All-New Cake Mix Doctor - Anne Byrn [20]
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, at room temperature
4 tablespoons (½ stick) butter, at room temperature 1 tablespoon strawberry puree (see Note)
4½ cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1. Make the cake: Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly mist three 9-inch round cake pans with vegetable oil spray, then dust them with flour. Shake out the excess flour and set the pans aside.
Recipe Reminders
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2. Place the cake mix, mashed strawberries, oil, milk, vanilla, and eggs in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on low speed until the ingredients are incorporated, 30 seconds. Stop the machine and scrape down the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat for 1½ minutes longer, scraping down the side of the bowl again if needed. The strawberries should be well blended into the batter. Divide the cake batter evenly among the 3 prepared cake pans, about 1½ cups of batter per pan, smoothing the tops with the rubber spatula. Place the cake pans in the oven. If your oven is not large enough to hold 3 pans on one rack, place 2 pans on that rack and one in the center of the rack above.
3. Bake the cake layers until they spring back when lightly pressed in the center, 20 to 25 minutes. The cake layer on the higher rack may bake faster so test it for doneness first. Transfer the cake pans to wire racks and let the cake layers cool for 5 minutes. Run a dinner knife around the edge of each cake layer and give the pans a good shake to loosen the cakes. Invert each layer onto a wire rack, then invert it again onto another rack so that the cakes are right side up. Let the layers cool completely, 20 minutes longer.
4. Make the frosting: Place the cream cheese and butter in a medium-size bowl and beat with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Add the strawberry purée and slowly add the confectioners’ sugar. Beat on low until the sugar is incorporated, then increase the mixer speed to medium and beat until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes longer. If possible, cover the bowl of frosting and place it in the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes.
5. To assemble the cake, transfer one layer, right side up, to a serving platter. Spread the top with frosting. Place the second layer of cake, right side up, on the first and frost the top. Repeat this process with the third layer. Use the remaining frosting to frost the side of the cake, working with smooth, clean strokes. Serve the cake at once or refrigerate it for serving later (refrigerating it for 20 minutes will make it easier to slice through the frosting).
Keep It Fresh! Store this cake, in a cake saver or loosely covered with waxed paper, in the refrigerator for up to one week.
Note: To make 1 tablespoon of puree, rinse and pat dry 4 medium-size ripe strawberries. Place them in a sieve and mash them with a spoon into a bowl. Discard any pulp remaining in the sieve.
If You Miss the Strawberry Jell-O
Want a bright pink strawberry cake, just like the ones in the previous Cake Mix Doctor? Add a small package (3 ounces) of strawberry gelatin along with the cake mix.
Fruit Frostings May Cause You to Weep
Silly me. I thought I could bake a strawberry cake in April in Tampa and St. Petersburg, using those good local Florida berries. Oh, I didn’t just want to bake a fresh strawberry cake, I wanted to cart it