Dark Chocolate & Strawberry Cake
Strawberries are THE flavor of the summer! But getting that classic strawberry flavor that we all know and love to come through in baked goods can be a challenge. You may have seen and maybe even tried to make recipes that call for using pureed strawberries. As much as the idea of using fresh strawberries sounds appealing, it is quite impractical in baking. First and foremost is the issue of flavor. Strawberries very quickly lose their flavor when baked at high temperatures. Not only that, but depending on the time of year, you are likely to get variable flavors from the strawberries themselves (we’ve all puckered our lips while eating a sour batch of strawberries we picked up from the grocery store in January!). Then there is the fact that strawberries are very acidic and hold onto a lot of moisture when pureed- making them not the best option for adding them to buttercream. That is why my recipe relies on two other elements to bring forth a robust strawberry flavor: preserves and emulsions. I’m leaving the preserves as an optional ingredient because adding them might lead to a marbled-strawberry effect in the buttercream which may or may not be desirable. All in all- this recipe really does the strawberry flavor justice and I hope you are able to give it a try!
TIME
DIFFICULTY
SHARE IT
2 hours
1 out of 5
RECIPE
Dark Chocolate Cake
1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Line the bottoms of two 6-inch round cake pans with parchment paper and grease the sides of each pan.
2. Sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a mixing bowl. Add in the softened, cubed butter to the flour mixture. Using a spatula or a paddle attachment, blend or “cut” the butter into the flour mixture until no more butter cubes are visible. You should see an even distribution of “crumbs” or lumps of flour and butter mixture forming in the bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, oil, eggs and extracts. Add this entire mixture to the flour mixture all at once. Whisk to combine until the batter is slightly lighter in color- about 2 minutes.
4. Quickly and evenly divide the batter between the pans. Bake the cakes for about 30-40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Cool cakes completely before decorating, about 30-60 minutes.
6. Level cake tops with a serrated knife. Cut each layer in half.
Strawberry Meringue Buttercream
1. Add buttercream, strawberry preserves, and strawberry emulsion to a stand mixer with a paddle attachment.
2. Combine for about 2-5 minutes on medium speed until everything is evenly incorporated in the buttercream.
Assembly (see Instagram video for assembly!)
1. Assemble cake layers by evenly spreading about 1/3 cup of buttercream between each cake layer.
2. Crumb coat cake with a thin layer of buttercream and chill for 30-60 minutes.
3. Coat the top and sides of the cake with remaining buttercream. Feel free to use a decorative comb for the sides.
4. Drip chocolate drip in varying lengths down the sides of the cake. Also spread an even amount of chocolate drip on top of the cake
5. Add a pile of strawberries on top and enjoy at room temperature!
INGREDIENTS
Chocolate Cake
1 cup cake flour
½ cup dark cocoa powder
¾ cups granulated sugar
½ tbsp baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ tsp salt
6 tbsp (¾ stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature and cubed
½ cup buttermilk
¼ cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
Strawberry Meringue Buttercream
2 batches Swiss Meringue Buttercream (see blog recipe)
¼ cup strawberry preserves (optional)
2-3 teaspoons Strawberry emulsion (I used LorAnn)
Chocolate Drip
1 batch chocolate drip (see blog recipe)