My dear littlest daughter just had her first birthday! I made two cakes, a banana pineapple cake (aka Hummingbird Cake) with cream cheese frosting; and a buttermilk yellow cake with strawberry filling and covered in lightly sweetened whipped cream. I invited friends and neighbors to celebrate with a piece of cake! Keepin’ it simple. And good.

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Buttermilk Cake with Strawberry Filling and Whipped Cream

This is a basic yellow cake made with buttermilk instead of milk. Otherwise, the ingredients for this cake are virtually identical to a basic white cake, except for using whole eggs instead of only egg whites; and butter instead of shortening. Also, with the use of buttermilk (or soured milk), both baking powder and baking soda (to react with the buttermilk/sour milk) are used for leavening, rather than just baking powder.

Buttermilk Cake

3 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened (can use all butter, or all oil)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup buttermilk (can substitute soured milk)
2 tsp vanilla

2 cups unbleached flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
pinch salt

(There are different cake mixing methods. The following is basically a two-bowl method: wet ingredients beaten with sugar in one bowl, dry ingredients mixed in the other, combining both together at the end.)

With electric mixer and a good size bowl, beat eggs and sugar until fluffy. Beat in butter and oil. Add buttermilk and vanilla and beat in.

In separate bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until well combined. Make sure your oven is preheated and your pans are prepared before the next step (baking soda will start to lose its “omph” if gets moistened too far ahead of hitting the oven).

Pour into wet mixture and beat on low just until well combined, then on medium-high to high for a couple minutes until well beaten.

Pour into 2 greased and floured 9″ round pans.

Bake at 350*F for 35 minutes until top springs back when pressed in the center with a finger. (Test with a toothpick if you’re not sure – the toothpick will have a few dry crumbs if done; if not, the toothpick will have cake batter stuck to it.)

Strawberry Filling

1 pint (to 1 1/2 pints, or 2 – 3 cups) fresh strawberries
2 Tbsp water (optional)
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp corn starch

Wash strawberries, remove stems and slice. Set aside a few strawberries for garnish. Put the rest in a saucepan with the sugar and a couple tablespoons water (you can leave the water out, if you like, it just makes things a little juicier). Stir and bring to a simmer. Cook until strawberries are softened. Stir cornstarch and lemon juice together in small bowl or measuring cup until cornstarch is dissolved. Pour into cooking strawberries and cook a couple minutes until thickened. The lemon juice will bring that nice bright red color back to the berries. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

Whipped Cream

1 pint (2 cups) heavy whipping cream, cold
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp. vanilla

Chill bowl and beaters. Pour cold whipping cream into bowl and beat on high with electic mixer. When cream begins to thicken, pour in sugar. Continue to beat until stiff peaks form (Turn off mixer, push beaters into whipped cream and lift beaters back out. The peaks formed should hold their shape.) Beat in vanilla.

Cake Assembly

1. Put one cooled cake layer upside down on a plate (flat bottom side up).
2. Spread strawberry filling evenly over this. (Reserve a little for decorating the top, if desired.)
3. Spread a light layer of whipped cream over the strawberry filling.
4. Put the second layer of cake right side up on top of this.
5. Cover the entire cake with whipped cream. You might need to use a big spoon, a spatula, and some creativity for this. The usual icing spatula or butter knife won’t work very well with whipped cream.
6. Decorate with reserved fresh sliced strawberries and/or cooked strawberry filling.

Serve immediately, or refrigerate.