Ina Garten’s Country Cake with Strawberries (The Comeback Cake)
When my oldest was a tyke his favorite cake was the Barefoot Contessa’s Strawberry Country Cake. This was his cake of choice for his birthday for quite a few years… Then Along Came Daddy (his Carrot Cake actually) that put the kibosh on the strawberry cake, so sad. After I shoved my ego aside, I was FINE with Wes’s Carrot Cake becoming the birthday cake of choice. It is pretty damn tasty.
The other birthday tradition we have, which thankfully has stayed the same, is going to a Giants game. His birthday is in June, right about the time baseball is in full swing and school is out for the summer. This year was no exception, we planned the perfect day for his b-day.
Giants versus the Cubbies plus SF Giants Pride Jerseys for the first 20K fans, dinner at our favorite neighborhood Chinese Restaurant, Gourmet Carousel (which recently re-opened with the OG owners-yay), and to round out the day, birthday cake at home.
Surprise, Surprise, Surprise
Every year around this time, when the weather warms up, the days are longer, this thought pops into my head, “Hey, shouldn’t P&K Farms Strawberries and Triple Delight Blueberries be showing up soon?”. As luck would have it, both P&K and Triple Delight were at the Farmer’s Market the week of his birthday. I made a command decision…Ina’s Country Cake with Strawberries for his birthday this year, NOT Carrot Cake. He’s a big boy, he can handle it.
It Was A Hit, He Loved It
This version of Ina Garten’s Country Cake with Strawberries is from a long-ago issue of Food & Wine. If you Google Ina Garten’s Strawberry Country Cake you will find multiple sites that have published her recipe. Why Food & Wine’s version? First, I had a subscription to F&W back in the day and that’s where I found the recipe. Second, the recipe makes a single-layer cake that you split into two layers. Finally, the recipe calls for large eggs. Barefoot Contessa fans know she often uses extra-large eggs in her recipes (which I rarely buy). So this version is my go-to. I baked another one and ended up freezing it. We pulled it out of the freezer on Father’s Day and left it on the counter to thaw. It was delicious, so feel free to use one of the double recipes and freeze the second layer for another day!
I adore this cake, it is buttery, has a nice crumb, and is not too sweet. Classic prep, cream butter and sugar, add eggs one at a time, and then the sour cream and zest. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with each addition. Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed until the batter is well combined and homogenous looking but do not overbeat. The addition of lemon and orange zest adds a refreshing citrus hint that is terrific with berries. Sour cream adds a hint of tang and moisture to the cake. Spread batter into an 8-inch round cake pan that has been buttered and floured or sprayed. The batter is fairly thick, not pourable, and will need an offset spatula to spread evenly in the cake pan.
I would increase the amount of whipping cream to 1-1/2 cups, and decrease the sugar to 2 tablespoons, especially if your berries are sweet. Your whipped cream fans will be happy.
Split the cake into two layers. The easiest way I know how to do this is with a serrated bread knife. Place knife level to at the midline of your cake and slice through to the middle only, keeping your knife level. Rotate the cake and continue to slice from the outside to the middle. The first cut acts as your knife’s guide for an even cake. Easy peasy.
Whip It, Whip It Good
Start with heavy whipping cream, preferably pasteurized, not ultra-pasteurized, which is heated to a higher temperature and does not whip as well. Heavy whipping cream has a higher percentage of butterfat than whipping cream (36% vs 30%) and heck, it’s dessert, so we are going for the gusto. Chill your heavy whipping cream, bowl, and whisk attachment before whipping. This kickstarts the process and results in the lightest whipped cream possible. Place the cream, sugar, and vanilla in the chilled bowl and whisk at medium-high speed until soft peaks form. You want peaks that will stand up but the tip will slowly fold over. Don’t overdo it, if the cream looks a bit grainy, or curdled that’s too far. If you go too far, add a bit of heavy cream and fold it in with a spatula. This will loosen the whipped cream and smooth it out again.
Plop a generous amount of cream on the bottom layer of your split cake. Spread to the edge leaving a small border. Arrange your berries on the cream. If you like, dice the strawberries for this layer, so you can maximize the number of berries. Top with the second split layer cut side down and top with the remaining cream. Arrange halved strawberries in a cool pattern, and place blueberries and raspberries, if using, in the center of the cake or scatter blueberries in the crevices between the strawberries. Serve to oohs and ahhs from the cake gallery.
Add this cake to your Bake It Bucket List. Now.
Country Cake With Strawberries and Whipped Cream
Equipment
- 1 8-inch cake pan
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Creamed Mixture
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sour cream
- 1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated orange zest
- 1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Topping
- 1 cup heavy cream I use`1.5 cups of heavey whipping cream!
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar adjust sugar to taste, I use 1.5 tablespoons of sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 pint strawberries or berry medley hulled and sliced, blueberries and raspberries left whole
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°. Butter and flour an 8-inch round cake pan. In a medium bowl, sift the flour with the cornstarch, baking soda and salt.
- In a large bowl, using a handheld mixer, beat the butter until creamy. Add the 3/4 cup of sugar and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating until incorporated. Add the sour cream, the orange and lemon zests and 1/2 teaspoon of the vanilla and beat until blended. Add the dry ingredients and beat at low speed until smooth.
- Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 40 minutes, or until golden and a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let the cake cool for 15 minutes before turning it out onto the rack to cool completely.
- Beat the cream with the remaining 3 tablespoons of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla until soft peaks form.
- Slice the cake in half horizontally. Spread most of the whipped cream over the cut side of the bottom cake half. Layer most of the sliced strawberries on top. Replace the top half of the cake and garnish with the remaining whipped cream and strawberries. make ahead .
