Friday’s Fail (?): Strawberry Cake

The other day I decided to make up a strawberry cake recipe.  I’ve always wanted to try and figure out the science of baking a cake, so I did some research and got to work.  The batter tasted awesome; it baked pretty evenly; and it even pulled away from the pan while cooling.  We had company for dinner that night, so I decided to have some friends try it and give me their honest feedback.  They said it was good, maybe a little denser than they had anticipated, but the taste was great.  My friend Callie even said it could make it on the blog, and not as a fail, I might add!

Later that evening, after everyone had left and the kids were in bed, I decided to give it a try.  It was good!  But it wasn’t so good that I would necessarily want to make it again.  This is why I have a question mark behind this fail post.  If you bite into a piece of cake that you’ve made and don’t know if you like it well enough to make it again, would you consider that a fail?  I’ll post the recipe, in case you want to give it a try, but do so knowing that I’ve given a thorough disclaimer.  If you do try it, let me know what you think!

Until I decide whether or not to add this recipe to my collection, I’m on the hunt for a great fresh strawberry cake!

Strawberry Cake:
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 cup crushed strawberries (mash sliced strawberries so that some chunks remain)
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

    In a large bowl cream the butter, then add sugar.  Mix until well blended.  Add the eggs and beat until fluffy. Stir in strawberries.   Add flour, salt, and baking powder and beat, scraping the sides of the bowl until everything is well combined.  Next, add the milk and vanilla and beat again for about 2 minutes.

    Pour batter evenly into 2 greased and floured 8-inch round cake pans.  Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.  Cool in the pans for about 5 minutes, and then turn the cakes out onto wire racks to finish cooling.  When cake has completely cooled, ice with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting (which, by the way, is definitely not a fail!).   Garnish with sliced strawberries and fresh mint leaves.