Strawberries & Cream Layered Naked Cake

Time and Servings

Serves: 12

Preparation Time: 40 minutes

Cooking Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

3 cups cake flour

1.5 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

½ cup butter, softened

2 cups sugar

2 whole eggs

2 egg whites

1 cups milk

1/3 cup sour cream

1 Tbsp vanilla extract

Icing:

250g strawberry, roughly chopped, divided

1 cup butter, softened

4 cups icing sugar, sifted

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup white chocolate chips, or chopped white chocolate bar

1/3 cup heavy cream

Rose petals

Edible pearls

Method

Cake:

Preheat the oven to 165C.

Line and grease two 20cm round cake tins.

In a large bowl, sift in the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir to combine.

In a separate bowl, mix the butter, oil and sugar together. Add the eggs and egg white, one at a time until light and fluffy.

In a jug, mix the milk, sour cream and vanilla together.

Alternate adding the flour mix and milk mix to the egg mix. Be sure to start and end with the flour.

Divide the mixture evenly between the two pans, smoothing out the top. Bake for 35-45 minutes, until cooked. A toothpick inserted must come out clean.

Allow the cakes to cool in their tins for 15 minutes, then turn out onto a cooling rack. Cool completely before icing and decorating.

Icing:

Put half of strawberries into a saucepan with a tablespoon of water. Allow to cook slowly over a medium heat. Use a fork or potato masher to mash up the strawberries to a pulp.

Continue cooking, stirring constantly, until the mixture is a thick paste and most of the water has cooked out.

Place in a bowl in the fridge to cool.

Put the butter, a cup of icing sugar and vanilla extract into a mixer. Beat until creamy. Gradually add the remaining icing sugar until it has all been combined.

Add the strawberry puree and mix until just combined.

Once the cakes have completely cooled, slice them in half so you have 4 layers.

Place one cake on the cake stand. Spread over a generous heap of icing, and scatter over some of the remaining fresh chopped strawberries. Repeat stacking the other layers on top.

Spread a smooth layer of icing over the top of the cake, without chopped strawberries, and thinly spread some icing around the side to get a naked cake effect.

Put the cake in the fridge to chill.

Put the white chocolate and heavy cream in a bowl. Microwave in intervals, stirring between each, until smooth.

Once the cake has chilled, drizzle the white chocolate down the sides of the cake, ensuring the chocolate is room temperature before doing so.

Decorate the cake with rose petals and edible pearls.