Homemade Strawberry Cake

By SandyC

Ingredients

• For the cake:
• Nonstick vegetable spray
• All-purpose flour, for pans
• 3 cups self-rising flour
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 cup pureed strawberries, strained*
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 4 large eggs, beaten
• red food coloring**
• For the cream cheese frosting:
• 1 (8oz) package of cream cheese, softened
• 1 stick of butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ~ 3 cups (approx. 1 box) confectioners sugar (powdered sugar)
• 1 tablespoon milk (if needed)

Details

Servings 1
Adapted from adashofsass.com

Preparation

Step 1

- Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray and flour three 8-by-2-inch round cake pans, tapping out excess flour; set aside.

- Prepare the cake batter; in a large bowl, stir to combine self-rising flour, sugar, oil, pureed strawberries, vanilla, lemon zest, and eggs.

- Divide batter evenly between prepared pans, smoothing with an offset spatula. Bake, rotating pans halfway through, until the tops spring back when gently pressed with your fingertips, 26 to 28 minutes.

- Transfer pans to a wire rack to cool 10 minutes. Invert cakes onto wire rack. Re-invert cakes and let them cool completely, top sides up.

- Prepare the cream cheese frosting. Beat cream cheese and butter together until smooth.

- Slowly add the sugar in 1 cup batches until desired sweetness is achieved. You may need less than 3 cups if you like your frosting less sweet.

- Stir in vanilla. Add milk slowly if you need a looser consistency.

- Frost cake as desired and refrigerate until ready to serve.

* You can use fresh or frozen strawberries. If you use frozen, let them defrost on a cookie sheet. Then place in a food processor and pulse until pureed. Run through a medium-sized strainer to remove the seeds. If you have some extra strawberries, try whipping up a quick batch of strawberry scones!

** While I did manage to avoid using red colored gelatin, I did add some food coloring to achieve that perfectly pink color. If you don't care about getting the pink color, feel free to leave it out. I used about 5 drops, but you should add them one at a time until you achieve the color you are looking for.

Adapted from Paula Deen's Hummingbird Cake recipe.