Friends, I’m coming off a most inviting, stress-free, and food filled weekend. I modified into as soon as lucky sufficient to participate within the IFBC (International Food Blogger’s Conference) right here in Seattle. I discovered a number of of the thunder material pleasurable, a number of of it intelligent, a number of of it no longer connected to what I build, and a number of of it simply dreary. Supreme commonplace for a convention, fair? For me, the categorical price and the extensive stress-free came in placing out with some truly gorgeous other folks drinking, ingesting, laughing, and talking with one one other. To boot to to placing out with old pals, I purchased to form some contemporary ones along side Megan from A Candy Spoonful and Sarah from Lettuce Expend Kale. I’m mad to know two more comely ladies folk within the Bay space! And I within the slay within the slay bought to meet Peabody.
I kicked Randy and the boys out strongly suggested Randy favor the boys as much as Lopez so that I might perhaps perhaps perhaps invite some ladies folk to stick to me and he graciously accredited my suggestion. That freed up some beds in our dwelling so that Cheryl, Tracy, Denise, Joy, and Kristina might perhaps perhaps perhaps dwell at Resort Dana Tackle. I modified into as soon as so overjoyed with the intention to no longer finest fragment our dwelling with them, but additionally meals at a number of of the most fantastic drinking locations Seattle has to give. We had sandwiches and improbable views at Matt’s within the Market, perfectly proportioned toppings on perfectly charred pizza crusts at Delancey, and an improbable, no-holds-barred tasting menu at the contemporary scorching intention Staple and Esteem.
I baked some treats for my fellow food bloggers (along side these cookies) – truly I did – but alas, this strawberry cake modified into as soon as no longer for them. I truly baked this cake to bring to a Sunday evening dinner with pals. In most cases, I form something device more straight forward for a casual dinner – in particular on a Sunday. However John and Lauren’s son Jaden is a dessert lover of the finest expose and I truly feel it’s my responsibility to retain sophisticating his dessert palate. Also, Randy and I had correct infamous our Eighth anniversary and Randy loves strawberries. I don’t affirm I gave strawberries their due this summer season so I made this cake for him too.
As I veil on a semi-regular foundation, layer cakes and I are no longer the most fantastic of pals. In frequent, they’d no longer be invited to my birthday party (as my 3 year old is fond of claiming). I’d form an exception for this cake because it modified into as soon as totally-behaved. It is still a layer cake, which implies that the cakes want to be baked, ruin up, and filled. Frosting needs to be made and the overall component needs to be assembled without trying absorb the leaning tower of Pisa. However the filling is nothing greater than jam and fresh strawberries and the frosting is product of cream cheese and butter (no multi-step buttercream right here), and truly the overall component modified into as soon as correct a joy to form. And to exhaust.
Every time I form a cake absorb this one, I constantly form the cake segment days forward and freeze them as soon as they’re cool. I enable them to thaw out in a single day forward of persevering with with the recipe.
Frosting
2 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
4 cups powdered sugar
½ cup seedless strawberry jam
¾ cup heavy whipping cream
Cake
3 cups cake flour
¾ tsp. salt
½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
3 cups sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
7 dapper eggs
2 tbsp. vanilla extract
1 cup bitter cream
6 tbsp. plus 1/3 cup seedless strawberry jam
2 pounds strawberries, hulled, sliced, divided
Frosting
The usage of electrical mixer, beat cream cheese and butter in dapper bowl till refined, stopping to predicament down facets of bowl. Beat in sugar, then jam. Beat cream in medium bowl till peaks for. Fold whipped cream into frosting. Quilt; sit back till firm sufficient to unfold, about 2 hours.
Cake
Preheat oven to 325ºF. Butter and flour two 9-lunge cake pans with 2-lunge high facets. Sift flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda into medium bowl. The usage of electrical mixer, beat sugar and butter in dapper bowl till fluffy. Add eggs 1 at a time beating to blend after each and each addition. Beat in vanilla. Add bitter cream; beat 30 seconds. Add flour mixture in 3 additions, beating to blend after each and each addition. Divide batter between ready pans.
Bake cakes till tester inserted into heart comes out magnificent, about 50 minutes. Cool in pans on rack 10 minutes. Stride puny animated knife round pan facets, then prove cakes onto racks and funky fully.
The usage of dapper serrated knife, lower each and each cake horizontally in half. Disclose 1 cake half, lower aspect up, on cake plate. Unfold 2 tablespoons strawberry jam, then ¾ cup frosting. Prime with ¾ cup sliced berries, arranging in a single layer. Repeat 2 more times with cake layer, jam, frosting, and berries. Prime with final cake layer, lower aspect down. Unfold 2 cups frosting over prime and facets of cake in skinny layer to coat fully. Unfold final frosting over prime and facets of cake. Skedaddle final 1/3 cup jam to loosen. Spoon teaspoonfuls onto prime and facets of cake, then exhaust support of spoon to swirl jam decoratively into frosting.
(Create forward: Will be made 8 hours forward. Quilt with cake dome and refrigerate.) Serve cake slices with final sliced strawberries alongside.