Southern Strawberry Cake

Thank you to Helen for requesting a baby shower cake.  She asked if I could bake a Strawberry Shortcake.  I'll be honest with you.  I tried my hand at one awhile back and let's just say.... it wasn't very pleasant.  So I suggested a Southern Strawberry Cake.  I found this idea by Joy The Baker.

This cake is so pretty, and I thought it would work for the occasion (great for bridal showers as well).  Here is the recipe:

Ingredients Cake
1 (18.5 ounce) box white cake mix (without pudding)
1 (3 ounce) package strawberry jello
1 Tablespoon self rising flour
4 teaspoons granulated sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup fresh strawberries, finely diced.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F

Ingredients Cream Cheese Frosting
1 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
pink food coloring
4 sliced strawberries

Wash your strawberries, cut the tops off, and dice them up.  I put them in a large Ziploc bag and rolled a can over it to crush them.

To make the cake, combine to cake mix, Jello, flour and sugar in a large bowl. Mix well. Add the oil. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition Add the water and strawberries and mix well.

Divide the batter evenly into two 8-inch round baking pans that have been oiled and floured. Bake for 25-35 minutes, or until a tooth pick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean and the layers pull away from the sides of the pan. 
**I baked this cake using two 10" round baking pans.  For this recipe I doubled up on my ingredients and baked this cake for 50 minutes at 325 degrees F.

Transfer the layers from the oven to wire racks. Let them cool, still in their pans, for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, run a knife around the inside edge of each pan, then unmold each layer onto the racks to cool completely.

Frosting
In a medium bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter until creamy. Mix in the vanilla, then gradually stir in the confectioners' sugar. Store in the refrigerator after use.
**I found the frosting to be a little sweet, so I added a teaspoon of salt to my (doubled up) ingredients.



I crumb coated the bottom layer and added some more diced strawberries on top.

I added the top layer and finished off my crumbcoat.

Put the coconut in a small bowl and sprinkle with two or three drops of pink food dye. Mix with a spoon to distribute the color.

Once the cake is frosted, decorate the top of the cake with the shredded coconut and sliced strawberries.

ENJOY!