Cardamom & Vanilla Strawberry Shortcake

Fresh, juicy, red strawberries dance with fluffy whipped cream cream frosting and

a perfectly moist cardamom + vanilla cake in each bite of this cake making it

honestly too good for words. This strawberry short cake inspired cake is at once

light and deliciously decadent. Perfect for any occasion- from a spring holiday to a

birthday party, it’s impossible to eat this cake without being filled with joy!

For Cake:

1/2 cup (1 stick) room temperature butter, salted
1/2 cup California Olive Ranch Avocado Blend Oil + more for greasing pans
1.5 cups cane sugar
2 teaspoons cardamom powder
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tablespoon fine salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 + 1/4 cup buttermilk, alternatively you can use 1+1/4 cup whole milk
with one tablespoon apple cider vinegar stirred in a and set aside for 2
minutes until milk curdles.

For Topping:

1 8oz brick cream cheese
1.5 quarts heavy whipping cream
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon fine sea or pink salt
2 to 2.5 cups powdered sugar, depending on desired sweetness
2lbs fresh strawberries, washed and sliced
*Equipment Note- This makes 2 8-inch cakes, and because the whipped cream
cheese frosting is light, cake dowels are highly recommended if you plan on
stacking cakes on top of each other to help cake keep it’s structure.

Preheat oven to 350F.
Prepare 2 8-inch cake pans by greasing them with California Olive Ranch Avocado Blend oil and lining the bottom with parchment paper.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, add in room temperature butter, California Olive Ranch Avocado Blend oil and sugar.
Cream together for two minutes on medium speed until well combined.
Add in one egg at a time, mixing well after each one.
Add in vanilla extract, mix again.
In a separate bowl, add in remaining dry ingredients of flour, baking powder, salt and cardamom powder.
Add 1/2 of the flour mixture and 1/2 of the buttermilk into the butter mixture and fold in just until combined- you do not want to overmix.
Add in the other half of the flour and buttermilk. Mix again just until combined.
Pour batter into 2 8-inch cake pans and bake in oven for approx. 30 minutes- until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
When cakes are done baking, let cool for 15 minutes in cake pans before removing from pans and allowing to cool fully. Be sure to let cakes completely cool before frosting. Even slight internal heat from cakes can melt frosting!

For Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting/Assembly:

To the bowl of a stand mixer, add in brick of cream cheese and mix on high until smooth, about 2 minutes.
Add in 1.5 quarts of heavy whipping cream, vanilla extract and salt. Mix on low for 30 seconds.
Add in sifted powdered sugar and whip on medium-high until stiff peaks form, about 3 minutes, stopping once or twice to scrape down sides and bottom of the bowl.
Wash and slice strawberries.
When cakes have completely cooled, layer cake by adding a layer of cake, a layer of frosting and a layer of sliced strawberries. Repeat with second cake layer. If using cake dowels, place 4 dowels about 3 inches apart from each other in the bottom layer of cake- boba straws make great cake dowels.
Keep cake chilled until serving.