Strawberry Shortcut Cake Recipes

Steps:

• NOTE: If you use self-rising flour, omit the baking powder and salt. (I use self-rising flour all the time now so I don't have to add the other ingredients in all-purpose flour except when I make bread.) For high altitude adjustment, decrease baking powder to 2 1/2 teaspoons.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Completely thaw strawberries. Generously grease bottom only of a 13 x 9 inch baking pan. (I used cooking spray.) Sprinkle marshmallows evenly over bottom of pan. Thoroughly combine thawed berries with dry gelatin. Set aside. (No need to sift flour; measure by lightly spooning into cup and leveling off.) In a large mixing bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Blend at low speed until moistened; beat 3 minutes at medium speed, scraping sides and bottom of bowl occasionally. (It's very important to beat for the 3 minutes.) Pour batter evenly over marshmallows. (I used a large spoon instead of pouring.) Spoon strawberry mixture evenly over batter. During baking, the strawberry mixture sinks to the bottom and the cake is on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes until golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Serve warm or cool with ice cream or whipped cream.

Steps:

• For the cake: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Butter an 8-inch round cake pan, line it with parchment paper, butter the paper, and dust the pan lightly with flour.
• Whisk the flour with the granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Lightly whisk in the butter, egg, milk, and vanilla, just until smooth. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Cool on a rack for 10 minutes, then turn it out of the pan, flip upright, and cool completely on the rack.
• For the strawberries and cream: Set aside 1 pint of the best-looking whole berries for topping the cake. Hull and thinly slice the rest of the berries and toss with the granulated sugar. Set aside. Whip the cream with the confectioners' sugar and vanilla to soft peaks. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• To assemble the cake: Cut the cake in half horizontally with a serrated knife. Place the bottom layer cut side up on a cake stand or serving plate. Drizzle the juices from the sliced berries over the cut sides of both halves. Fold a couple tablespoons of the whipped cream into the sliced berries and spread over the bottom layer. Top with the other piece of cake, cut side down. Spread the remaining whipped cream on the top of the cake and top the cake with the whole berries.
• Know-How: Cutting a cake into layers is easy as saw-spin-separate: Begin to saw the cake in half horizontally. Just before you reach the middle of the cake, give it a quarter turn. Continue to saw almost to the center, then give it another quarter turn and saw again until you reach your original point of entry. Saw completely through the cake's center and separate the layers.
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Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Follow cake directions as written on cake mix box.
• Remove from oven and cool cake completely. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine strawberries, cognac and sugar. Let macerate 20 minutes. Invert and release cake onto a decorative platter.
• Whip cream with confectioners' sugar and vanilla at medium-high speed until it reaches stiff peaks. Do not over whip.
• Mix gelatin as directed on box. Refrigerate gelatin mix but do not let it harden, it should cool to a liquid consistency.
• Using a straw, poke holes all over the cake. Pour gelatin into holes and spread over the top of the cake.
• Spread layer of macerated strawberries on top of cake. Spread layer of whipped cream on top of the strawberries, making pretty swirls and ripples. Garnish with fresh strawberries. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. to make the shortbread, beat the butter, sugar and vanilla extract together until smooth. Add the flour in 2 or 3 goes, and stir until the mixture starts to form a dough. Use your hands to bring it together and shape into a ball. Cut off 100g of the dough, wrap in cling film and chill until ready to make the strawberry stalk and leaves. Weigh the remaining dough and divide into 2 equal pieces.
• Using your hands and the back of a metal spoon, press one of the larger pieces of shortbread mixture into the base of a 23cm loose-bottomed fluted tart tin (wrap the other piece of dough in cling film and chill until needed). Smooth the surface with the back of the spoon to create an even layer, then chill for 15 mins.
• Prick the base of the shortbread all over with a fork, place on a baking tray and bake for 20-25 mins or until lightly golden and firm. Remove from the oven and, while the shortbread is still hot, press a 9-10cm heart-shaped cutter into the centre. Leave to cool in the tin for 20 mins.
• Carefully remove the shortbread from the tart tin and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Wash the tin and repeat steps 2 and 3 with the second piece of dough, but don't cut out the heart shape. (If you have 2 tart tins you can make both the shortbread biscuits at the same time.)
• For the cake, grease the base and sides of a 22cm springform cake tin and line the base with baking parchment. In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla a little at a time, beating well after each addition, then fold in the flour. Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and smooth the surface. Bake for 20-25 mins until lightly golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool for 10 mins, then remove from the tin and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Meanwhile, cut out the strawberry stalk and leaves. Roll out the 100g piece of reserved shortbread dough on a lightly floured surface to the thickness of a £1 coin. Using a leaf cutter or a knife, cut out 4-5 leaf shapes, then cut out a 4cm-long strawberry stalk. It is best to do several so you can choose the best ones. Lift the shapes onto a baking tray lined with baking parchment and chill for 15 mins. While the cake is cooling, bake the leaves and stalks for 5-10 mins until lightly golden. Leave to cool on the tray for a few mins before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
• To make the buttercream, beat the butter in a large bowl until soft and pale. Sift over half the icing sugar and beat until combined. Sift over the remaining icing sugar, add the vanilla extract, then beat until smooth and creamy. Transfer to a disposable piping bag fitted with a wide round nozzle, or simply snip off the end of the bag.
• Start assembling the shortcake. Place the shortbread biscuit without the heart cut-out on a plate or cake stand, pricked-side up. Starting in the centre, pipe on the buttercream in a spiral, working your way towards the edge. Lay the cake on top of the buttercream, then spoon the jam on top of the cake and carefully spread out over the surface.
• Remove the heart from the second shortbread biscuit and set aside. Carefully flip the biscuit over so that it is pricked-side down and, using a cake paddle, slide it on top of the jam layer. Dab a little buttercream or jam on the back of the stalk and leaf biscuits, and stick to the edge of the strawberry jam heart.
• Carefully place individual linseeds inside the jam heart to create the appearance of a strawberry. Dust the surface of the shortcake with icing sugar, holding the reserved heart biscuit over the jam and leaves so that they do not get covered in icing sugar.

