Want to flex your skills with an unexpectedly beautiful cake? This is it. A Strawberry layer cake with whipped strawberry filling between moist layers of vanilla cake and an outside edge of crunchy Pirouette cookies. This is what Valentine’s Day love is made of.
This Strawberry Layer Cake is a visually stunning centerpiece perfect for any celebration. With its unique rolled design and decadent strawberry buttercream, this cake not only looks impressive but also offers a rich, fruity flavor that’s balanced by the lightness of the sponge.
Ingredients:
For the Cake:
- Flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Eggs, separated
- Pure vanilla extract
- Granulated sugar
- Butter, melted
- Fresh orange juice
For the Filling/Frosting:
- Unsalted butter, softened
- Confectioners’ sugar
- Frozen strawberries, thawed and pureed
- Egg yolks
- Ice water
- Fresh orange juice
- Red food coloring (optional)
- Pirouette cookies or a suitable substitute, for decorating
Instructions:
- Prepare the Cake:
- Preheat your oven and prepare baking sheets as previously described. Mix dry ingredients and set aside.
- Whip egg yolks with sugar and vanilla, then fold in the dry ingredients alternated with orange juice and butter.
- Beat egg whites to stiff peaks and fold into the batter. Bake as directed until golden and springy.
- Make the Frosting:
- Cook the strawberry puree with egg yolks and sugar until thickened, then chill in an ice bath or overnight.
- Whip butter until fluffy, then gradually beat in the strawberry mixture and orange juice until creamy.
- Assemble the Cake:
- Cut and arrange cake strips, spreading each with frosting and rolling up into a large spiral.
- Continue wrapping strips around the core until the cake reaches the desired size.
- Decorate:
- Frost the cake and adorn with cookies. Optionally, pipe decorative borders using leftover frosting.
Pro Tips:
- For a lighter alternative to the rich strawberry buttercream, consider using a strawberry cream cheese frosting and apply sparingly to maintain the cake’s structure.
- Fresh strawberries can be used instead of frozen for a more natural flavor; simply puree with a bit of water.
Serving Suggestions:
Serve this show-stopping cake at large gatherings or special occasions to truly wow your guests. If it’s a special holiday, you know, the one for romantic couples, pile it onto a Valentine’s Day dessert board at a party! It pairs wonderfully with a light sparkling wine or a cup of fresh coffee to balance the sweetness.
Storage and Reheating:
Store the cake in the refrigerator due to its buttercream content. It’s best enjoyed within a few days of assembly to maintain its freshness and texture.
My Personal Test Notes:
In future iterations, I’d opt for a lighter frosting application to ensure the cake’s layers stand out more distinctly, and I would avoid overly sweet components like the pirouette cookies unless they complement the overall flavor profile of the cake.
Strawberry Spiral Layer Cake
Slice into a cake that is going to shock everyone! It's got spiral layers of thin cake and strawerry icing for a super fun presentation and incredibly delicious dessert.
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Dessert
AmericanServes: 12 people
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 2 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 10 eggs - separated
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups granulated sugar - divided
- 4 tablespoons butter - melted
- 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
For the Filling/Frosting:
- 1 1/2 pounds unsalted butter - softened
- 2 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar - plus more for dusting
- 15 oz frozen strawberries - thawed and pureed (about 2 cups)
- 6 egg yolks
- Ice water
- 2 teaspoons fresh orange juice
- Red food coloring - optional
- Pirouette cookies - for decorating
Instructions
- Position a rack in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 350°. Lightly butter two 12-by-18-inch rimmed baking sheets, line with parchment and butter the parchment. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
- Using an electric mixer with a whip attachment, beat 10 egg yolks, the vanilla and 1 cup granulated sugar at high speed until pale and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the flour mixture just until incorporated. Gently fold in the melted butter and 1/4 cup orange juice.
- In a clean mixer bowl with clean beaters, beat the egg whites at medium speed until frothy, 1 to 2 minutes. With the machine on, gradually sprinkle in the remaining 1 cup granulated sugar a tablespoon at a time. Once all the sugar has been added, increase the speed to high and beat until the egg whites are still moist but hold stiff peaks, 2 to 3 minutes. Fold one-quarter of the whites into the cake batter with a rubber spatula, then fold in the remaining egg whites just until no streaks remain, taking care to get the batter at the bottom of the bowl. Divide the batter between the prepared pans, smoothing evenly.
- Bake the cakes, switching and rotating the pans after 10 minutes, until springy to the touch in the center and lightly golden, 16 to 18 minutes. Lay 2 non-terry kitchen towels out on the counter and dust lightly with confectioners’ sugar. With a serrated knife, trim around the edges of the cakes and invert onto the towels. Cover the layers with 2 other towels and let cool completely while you prepare the frosting.
- Make the frosting. Using an electric mixer, beat the remaining 6 egg yolks and 2 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar at medium-high speed until smooth and pale, about 2 minutes. Place the strawberries in a medium saucepan, cover and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until simmering, about 3 minutes. Gradually whisk the hot strawberry puree into the yolk mixture. Transfer the mixture into the saucepan, stir in the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring, until the temperature reaches 170° on an instant-read thermometer, 5 to 6 minutes. Transfer the saucepan to an ice-water bath, stirring occasionally until cold (alternatively, let cool, then cover and refrigerate overnight).
- Using the electric mixer, beat the remaining 6 sticks butter at high speed until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in the chilled strawberry mixture 1/2 cup at a time at low speed. Beat in the remaining 2 teaspoons orange juice until fluffy. Add 1 or 2 drops red food coloring, if using.
