Father’s Day cake

I made this cake for Father’s Day. Isn’t it lovely?

But, as usual, I had a problem while baking. Seriously, what’s new?

This time around, I took extra precautions and not only greased the pans but also lined them with parchment rounds and floured the sides.  I was sure that everything else would work out perfectly. Nope.

The original recipe, which I am not going to reference here because there were too many problems with it, did not indicate the diameter of pans to use. Much of my bakeware is packed away. I had two 8-inch diameter pans and three 9-inch diameter pans at my disposal, so I decided to go with the 9-inch. That was a mistake numero uno. Since I wasn’t sure of the pan size, I should have checked the cakes much earlier than I did to see if they were cooked through. As it was, the original recipe called for the cake layers to be baked for 35 minutes. I checked them after 24 minutes and they were already overcooked and dry as the Sonoran desert.

Mistake numero dos was to not then soak them with some sort of orange liqueur or orange juice. I’m certain that would have helped. Instead, I figured that the frosting (there is a lot of it!) would be enough to compensate for the dryness. Again, no.

It’s a pretty cake and if you keep an eye on it while it’s baking, I’m sure it’s a delicious cake too. I served up the 5 pieces to my dad, Connor, Dave, Sloane, and myself and then I tossed the rest of it in the trash (after I picked all the fruit off the top and had that with my breakfast the next morning).  I believe I’ve made the corrections and compensations for this to be a tasty cake. If you decide to give it a try – let me know.

In the meantime, let me say, this is just another example of why …

I Hate To BAKE

Fresh Strawberry Cake

Cake

• 4 ½ cups cake flour
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons butter, room temperature
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 eggs plus 1 egg white
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon orange extract
• 1 cup plus2 tablespoons milk

Strawberry Frosting

• 3 cups heavy cream, cold
• 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 cups fresh diced strawberries
• Additional Strawberries (and raspberries and blueberries, if desired) for garnish

Cake: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Spray three 8-inch round cake pans with non-stick cooking spray. Place a round of parchment in the bottom of each pan and spray again. Flour the sides of the pans and set them aside.

Sift together cake flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium mixing bowl and set aside.

Fit a standing mixer with the paddle attachment and beat butter and sugar together on medium high speed until smooth and fluffy.

Turn speed to low and add the eggs and the egg white, one at a time, and mix well until combined.

Mix in sour cream, vanilla, and orange extracts until well combined.

Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add half of the flour mixture. Mix until incorporated.

Scrape the sides of the bowl again and mix in the milk.

Add the remaining flour, and mix until the flour is fully incorporated. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl and give it one last stir.

Divide the batter between the prepared cake pans, and smooth the tops.

Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until the tops spring back with a light touch, or a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before turning out onto baking racks.

Strawberry Frosting: Fit the standing mixer with the whisk attachment. Add the cold cream to the bowl and beat until stiff peaks are formed. Transfer whipped cream to another bowl, cover, and refrigerate.

No need to wash the mixing bowl, fit the standing mixer with the paddle attachment, and beat cream cheese on high until light and fluffy, scraping the sides of the bowl a couple of times. Add the vanilla and sugar and beat on medium until fully incorporated.

Remove bowl from mixer and stir in the diced strawberries with a large spatula.

Then gently fold in the cold whipped cream with the spatula until well combined.

Place one cake layer on a serving platter and use a long offset spatula to frost just the top with the strawberry frosting, about ½-inch thick.

Repeat with the next two layers, then frost the top and sides with the remaining frosting.

Smooth top and sides until even, then top with strawberries (add raspberries & blueberries, if desired) for garnish. Refrigerate if not serving immediately. Refrigerate any leftovers.

Makes a 3-layer cake