Happy National Strawberry Day! I've got an extra special guest post for you today, from Hannah of CakeJournal.com.
National Strawberry Day is February 27th! It makes sense that a month filled with heart shaped foods and the color red all over the place would have a day dedicated to the strawberry! Strawberries are super delicious, whether you're adding them to a dish or eating them by themselves.
Strawberries are grown all over the world, except in the most frozen southern and northern areas. Not to mention, there are over 600 varieties of strawberries! The best time to buy strawberries is between April and August, but that doesn't mean you still can't enjoy strawberries year round! Here is a wonderfully delicious ombre cake recipe to celebrate one of the most delicious days of the year!
First, you must compile your ingredients:
- 2 boxes of white cake mix (or your own homemade cake recipe)
- Eggs, water and oil to suit the necessary ingredients for your boxed cake mix
- 6 teaspoons imitation strawberry
- Red food dye
- 2 cups of strawberries (or however many you desire)
- Cream cheese icing
Next, I started mixing the cake mix and the water, eggs and oil. I used white cake mix that called for 2 1/2 cups of water, 2/3 cup oil and 6 eggs. I then separated the cake mix into 3 equal bowls for the 3 layers of the cake.
Then, I added in the imitation strawberry. I added a little at a time and then tasted as I went along. I ended up putting two teaspoons into each "layer". You can opt-out of the strawberry flavor, or adjust to your liking. Following the flavoring, I added the red food dye. For the lightest layer, I used 2-3 drops of red dye. For the middle layer, I used around 5 drops and for the darkest layer, I used 8 drops of red dye. Adjust quantity, if desired.
Grease 3 8-in cake pans thoroughly and fill about 2/3 of the way full with cake batter. Tap out the air bubbles. Bake the cake for as long as the directions call for. My batter took about 32 minutes to thoroughly bake. Wait for the cake to fully cool before removing from the pan. Level off the cake with a large serrated knife along the top of the cake and the sides of the cake. Stack the cake layers on top of each other from darkest to lightest, using frosting as the glue in between the layers. Once they are stacked the way you wish, begin frosting the entire cake.
Start with the top and work your way down and around the sides.
Next, garnish your cake however you desire! I topped mine with cut strawberries on the top and around the bottom and some strawberry stems in the middle.
And you're done! Ready to eat right away, but you can chill the leftovers in the fridge as well! Wow your friends and family with a beautiful slice of cake to celebrate a sweet day!
About the author: Hannah works for Today's Growth Consultant, a company that owns over 300 websites. She works with cakejournal.com, a website dedicated to cake recipes, dessert tutorials and articles about the wonders of cake making. Check out some of her work at cakejournal.com.