easy strawberry cake

Cakes should taste good without having too many ingredients in them. This strawberry cake is simple enough to make but it requires a whole lot of patience because of the long baking time. During this time, you'll be able to smell the aroma of strawberries and sugar bubbling in the oven like jam. 

This cake is hardly the prettiest one around but it's great when you need a go to recipe for a potluck you didn't plan for. It is also adaptable for any other kind of berries as well. I always like to add in a dash of lemon or orange zest with a teaspoon of mint, this gives the cake that extra kick from the zest and mint. With that your batter would be good to go and you can then patiently wait to get a taste of that freshly baked moist cake, just lightly sweetened with fresh strawberries, coming straight out from the oven.

Adapted from Martha Stewart's Strawberry Cake recipe: here

Although best with fresh cream, I served this one with honey and greek yogurt instead which works as a healthier option.

Vanilla Sponge Cake with Strawberry Mousse.

I love eating cakes, but it always scares me how much butter and oil I add into many of my cake recipes. I've always wanted to try making a cake where I wouldn't feel the guilt after. a few weeks ago, I chanced upon a recipe which required no butter or oil and of course, I just had to try it. 

I made it for my mum and her friends the previous time by layering it with greek yogurt, honey and mandarin oranges with a hint of lemon zest in the cake batter, (my mum is a health nut and isn't a fan of anything sweet) and it turned out perfect! light, fluffy, slightly sweet and a touch of tangy lemon zest.
This has now become my go to sponge cake recipe because it is so versatile, I can adapt it anyway I want it to be.
This past long weekend, I had a few friends over for a brunch party and I thought I would try something fancier. I made the same vanilla cake recipe, but this time I layered a light strawberry mousse in between and topped it off with fresh cream, dark chocolate shavings and strawberries. loved the way it turned out, especially with the bow as the finishing touch.
I've adapted the basic sponge cake recipe here to make it even lighter and softer, enjoy :)