Strawberry Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

I gave a birthday party for my mother a few weekends ago. It was so much fun!! The party had a Luau theme. I made a few dishes from Paula Deen's "smokehouse" menu and I gave them my own twist. I also added a few things that my family likes.

Appetizer:

• Coconut Shrimp with Spicy Mango Chutney Dipping sauce

Entree:

• Pork Chop and Pineapple Pie
• Zucchini and Green Bean Bundles
• Corn on the Cob

Dessert:

• Ambrosia
• Strawberry Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Out of all the things I fixed that night, I was most impressed with the strawberry cake. It was three layers tall with a fabulous cream cheese frosting, garnished with fresh strawberries. Yum yum!! One warning: this makes a VERY LARGE CAKE. Here is the recipe I used:

Strawberry Cake

2 (18.25 ounce) packages yellow cake mix

1 (6 oz) package strawberry flavored gelatin mix

6 Tbsp all-purpose flour

1 cup water

1 1/3 cups vegetable oil

8 eggs

16 oz fresh strawberries, pulsed in a blender or food processor until pulpy

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour three 9-inch round pans. In a large bowl, stir together cake mix, gelatin mix, and flour. Make a well in the center and pour in water, oil, and eggs. Stir in the fresh strawberry pulp. Beat mixture on low speed until blended. Scrape bowl and beat on medium speed for 4 minutes. Pour batter into the prepared pans. Bake in the preheated overn for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool completely.

Cream Cheese Frosting

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 (16 ounce) package powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

Beat cream cheese and butter a medium speed with an electric mixer until fluffly; gradually add sugar, brating well. Stir in vanilla. Makes 4 cups. If mixture is too runny, add and blend in powdered sugar 1 Tbsp at a time until it reaches the desired consistency.

Building the Cake

Level and trim the cake layers with a cake leveler or a large, sharp serrated knife. Fill and frost the cake. Garnish top of the cake with whole and sliced strawberries.