooth. Add sour cream, and mix till combined. Add eggs, one at a time time, mixing each until thoroughly combined. Add salt and soda, mix until combined. Add flour, mix just until combined. Pour into pan, and bake for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

There are at least two changes I want to try. One, I want to try replacing the oil with a stick of butter. Two, I want to try seperating the eggs and whipping the whites.

[M. Lucia]

Patrick, you should have warned us: strawberry cake porn!

I was thinking, if you wanted the cake to be lighter you could also try subbing butttermilk for the sour cream.

Thanks for all the testing and the pictures!

[techno foodie]

Patrick - you're killing me! (In a good way). Now I just have to make this cake this weekend, I think. I was going to make Wendy's banana cake, but after seeing your 3rd attempt at strawberry cake I've decided I MUST have it this weekend. Oh, heck, maybe I'll make them both :)

If I try your cake this weekend I'll try making at least one of the three substitutions you mentioned - and will report back on the results.

One last question: what did you top your 3rd attempt with? Is this something that would pair best with whipped cream, or would a regular frosting still work?

Thanks again for testing these out!

Bryan

[Patrick S]

Thanks for the compliments, M. Lucia and Bryan.

Bryan,

I didn't top the last cake with anything, because frankly I didn't think it could benefit. But if I were going to put something on it, I would use something light like whipped cream. The top of the cake is very moist, and it would be difficult to ice it with anything very thick without tearing it up.

[Toliver]

There are at least two changes I want to try. One, I want to try replacing the oil with a stick of butter. Two, I want to try seperating the eggs and whipping the whites.

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I think the oil is one of the reasons why the cake so moist. Whipping the egg whites will make it a sort of chiffon cake. The whipping adds air which should expand as it bakes giving you a lighter texture.

If you do whip the whites, have you thought about using an Angel food pan or bundt pan?

More info on Chiffon Cakes.

[chefcyn]

This should work fine, and is suitable for all sorts of flavors and variations:

Generic Quick Cake mix:

INGREDIENTS:

    * 10 cups flour

    * 4 tablespoons and 4 teaspoons baking powder

    * 5teaspoons salt

    * 5 cup sugar

    * 1 1/4 cup nonfat dry milk

    * 2 1/2 cups oil

PREPARATION:

In a large mixing bowl, with a pastry blender, or in a food processor, mix ingredients until fine. Store in an airtight container or plastic bag and use within 2 months. (Keep in refrigerator)

*******************************************************************************************

Strawberry Cake:

    * 4 cups Quick Mix for Cake

    * 2 eggs, separated

    * 1/3 cup water

    * 3/4 c mashed frozen strawberries (thawed)

    * 1 teaspoons vanilla

    * 1 tsp strawberry extract or 2 Tbs strawberry liqueur

    * couple drops red food coloring (optional, depending on the color you want)

    *  pinch salt

    *  1/4 cup sugar

Heat oven to 350°. Grease and flour 2 round cake pans or a 9x13x2-inch pan.

Pour 4 cups of Cake Mix into a large mixing bowl. Mix yolks with 1/3 cup water, strawberry extract and vanilla; beat well and stir into dry mix in bowl. Beat egg whites until foamy and add salt and sugar; beat until meringue forms stiff peaks. Fold beaten egg whites into the cake batter. Pour into pan(s) and bake for 30 to 35 minutes.

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That should be about right, you don't want a watery batter--thick and pourable/scrapeable--I've made it with milk as the liquid, too and it was fine.

[Wendy DeBord]

I made the recipe you reccomended Patrick, with a few changes. First I did try the recipe with sb jello and I didn't like the fake flavoring the jello gives off. So I omited the jello and used a strawberry compound (to taste) and that worked out great. Also for my strawberry puree I reduced my puree to get a more consentrated sauce and that also kicked up the flavor.

Everyone at work loves this THANK-YOU!

I serve it simply with whipped cream and fresh berries.

[Patrick S]

Thanks Wendy. It makes me happy to hear that it was liked. What sort of strawberry flavoring did you use in addition to the puree?

[Wendy DeBord]

We can buy in all sorts of flavors in 'compounds' wholesale. They are like a puree but even more intense so a little can go a long way. You can get these in flavors you would find difficult to intensify on your own.............like say champange. The cool thing about them is they work in most recipes as is, with-out dilluting down your recipe, therefore no adjusts need to be made. There's many manufactures of compounds probably http://www.amoretti.com is the most well known source for them. I like dridopple brand compounds.

If your not using any of these yet, I'm certain you'll like them Patrick.