Strawberry Layer Cake
Dylan turned two on Saturday and we celebrated with his favorite things – strawberries and nudity. It’s hard to describe the first years of your child’s life. It feels like he’s always been here and I can’t remember what life was like before him but I also still look at him with such surprise and fascination. I just love getting to know this boy.
Since he is a summer baby he’ll never get to bring cupcakes to school but I hope the amazing summer fruits that we shower him in will make up for it. July is berry season through and through.
Call me boring but I really wanted to bake him a festive, beautiful cake, without any white sugar or white flour. Of course, he wanted to eat as much cake as his little belly would hold so knowing it was wholesome made me smile.
I used whole wheat pastry flour in place of all purpose and date sugar (dried dates whizzed into granulated sand) in place of white sugar. This cake is not very sweet and has a slight dense bite to it but is also very moist, flavorful, and totally delicious. It’s one I’ll make again and again.
DYLAN’S STRAWBERRY LAYER CAKE
4 cups whole wheat pastry flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 sticks organic butter, soft
2 cups date sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
4 organic eggs, at room temperature
2 cups of buttermilk, well shaken
2 pints strawberries, sliced thin saving a few in tact for decoration
1 pint organic heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon date sugar
Preheat oven to 350 and butter/dust with flour 2 cake pans.
Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Beat soft butter and sugar together until fluffy.
Add vanilla to butter and sugar and mix in.
Add one egg at a time to the butter and sugar mixture then lastly incorporate the buttermilk.
Finally, add the flour to the wet ingredients in three batches. Mix well to combine making sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.
Divide batter between the two cake pans and hit the pans on the counter to settle the batter, making sure there are no air bubbles. The batter will seem to thick and you’ll be nervous. It will only fill the pans about half way. Don’t worry – it’ll all work out.
Bake the cakes at 350 for 35 minutes. Allow the cakes to cool for 10-15 minutes before running a knife around the sides to remove.
While the cakes cool, whip the pint of cream with teaspoon of vanilla and tablespoon of date sugar. To assemble, lay one cake on large plate, top with half the whipped cream and half the sliced berries. Gently add next cake and finish with remaining cream and berries. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!