Strawberry Dream Cake

 

Generally speaking, I am not a fruit and cake person. The thought of pineapple upside down cake makes my stomach lurch. I cannot even be in the same room, I take that back, the same building, in which it is being baked. That does not hold for the strawberry beauty right here. My aunt has been making this cake since the 70s. It is so good that I make it the exception to my “I hate cake and fruit” rule, and gobble it up. It is so simple that you can put it together in no time. Most people who try it want the recipe. Yes, it tends to be a summer dessert, but I think it works anytime of the year.

Strawberry Dream Cake

1 14.25-oz. pkg. white cake mix

 ¼ t. almond extract
2 c. heavy whipping cream
1 7.2-oz. box Betty Crocker Fluffy White Frosting Mix
1 qt. strawberries, sliced

 Preheat oven to 350° F. Spray a 9” x 13” pan with Baker’s Joy; set aside. Place a medium mixing bowl and a pair of beaters into the refrigerator.

 Prepare cake according to package direction for a 9” x 13” pan; stir in almond flavoring. When cake has baked, remove from the oven to a wire rack and let it cool completely.

Remove your pre-chilled bowl and beaters from the refrigerator. Pour in frosting mix and heavy cream, and beat until stiff peaks form. Fold in the fresh strawberries, turn out onto the cooled cake, and spread to the edges. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

This keeps in the refrigerator for up to three days, and can also be frozen with success.

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Strawberry Lemon Drop Martini

 

Oh, my goodness! This is the best cocktail I have had to date. In fact, this may be the best cocktail I’ve had in my entire life. You must use fresh lemon juice, and, of course, fresh strawberries to make the purée. These little steps take extra time, so do yourself a favor and squeeze some lemon juice ahead of time and make a lot of purée. You are going to want more than one of these cocktails. You may just want a pitcher of them. They are so refreshing and delicious. I had to stop myself from glugging it right down.

Strawberry Lemon Drop Martini

Adapted from TasteofHomemade.com

 5-6 fresh strawberries

1 oz. water

1 oz. freshly squeezed lemon juice

½ oz. Stirrings Simple Syrup

1½ oz. lemon vodka

 MAKE THE STRAWBERRY PUREE

 Place the strawberries and water in a mini high-speed blender; blend until smooth. Pour puree through a mesh sieve over a small bowl. Use a spoon to stir and press the puree through the sieve; set aside.

 MAKE THE MARTINIS

 Fill a cocktail shaker* half way with ice.

 Add the strawberry puree, lemon juice, simple syrup, and vodka to the shaker. Place the lid on the shaker and shake until frosty and cold.

 Run a lemon wedge around the edge of the martini glass.  Pour the sugar in a shallow plate or bowl, then dip the glass in the sugar and twist to coat the rim.

 Pour the shaken martini into the glass, and then garnish with a fresh strawberry.

 *A quart Mason jar works as well.

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Strawberry Syrup

Sometimes my zealousness gets the better of me. I tend to tackle absolutely everything I do with such zeal, that it’s not unusual for me to get a tiny bit carried away. Such was the case when I was in the market the other day shopping for strawberries. I had such a craving for them that I had to have the biggest box available. I bought 4 pounds of them. Four pounds is a lot of strawberries. I ate as many of them as I could, but they were ripening faster than I could keep up with them. I had to do something that would use up those that remained, and yet give me the most use out of those berries.

Obviously, the absolute best thing for me to do was to make strawberry syrup. That may not seem all that obvious to you, but think about it. If you turn your strawberries into strawberry syrup you can flavor all kinds of things. You can make a delicious strawberry lemonade (something I have been wanting to do) without mashing up a bunch of strawberries to do it. You simply make regular lemonade and add this syrup. You can make strawberry ice cream by stirring this into your recipe for vanilla ice cream, you can make yourself delicious strawberry frappes and shakes, and, hello strawberry margaritas! You can also pour this on top of pancakes, waffles, or French toast for breakfast in the morning, or drizzle it over cheesecake for dessert at night. Bottled attractively, it makes a wonderful gift. (I use these bottles.) The list is absolutely endless. Nothing is more versatile. 

I used it in a smoothie and the flavor was intense!

There are a number of recipes for strawberry syrup online, and, essentially they are all pretty much the same. You clean, hull, and cut up strawberries, throw them into a saucepan, cover them with water, simmer them until all flavor is extracted, strain them, put the juice back into the pan, add sugar, simmer, and Bob’s your uncle. It’s absolutely delicious, has the most beautiful jewel tone color, will keep in the fridge for 10 days to two weeks, and surprise and delight you at every turn.

Strawberry Syrup

1 pound of fresh strawberries
2 cups of filtered water
1 cup granulated sugar

Clean, hull, and dice strawberries, and place them into a medium/large sauce pan. Pour 2 cups of water over them and bring to a low boil. Turn the heat down slightly, and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from heat, strain, and return syrup to a clean saucepan. Add sugar, bring to a low simmer, and simmer 5 to 6 minutes until sugar is dissolved. Cool, decant into bottles, and store in the fridge. Use as you see fit. Be sure to share your ideas with me.

PRINT RECIPE

If you prefer sauce to syrup, you will love this alcohol-infused Fresh Strawberry Sauce.

This post is linked to:

Full Plate Thursday

Thursday Favorite Things
 Funtastic Friday
Pink Saturday
Snickerdoodle Create Bake & Create

Grace at Home

Friday at the Fire Station
Create, Bake, Grow and Gather

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