February 27th isn’t just National Chocolate Cake Day! It’s also National Strawberry Day! That’s, like, twice the work! Fortunately, you can pay tribute to both of these national holidays with a brilliant cake that doesn’t take a lot of time or skill. The beauty of this Chocolate Cake with Strawberries and Whipped Cream from MarthaStewart.com is that you can make it from scratch (as the recipe suggests), or you can use a boxed cake mix. Either way, it looks and tastes as if you’ve spent hours in the kitchen baking your little heart out. It’s perfect for those days when you have too much to do and not enough time to do it in, but still want to present your family with something spectacular for dessert.
Ingredients
Cake: Double the ingredients to make 2 layers.
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, (spooned and leveled)
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
- 6 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 1 cup cold water
Topping:
- 2 pints heavy whipping cream
- 1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 quart fresh strawberries, washed, trimmed and thinly sliced
Directions
Cakes:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In an 8-inch square baking pan, whisk together all-purpose flour, sugar, unsweetened cocoa powder, baking soda, and coarse salt.
- Make a well in center of flour mixture and add vegetable oil, pure vanilla extract, white vinegar, and cold water. Whisk until well combined. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool completely in pan on a wire rack.
Topping:
- Whip the cream to soft peaks, add the sugar and vanilla, and whip again until just stiffened. Do not over mix!
- Slice the top off 1 cake round to make a flat surface. Spread bottom cake round with a thick layer of whipped cream. Top with a layer of half the amount of strawberries. Top with the other cake round and spread with another thick layer of whipped cream. Top with remaining strawberries.
- Slice and serve with any extra whipped cream and berries on the side.
