Strawberry Summer Cake

Strawberries are one of my favorite foods of all time! They can be tricky to bake with, though - their high moisture content can really add an undesirable soggy element to baked goods, so most are definitely best eaten when very fresh. This cake is hardy enough to withstand the worst of it, but still absolutely best when eaten fresh!

The strawberries are warm, juicy, and jammy fresh out of the oven - and their concentrated flavor is amazing! The simplicity of this cake really puts the berries on display and I am here for it.

I doubled the recipe and used a 9x13" pan instead of a 10" round. In doubling the recipe, I used almost a full 2 pounds of halved and hulled strawberries - managed to fit in all but about 4 strawberries!

(This was my best attempt at arranging them artfully!)

I also took Deb's advice regarding the sugar topping very seriously, and liberally dusted the berries on top! 

The bake time is long, but you want to make sure the cake is fully cooked through. It should be nicely golden brown on top - and pardon my knife tester mark in the center... 

Warning though - don't make my rookie mistake and forget to ensure that all batter ingredients are at room temperature before mixing everything together. I had left my butter out for hours to warm it up, and the eggs were fine, but the milk was still ice cold when I added it - and it immediately solidified the butter! This must be the fifteenth time I've made the same mistake... make sure all ingredients are room temperature! Beyond that, enjoy this recipe - it's an excellent one!

Strawberry Summer Cake adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients

6 tablespoons (85 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups (188 grams) all-purpose flour 

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon table salt

1 cup (200 grams) of granulated sugar, setting aside 2 tablespoons (25 grams) of it for topping

1 large egg

1/2 cup (118 ml) milk

1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract

1 pound (450 grams) strawberries, hulled and halved 

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C). Butter a 10-inch pie pan (or line your pan with parchment paper.)

2. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together in a small bowl. In a larger bowl, beat the butter with an electric mixer until light and creamy, and then whip in the 1 cup (minus 2 tbsp) of sugar until pale and fluffy. Mix in the egg, milk and vanilla until just combined. Add the dry mixture gradually, mixing until just smooth.

3. Pour into your prepared pan. Arrange the strawberries, cut side down, on top of the batter, as closely as possible in a single layer. Sprinkle the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar over the berries.

4. Bake the cake for 10 minutes, then reduce oven temperature to 325°F and bake until golden brown and a tester comes out free of wet batter, about 50 minutes to 60 minutes.