Strawberry Vanilla Cake

I have made a Strawberry Vanilla Cake with a vanilla flavored base cake, whipped cream and fresh strawberries. And I made this cake for our dear friend Sajana and Robin. It came out really good and everyone loved it. I have a couple of important tips for you to bake a perfect cake and decorate it.

How to keep my cake from crumbling?

Right oven temperature is important. Do not bake for too long. You can add an extra egg to make it firm. Adding gelatin works.

How to avoid runny whipped cream?

Add some gelatin or agar agar to your whipped cream to make it firm. Instructions are below. Keep it refrigerated all the time.

Hope you enjoy this cake. Here you go…

Preparation time: 2 and 1/2 hours (including cooling period of cake)

No. of servings: 9″ two layer cake

Ingredients:

For base cake:

• Betty crocker’s French vanilla cake mix – 1 box (can use any brand)
• Vegetable oil – 1/2 cup
• Milk – 3/4 cup
• 3 eggs and 1 egg white
• Gelatin or agar agar – 2 tsp (optional)
• Butter – 2 tbsp
• Parchment paper (optional)
• All purpose flour – 3 tbsp
• Two 9″ cake pan

For decoration:

• Heavy whipping cream – 2 cups
• Confectionery sugar – 1/2 cup
• Pure vanilla essence – 1 tbsp
• Gelatin or agar agar- 2 tsp
• Cold water – 8 tsp
• Fresh strawberry – 1 pint
• Milk chocolate – 1 cup

Sugar Syrup:

• Water – 1/2 cup
• Sugar – 4 tbsp
• Strawberry essence or Hershey’s Strawberry syrup – 1 tsp

Method of Preparation:

Keep all the ingredients ready on your counter top before starting.  Try to follow the instructions carefully. Even small things matter when you want to get a perfect cake. This is a two layer 9″ round cake.

1. Preheat oven to 325 degree Fahrenheit (163 degree Celsius).
2. Grease the pans with soft butter using a brush or a paper towel.
3. Add a tbsp of flour to pan and spread it across. Dust off the extra flour.
4. Cut the parchment paper to a round shape to the size of the inside of the pan and place it in the pan.
5. Grease it with butter or cooking spray.
6. In a mixing bowl, sift the cake mix and add a tsp of gelatin and mix well and then add 1/2 cup of oil, 3 eggs and one egg white, milk.
7. Mix well using an electric mixer or a hand whisker gradually scraping the sides till all the ingredients combine together  and form a smooth batter without any lumps.
8. Pour equal amount of batter into the pans.
9. Make sure the surface of the cake  is even by tapping it on your counter top or on the floor.
10. Bake it for 25 to 30 minutes or until the cake is cooked. You can check it by plunging a thin knife or a wooden stick into the center of the cake and it should come out clean without any batter.
11. Remove from oven and let it cool outside for 10 minutes.
12. Then remove from the pans and let it set for at least an hour before decorating.

Preparation of whipped cream and Chocolate Strawberry:

1. Whipping cream has to be chilled.
2. Also chill the steel or glass container and the whisker blade before whipping.
3. Prepare gelatin liquid: Add 2 tsp of gelatin to a sauce pan along with 8 tsp of cold water to form a paste. Mix well over medium heat till gelatin is completely dissolved. Cool it. Do not refrigerate, then it will set.
4. Now pour whipping cream and vanilla essence in the chilled container and start whipping at low speed.
5. Slowly add the gelatin liquid and beat at medium speed. Add confectionery sugar and beat at high speed till stiff peaks are formed when you lift the blade. Refrigerate.
6. Melt chocolate by adding it to a small bowl and keep it over boiling water in a pan.
7. Once the chocolate melts, dip your strawberries and refrigerate.

Decorating the cake:

1. Now that the cake is at room temperature, wrap it in a plastic sheet and freeze it for 4 minutes.
2. Slice off the top brown part of both the cakes to make it even.
3. Cut 3 to 4 strawberries into small pieces.
4. Take the bottom layer and spread a thin layer of whipped cream and spread the cut strawberries.
5. Spread the next layer of whipped cream on top of the strawberry.
6. Now place the top layer of cake over it and spread the whipped cream all over the top and sides and even it out.
7. Refrigerate the cake and whipped cream for half an hour and let it set.
8. After half an hour fill your pastry cone with whipped cream and use your imagination and decorate the cake.
9. You can find a lot of ideas in youtube.
10. Refrigerate and serve chill.