We celebrated my daughter’s birthday on Saturday with a small family gathering, which is how I prefer to handle birthdays. Large parties are a lot of work, and keeping things low-key lets us be flexible and even take short trips together.
I may have gone a little overboard with gifts—the look on her face as she opened everything made it completely worth it. I almost let her pick out one more present at the store, but I showed a bit of restraint. Parenting changes your spending habits; I barely remember what I spent my money on before she arrived.
For weeks she’d asked for a cake loaded with frosting, sugar, and strawberries, so of course I obliged. Strawberry frosting is her favorite. This year I made a classic buttercream and folded in a hint of mint—strawberry and mint complement each other beautifully. The frosting is dangerously good; you’ll want to spread it on everything. I may have licked the bowl clean when no one was looking.
The butter cake is simple to make, very moist, and rich with real butter. Because butter is central to the flavor and texture of this cake, use a good-quality unsalted butter at room temperature. You don’t need specialty imports to get a great result—just real, fresh butter.
P.S. I’ve been experimenting with photo editing—what do you think of the more processed images compared with the natural shots? Would you like to see more edited photos or keep them natural?
Recipe Card
Butter Cake with Strawberry Mint Buttercream
By Amanda Powell
Fluffy vanilla butter cake topped with a creamy strawberry mint buttercream.
Prep Time: 40 mins
Cook Time: 35 mins
Total Time: 1 hr 15 mins
Servings: One 9-inch layer cake
Calories: 374 kcal (per serving)
Ingredients
For the Butter Cake
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon ground vanilla bean (or 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract)
- 14 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- ⅓ cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk
For the Strawberry Mint Buttercream
- 15 strawberries, divided
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 5 cups powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon mint extract
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
For the Cake
- Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans and set aside. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl; set aside.
- If using ground vanilla bean, mix it with the sugar in a separate bowl. If using vanilla extract, add it with the vanilla bean paste later.
- Beat the sugar (or vanilla sugar) and butter together until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the vanilla bean paste and beat for 2 more minutes.
- Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing 2–3 minutes between each addition so the batter becomes smooth and cohesive.
- Slowly add half of the flour mixture and mix until just combined. Add the buttermilk and beat only until absorbed. Add the remaining flour and beat on medium for about 2 minutes.
- Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans. Tap each pan on the counter twice to release air bubbles.
- Bake 25–30 minutes, or until the sides begin to pull away and the top springs back when pressed lightly.
- Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then remove and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
For the Strawberry Mint Buttercream
- In a small saucepan, combine 10 of the strawberries (hulled and roughly chopped) with the ½ cup sugar. Heat over medium-high and gently muddle the strawberries to release their juices. Allow the mixture to simmer and thicken for 5–10 minutes. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. To speed cooling, place the pan in a bowl of ice water.
- Beat the butter in a large bowl until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the powdered sugar, about ½ cup at a time, beating well between additions until the mixture is creamy.
- Add the mint extract and beat for an additional minute.
- Stir a pinch of salt into the cooled strawberry syrup, then pour the syrup into the buttercream and beat until fully incorporated.
- Chop the remaining strawberries into small pieces, pat lightly to remove excess moisture, and fold them into the buttercream.
- To assemble, place almost half the buttercream in the center of the bottom cake layer (do not spread it out). Place the top layer on, then frost the entire cake as desired with the remaining buttercream. An offset spatula works well for smoothing edges.
Notes
The cake recipe was adapted from the recipe source credited by the original author. Using room-temperature ingredients helps the batter come together smoothly. If you prefer a stronger strawberry flavor, reduce the powdered sugar slightly and add more of the cooled strawberry syrup to taste.
Nutrition (per serving)
- Calories: 374 kcal
- Carbohydrates: 65 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Fat: 12 g
- Saturated Fat: 7 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat: 4 g
- Cholesterol: 64 mg
- Sodium: 161 mg
- Fiber: 1 g
- Sugar: 54 g
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