Strawberry Orange Heart Cake

Strawberry Orange Heart Cake

Cake.

• • 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

  • 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar

  • 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda

  • 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

  • 1 teaspoon coarse Kosher salt

  • 2 large whole eggs

  • 2 egg whites

  • 1 1/2 cups whole buttermilk (see note)

  • 3/4 cup vegetable oil

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

  • 1 teaspoon orange extract

  • 8 ounces canned Mandarin oranges, drained and chopped

Buttercream.

• • 8 ounces strawberries, chopped

  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

  • 1 tablespoon water

  • 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

  • 2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature

  • 4 cups powdered sugar

  • 1 tablespoon meringue powder

  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

  • 2 tablespoons milk, if needed

Cake.

Preheat the oven to 350. Grease two 6-inch square pans and two 6-inch round pans with non-stick spray.

In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients and mix on low until combined, then beat on medium speed for two minutes. Divide the batter between the pans. (You should put slightly more batter in the square pans, which have greater volume, to keep all your baked cakes the same height.)

Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool the cakes in the pans completely.

Buttercream.

In a saucepan, combine the strawberries, granulated sugar, water and lemon juice. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until thick and jammy, and reduced to about 1/2 cup. Cool completely and puree.

In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the butter with the (completely cooled) strawberry reduction for one minute. With the mixer on low, add the powdered sugar, meringue powder and salt. Increase the speed to medium and whip for 4-5 minutes, scraping the bowl occasionally, until very light and fluffy. Add the milk, only if needed, to thin the buttercream a little for desired consistency.

Assembly.

Remove the cooled cakes from the pans. Keep the square cakes whole, but cut the round cakes right down the middle, so that you have two squares and four half-circles.

Place one square cake on a large cake pedestal, and arrange two half-circles on two sides of the square to form a heart. Use a little buttercream on the cut edge of the half-circles to secure them to the square cake. Frost with a layer of buttercream on top, and then arrange the second square and half-circles on top to form a two-layer heart cake.

Frost all over with a thin crumb coat of buttercream, then chill for 30 minutes. Frost with a final layer of buttercream.

Garnish the cake with fresh strawberries and fresh or canned orange slices.

Recipe from Curly Girl Kitchen