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Prep time
1 hour
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Cook time
25 minutes
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Serves
8
Author Notes
We tell stories with our food. Some of those stories are simple, straightforward: I want to eat cake. And others might be a little more layered. Growing up, we rarely got to eat American food. But every birthday, my mom would head into the city and pick up a cake from a famous bakery, Lutz. I knew from the way my mom emphasized the word “Lutz” that there was something special, something rich about a “Lutz cake.” Untying the string around the glossy white box to unveil the dreamy strawberries and cream confection inside was a present all in itself. Once, my mom took me with her to the bakery, with its golden chandeliers. I pressed my nose right up against the glass display, dazzled by strawberries the size of my face. And it was then, as a little girl, that I realized that it wasn’t just about the cake. It was about a whole other world out there, with tinkling glass and amber lights, four pronged forks and English words rolling off tongues like silky fondant. That’s what my mother tried to bring home to me, every birthday, in a white paperboard box, tied up with a piece of string.
This is a vegan version of the storied strawberries and cream cake I used to eat on every birthday. —The Korean Vegan
Ingredients
- Vanilla Cake
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2 cups
plant milk
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1 tablespoon
white wine vinegar
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2 2/3 cups
flour
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4 teaspoons
baking powder
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1/2 teaspoon
baking soda
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1/2 teaspoon
salt
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1/3 cup
vegan butter
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3/4 cup
sugar
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2 tablespoons
vegan sour cream
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1 tablespoon
vanilla extract
- Whipped Cream Frosting
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1 3/4 cups
aquafaba (chickpea brine)
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1 cup
granulated sugar
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1 1/2 teaspoons
agar agar
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1 1/2 teaspoons
cream of tartar
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1 cup
powdered sugar
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1 tablespoon
vanilla extract
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1 cup
strawberries, quartered
Directions
- Vanilla Cake
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For the cake: Preheat your oven to 350° F. Line two 7-inch round cake pans with parchment paper and spray them generously with cooking spray.
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Add the white wine vinegar to the plant milk and set aside.
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In a large bowl, add together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir with a whisk to avoid any clumps.
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Add the butter and sugar to the bowl of your stand mixer (you can also use a hand mixer). Using the whisk attachment, mix on high until the butter and sugar are completely incorporated (about 2 minutes).
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Add the sour cream, the milk + vinegar mixture, and the vanilla extract to the butter and sugar. Mix on medium until combined (about 30 seconds).
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Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients in 3 batches, stirring on medium each time, until just incorporated (there will still be flour on the sides of the bowl).
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Using a spatula, incorporate any residual flour into the batter.
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Evenly divide the batter into your cake pans (I used a scale) and bake in a preheated oven for about 24 to 26 minutes, until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
- Whipped Cream Frosting
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For the whipped cream frosting: Add the aquafaba, granulated sugar, and the agar agar to a small pot and bring it to a gentle boil for approximately 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
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Remove the mixture from heat to allow it to cool to about lukewarm temperature (cool enough where you can touch it).
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Add the mixture to your stand mixer and using the whisk attachment, mix on high until you achieve stiff peaks (about 7 to 8 minutes).
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Add the cream of tartar, the powdered sugar, and vanilla extract. Mix on high until your frosting is stiff and glossy (about 3 to 5 minutes).
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Frost the bottom layer and add half your quartered strawberries, pressing them into the frosting. Add more whipped cream frosting over the top of the strawberries, before placing the second layer.
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Frost the second layer and top with remaining strawberries.
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