- Assemble the cake. With a serrated knife, cut each cake layer lengthwise into 4 even strips, keeping the strips close together. Spread 1 1/2 cups of the strawberry buttercream onto each strip. Roll up 1 of the strips lengthwise into a snug spiral like a jelly roll. Place the roll on the end of another strip and roll up the second strip around the roll—this will be the center of the cake. Place the roll cut side down in the middle of a 10-inch round cake board. Pick up another frosted strip and place one of its ends at the end of the rolled strips on the board, frosting side in toward the roll; wrap it around to enlarge the cake. Continue with the remaining frosted cake strips, taking care to make the ends meet and rolling snugly.
- Frost the top and sides of the cake (reserving some frosting for piping). Decorate the cake perimeter with the pirouette cookies and pipe a fluted edge of frosting on the top edge of the cake.
Notes
From: Every Day Rachael Ray magazine – December 2010
Calculated time does not include chilling the cake before the final layer of frosting.
Personal Reflections and Adjustments for Strawberry Layer Cake:
- Cake Size Consideration: Originally, the recipe yields a very large cake due to rolling up eight strips. For a more manageable size, I found that using only five strips still resulted in a generously sized cake, suitable for most gatherings without overwhelming the dessert table.
- Filling Adjustments: The original strawberry filling, while flavorful, was intensely sweet. If making this cake again, I would switch to a strawberry cream cheese frosting, applying it thinly across each layer. This adjustment would reduce the overall sweetness and add a tangy contrast that complements the strawberries better.
- Fresh vs. Frozen Strawberries: I used fresh strawberries instead of frozen, which the recipe originally called for. If using fresh strawberries, add a tablespoon of water to the pureeing process to adjust the consistency. This small tweak ensures the fresh strawberries blend smoothly into the filling without being too thick.
- Substitute for Decorative Cookies: The recipe suggested using Pirouette cookies for decoration, which I replaced with Oreo Fun Straws after considering mint-flavored Pirouettes and deciding against them due to flavor compatibility issues. The Oreo straws worked well, but it’s crucial to choose a decoration that complements the main flavors of the cake without introducing conflicting tastes.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 820kcal | Carbohydrates: 73g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 56g | Saturated Fat: 34g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Trans Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 366mg | Sodium: 288mg | Potassium: 180mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 56g | Vitamin A: 1874IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 80mg | Iron: 2mg
Nutritional informations provided as a courtesy and is only an approximatation. Values will changes based on ingredients used.
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This is a VERY involved cake- great job, it came out awesome!
Beautiful cake, great job!
What a lovely cake! It turns out fabulous and perfect…..
Oh wow, that looks so gorgeous! I bet it tastes absolutely perfect!
What a pretty cake! It looks so yummy too:)
Looks gorgeous!
Whoa, impressive cake, Kita!
LOVE that you used strawberry in here. I’d love to have a slice with my coffee for breakfast right now.
Gorge! I LOVE the edges of the cake with the cookies, too. Beautiful idea.
oh wow, this is a serious project. the directions went on for light years. I’m glad you were able to share it with us. I’m far from being able to whip up one of those =)
Wow, the look of your cake is just stunning. You’ve got some definite skill. Not to mention, it looks delicious and probably didn’t last very long before it was devoured completely. I have a sweet treat linky party going on at my blog (it will be open until this evening) and I’d like to invite you to stop by and link your cake up. https://sweet-as-sugar-cookies.blogspot.com/2011/02/sweets-for-saturday-3.html
This is so very, very pretty – talk about wowing your sweetie and loved ones – you seriously did. And the presentation is perfect.
What a gorgeous cake!! I don’t know if I could eat it 😉 Wait…did I just day that
That looks so good! & it’s pretty, which is always a plus! lol
Awesome job, Kita! This cake looks so pretty… almost too pretty to eat. ALMOST 😉
I’d be happy to get down and dirty for these vertical layers! This cake seems like a labor of love but the end result makes all the effort so worthwhile.
Hi Kita, the cake came together beautifully. It definitely worths the effort for Valentine’s day and would make a gorgeous centrepiece over candle light dinner. 😀
Sounds like this cake was a bit of work! Looks totally pretty though, worth the effort! (More frosting per slice of cake makes me happy!)
Such a stunning cake!!! A definite show stopper!!
Wow what an absolute stunning cake. You did such an amazing job with it and I bet it tastes amazing! 🙂
I was eyeballing this cake this morning. I just wanted to wait till after dinner so I could look at it without wanting to eat it for breakfast. He He Love the vertical lines and I love how the cookies look around the outside. I’m thinking the cc frosting might be a good idea.
-Gina-
Those are some serious directions! Gorgeous cake! 😉 You can’t go wrong with strawberry anything!
Looks gorgeous! You’ve definitely wowed me, and I’m not even your Valentine. LOL. That sounded weird. Please excuse my weirdness. :-p
What a fabulously fancy looking cake. I was wondering what the cookies were on the outside. A great touch. And yes, cream cheese always makes everything better. 😉
Amazing cake….definitely a labor of love. 🙂
I ALWAYS loose recipes in magazines 😉
This looks so beautiful!
This looks beautiful! I’ve been looking for a strawberry cake recipe! Thanks.
Wow! This looks divine, just couldn’t take my eyes out of it. Absolutely gorgeous looking cake.
lovely cake and it sounds delicious!