Strawberries & Cream Cake

A simple cake celebrating late spring’s sweetest star: strawberries. A pound-cake-like, vanilla cake layer gets topped with a generous amount of mascarpone and vanilla bean cream and slightly-syrupy strawberries. If a mascarpone-based cream feels like a little too much, I’ve included instructions for a simple sweetened whipped cream that’ll work just as well. I recommend serving immediately.

Serves 8

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE CAKE

3 large eggs 

½ cup butter, melted + more to grease the cake pan

1 cup sugar 

½ cup (4oz) sour cream 

2 tsp vanilla extract 

1 ¼ cups (156 g) all purpose flour 

2 tsp baking powder 

1 tsp kosher salt

FOR THE STRAWBERRIES

12 oz (¾ lb) ripe strawberries, hulled, halved or quartered depending on their size (I left about 3oz whole for decorating)   

2-3 tsp sugar, depending on how sweet the berries are

1 tsp lemon zest, optional

FOR THE CREAM

⅓ cup heavy cream 

8 oz mascarpone 

1 vanilla bean, seeds only or 1 tsp vanilla extract

¼ tsp kosher salt 

1 Tbsp sugar

(OR for a classic sweetened whipped cream, 1 cup heavy cream + 1 tsp vanilla extract + 2 Tbsp sugar + ⅛ tsp kosher salt)

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a 9” cake tin with butter and line the bottom with a parchment round OR grease pan with butter and sprinkle with flour, tapping out any excess flour.  

2. Add eggs, sugar, vanilla, butter, and sour cream to a large bowl. Whisk until very well combined and the mixture is light and smooth. Add flour, baking powder, and salt. Whisk the baking powder and salt into the flour gently first to help distribute the leavener, then whisk to combine the dry ingredients with the wet. This is to avoid having to wash another bowl – you should whisk the dry ingredients in a smaller bowl before adding them to the wet ingredients but I'm lazy :)   

3. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cake cool completely in the pan or on a wire rack. 

4. For the strawberries, add strawberries, sugar, and lemon zest, if using, to a medium bowl. Toss to coat the berries in the sugar and set aside. This will help encourage the juices to release from the berries, giving them a gorgeous glossy sheen. Set them aside until ready to serve. 

5. To make the cream, add mascarpone, heavy cream, salt, sugar, and vanilla seeds to a large bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat on medium speed until the cream is thickened and soft peaks form, about 2-3 minutes. Set aside until ready to serve. OR to make a simple sweetened whipped cream: add 1 cup heavy cream, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 2 Tbsp sugar, and  ⅛ tsp kosher salt to a large mixing bowl and whisk until soft peaks form. 

6. Once the cake has cooled completely, remove from pan, discard the parchment, and transfer the cake to a serving plate or stand. Spoon cream onto cake and use an offset spatula to spread the cream to the sides of the cake leaving a ¼” border around the edges. Top with the strawberries leaving a ¾” border between the edge of the cream and the berry mound.