Not Your Average Strawberry Shortcake

My family is dessert fanatics.  They have never met a dessert they did not want to try. They also like variety in their dessert choices, so I try to keep things interesting. I love classic strawberry shortcake, so I decided to take the elements and mold them together into a layer cake.  The end result was a moist and rich butter cake layered with vanilla pudding and fresh strawberries, and covered with fluffy whip cream frosting.

The first step is to prepare your Yellow Butter Cake.  I used a recipe from my trusty Betty Crocker Cookbook.  If you do not want to tackle cake from scratch, use your favorite boxed mix.  At the end you want to have two 9 inch rounds to work with.  I like to prepare my cake the day before I plan to assemble the completed dessert.  Cake is easier to work with when it has had time to fully cool. I suggest putting parchment paper rounds in the bottom of your cake pans.  The paper keeps the cake from sticking to the bottom of the pan, which is helpful when removing the cake from the pan.

The next steps are to prepare the vanilla pudding by the package instructions and slice the strawberries.  Nice and simple!

Now for the most challenging step in our cake assembly process, cutting the cake rounds in half. Surround the cake with toothpicks to use as a guide when cutting.  Choose a long, sharp knife to cut.  Take it slow. Slow and steady definitely wins this race.

Next up, prepare the whipped cream frosting.  I love this recipe!  The frosting tastes like whip cream and is lighter and fluffier than butter cream.  It is an excellent alternative to butter cream frosting.  One of my kiddos is not a fan of butter cream and asks for whip cream frosting on all of her birthday cakes. The frosting does set up quickly, so pay attention at the end of the process.

Time for the assembly. Take half a cake round and place it on a plate or cake stand. Cover the cake with a layer of vanilla pudding. Place strawberries on top of the pudding and then place the second half of the cake round on top.

Take your frosting and cover the top of the assembled cake round. Repeat the layering technique with the second cake round. Finally cover the top and sides of the cake with whip cream frosting to complete the assembly.

If you have sliced strawberries remaining, arrange them on top of the cake as decoration, the final beautiful touch to this delicious dessert.

The Not Your Average Strawberry Shortcake gives you layers of flavor in every serving. No fighting over the “best” piece with this cake. It is fancy enough for a party, but worthy of making any day a celebration of delicious.  I put this recipe together for a party and wanted the cake to be as beautiful as it was delicious.  When I make it for an average Tuesday evening dessert, I plan to make a 9×12 rectangular cake.  I believe the rectangle will be easier to cut in half and adding one heavy layer of pudding and strawberries should be equally as delicious, but far less time consuming to prepare. At the end of the day, dessert is more about taste than presentation. Round or rectangular, Not Your Average Strawberry Shortcake is a dessert worth trying. Happy Cooking!