Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cake Recipe

When making a strawberry cake, the first thing you need to determine is how many ways you want to incorporate strawberry into the cake.

For our chocolate covered strawberry cake, we wanted to max out on both the strawberry and chocolate flavours.

In addition to the strawberry in the cake, we added a strawberry buttercream and strawberry slices filling. We also frosted the cake with strawberry buttercream and garnished it with chocolate-dipped strawberries.

For the chocolate covering, we used semi-sweet chocolate ganache, a bit of which we also added to the filling.

This chocolate covered strawberry cake is great for just about any occasion that calls for cake, be it a birthday, an anniversary or a lazy Saturday afternoon.

What You’ll Need For My Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cake

a. For the Cake

Note: These ingredients amount produce two round 8 x 2 inch cakes.

• 1 cup strawberry puree – you can use frozen or fresh strawberries to make the puree
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 stick unsalted butter (about 113 grams)
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 eggs
• ¼ cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla (2 teaspoons if using vanilla extract)
• 2 teaspoons strawberry extract

b. For the Filling

• 10 strawberries, pureed
• 2 sticks unsalted butter
• 500g powdered sugar
• 10 strawberries, thinly sliced
• Chocolate ganache (see next for ingredients)

c. For the Chocolate Ganache

• 283g semi-sweet dark chocolate
• 283g heavy cream

d. For the Garnish

• 112g dark chocolate, melted (you can use the same chocolate you used for the ganache)
• Enough strawberries to place around the cake (about 5-8 large strawberries)

Instructions

a. Baking the Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 177C (gas mark 4).
2. Grease and flour two round 8 x 2 inch pans.
3. Using a stand mixer or a hand mixer, cream butter and sugar until you get a smooth consistency. For best results, add the sugar a little at a time and run the mixer at medium speed. Add the vegetable oil and mix for 30 more seconds.
4. Add the eggs, one at a time. Each time you add an egg, wait until it is well blended before adding another.
5. Add the strawberry and vanilla extract and blend for a few more seconds.
6. Add the strawberry puree and mix until it just blends.
7. In another bowl, mix flour, baking soda and salt. Add the flour mixture, a little at a time, to the batter. Mix until the flour is just wet. Do not overmix to ensure the cake comes out fluffy.
8. Pour batter into the cake pans and bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes. Do the toothpick test to check for readiness.
9. Place the cakes on a cooling rack for at least an hour or until they are cool. It’ll be easier to apply frosting and the ganache if the cake is cool.

b. Preparing Strawberry Buttercream

Note: For best results, leave butter sitting on the counter for a couple of hours to soften at room temperature.

1. Add butter to bowl and blend with a mixer for a minute or two.
2. Add powdered sugar and pureed strawberries, a little at a time and blend at medium speed until you have a very smooth consistency.

c. Preparing Chocolate Ganache

Chocolate ganache requires just two ingredients – chocolate and heavy cream – and you can make it in your microwave.

1. Put the chocolate and cream in a microwave-safe bowl.
2. Microwave for one minute. Remove the bowl and stir the mixture. The chocolate should have started to melt a little.
3. Return to the microwave for 30 seconds. Remove the bowl and stir again.
4. If the chocolate has not yet melted to a creamy consistency, return to the microwave for 15 seconds at a time until it melts. Stir the chocolate and cream until well blended and consistency is smooth.
5. Leave the ganache to cool a little. It’ll get thicker as it cools. But don’t let it cool too much as that could make it impossible to spread on the cake.

d. Assembling the Cake

Before you begin to assemble the cake, get your strawberries for garnishing ready. Melt dark chocolate in the microwave by heating it for 30 seconds, stirring it, then heating it for a further 30 seconds.

Dip strawberries in the melted chocolate and place them on a piece of waxed or parchment paper. By the time you finish assembling the cake, the chocolate coating will have firmed up.

1. Spread a thin layer of chocolate ganache on top of the first cake. Spread a thick layer of strawberry buttercream on top.
2. Place sliced strawberries on top of the buttercream.
3. Gently place the second cake on top.
4. Frost the top and sides of the layered cake with strawberry buttercream. A turntable is perfect for this but you can also place the cake on a flat surface.
5. Using a piping bag, drip chocolate ganache on top of the cake, letting it pour in small rivulets down the side of the cake. The ganache should spread easily but also be thick enough that it doesn’t completely drip off the cake. Let the ganache cool a bit before spreading it. A cool cake also helps.
6. If the ganache is too thick, use a palette knife or spatula to spread it around the cake and over the edge.
7. Before the ganache cools and firms up, press the chocolate-dipped strawberries into it, forming a neat circle around the edge of the cake.
8. Let the cake sit for an hour to allow everything to set.