Strawberry Poke Cake with Lime Whipped Cream

We see lots of berries over the summer. I love seeing all of them lined up at grocery stores since I love love love berries in my baked goods. Strawberry season ends around August apparently, so why not take advantage of those luscious berries and make a cake that celebrates summer, before summer ends next week?

So, I made this poke cake. And, it`s super duper delicious. I think I`m going to add this with one of my favorites dessert list, because it`s just so darn GOOD.


If you`re wondering why it`s called a poke cake, it`s because you poke holes into the baked cake and pour this yummy strawberry syrup on top. It`s similar to tres leche cakes~

I wanted to share with you guys more recipes with berries before summer was over, but I`m running out of time!

I didn`t realize this summer would be so busy for me. I started another job earlier on Monday, so now I have two jobs, an online class, and this blog to maintain!

This cake is made in 9inx13in pan, so it`s a LOT of cake. I took about 8 slices and froze them so I can have some later on during the summer...like now! ;) hehe. I ate about 1/3 of the cake and gave the rest away. Let`s just say, the cake was quickly devoured. ☺

There are a lot of steps in this recipe and lots of down time, but trust me, if a novice baker like me can make this cake...you definitely can too! They`re not hard steps, just more steps than baking a quick bread~

Strawberry Poke Cake with Lime Whipped Cream

Adapted from America's Test Kitchen: Best Summer Desserts

Yields: 12 servings

Level: Medium

Total Time:  ~80 minutes + 6 hours cooling/chilling time

(Print Recipe)

Materials Needed:

-          13inch x 9inch baking pan

-          Oil/Spray/Parchment

-          1 Large bowls

-          2 Medium bowls

-          2 Whisks

-          1 Large bowl + 1 medium bowl with electric mixer/standmixer

-          1 Toothpick

-          1 Medium saucepan

-          Skewer or chopstick

-          Cooling rack

Ingredients:

For the cake:

§  2 1/4 cup all purpose flour

§  4 teaspoons baking powder

§  1 teaspoon salt

§  1 cup milk

§  6 large egg whites

§  2 teaspoons vanilla extract

§  12 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

§  1 1/4 cups granulated sugar

For the  strawberry syrup:

§  3 cups strawberries, hulled

§  2 tablespoons sugar

§  1/2 cup water

§  2 tablespoons strawberry flavored gelatin powder (just the powder from jello packets)

For the lime whipped cream:

§  1 cup heavy cream

§  1 tablespoon granulated sugar

§  1 lime, juice and zest from it

Directions:

For the cake:

1.      Grease a 13inx9in baking pan/or use parchment paper.

2.      Preheat oven to 350°F, with rack in the middle of the oven.

3.      In the large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt until combined. (Dry ingredients)

4.      In the medium bowl, whisk the milk, egg whites, and vanilla extract until combined. (Wet ingredients)

5.      In the bowl of your mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

6.      Add half the dry ingredients (flour mixture) into the butter/sugar bowl and mix until everything is incorporated.

7.      Then, add half of the wet ingredients (milk mixture) and mix until everything is incorporated.

8.      Repeat with remaining dry and wet ingredients. Make sure everything is combined.

9.      Pour into baking pan and bake for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted.  Rotate baking pan 180° halfway through baking time (17 minutes).

10.  Cool the cake completely in the pan for at least 1 hour.

For the strawberry syrup:

11.  Place a strainer/fine mesh on top of a medium bowl. Set aside.

12.  In the medium saucepan, combine the strawberries, sugar, and water and cook covered until strawberries are soft (this will take about 10 minutes).

13.  Pour the strawberry mixture over the strainer into the bowl. (I used a wooden spoon to press all the liquids from the strawberries) Then, discard the strawberries.

14.  Whisk the strawberry gelatin into the liquid. Allow it to cool to room temperature.

-----

15.  Once cake has cooled, poke holes into the cake with a skewer/chopsticks (about 50ish).

16.  Pour the strawberry syrup all over the cake gently, making sure to get the entire cake surface.

17.  Wrap the cake with saran wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours (up to 2 days).

For the lime whipped cream:

18.  In a medium bowl with electric mixer, combine the heavy cream, sugar, lime juice, and zest. Beat together until soft peaks form.

Assembly:

19.  Once cake has set in the refrigerator, spread an even layer of lime whipped cream on top.

20.  Cut and serve! Refrigerate remaining cake for up to a week. (You can also freeze the cake and let the cake defrost for about 2 hours in the refrigerator before eating. Up to 1 month.)