Steps:

• For the cake:.
• Preheat the oven to the temperature required according to the directions on the cake mix box. Grease and line the bottom of two 9-inch cake tins with baking paper.
• Tip the cake mix into a large bowl and add the eggs, vegetable oil and water following the directions on the box for the quantities needed and mixing directions.
• Divide the batter between the cake pans and bake for the time given on the cake mix box.
• Tip the cake layers out onto wire racks, peel the baking paper off and set aside to cool completely.
• For the filling:.
• Let the strawberry ice cream soften for a few minutes before scooping it out into a large bowl. Use a wooden spoon to beat the ice cream until you get a buttercream-like texture. Add the diced strawberries and fold together.
• Assemble:.
• Line a tall 9-inch springform cake pan with plastic wrap, allowing a few inches to overhang on the outside of the cake pan. Place the first cooled cake layer in the pan. Spread the softened strawberry ice cream in an even layer over the whole thing. Place the second cake layer on top. Cover with the overhanging plastic wrap and freeze for 3-4 hours until firm.
• Decorate:.
• Pulse the freeze-dried strawberries and vanilla wafers together in a food processor until broken down into a breadcrumb-like texture.
• Remove the cake from the freezer and from the springform pan. Peel away the plastic wrap carefully.
• Use a metal offset spatula to spread the vanilla frosting in a thin, even layer over the top and sides of the cake.
• Quickly press your strawberry-vanilla wafer powder over the top and sides of the cake.
• Pipe 6-8 peaks of vanilla frosting onto the top of the cake using a piping bag fitted with a wide star tip. Top each of these with a halved strawberry.
• Serve immediately.
• Tip:.
• Line your pan with plastic wrap to help unmold it later.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 220C/fan 200C/gas 7 and lightly flour a baking sheet. Put the flour, butter, sugar, half of the vanilla seeds and ¼ tsp salt into the bowl of a food processor, then pulse until fine. Tip into a large bowl. Beat the milk, egg and a good squeeze of lemon together, then tip into the bowl and bring together with a knife, using a cutting action, until you have a clumpy dough. Finally bring together with your hands if you need to.
• Lightly flour the work surface, tip the dough onto it, then quickly shape into a smooth-ish disc. Using a rolling pin, pat out to 2cm thick. Cut out 8 rounds with a smooth 7cm cutter (you'll need to pinch together the trimmings). Glaze just the tops with beaten egg, transfer to the floured sheet, then bake for 10-12 mins until risen and golden, and they sound hollow when tapped on the bottom. Cool on a wire rack.
• Beat the remaining vanilla seeds and icing sugar into the clotted cream. It will get runnier at first, but keep beating and it will thicken again. To serve, slice the very top from each shortcake to give a flat surface, then spoon over about 1 tsp jam. Top with a good dollop of the vanilla clotted cream and finish with the strawberries.

Steps:

• Slice the strawberries and toss them with 1/2 cup of white sugar. Set aside.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Grease and flour one 8 inch round cake pan.
• In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder, 2 tablespoons white sugar and the salt. With a pastry blender cut in the shortening until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Make a well in the center and add the beaten egg and milk. Stir until just combined.
• Spread the batter into the prepared pan. Bake at 425 degrees F (220 degrees C) for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool partially in pan on wire rack.
• Slice partially cooled cake in half, making two layers. Place half of the strawberries on one layer and top with the other layer. Top with remaining strawberries and cover with the whipped cream.