Who can resist luscious strawberries?
It’s Strawberry Season.
That means, even here in Minnesota, the best, locally grown strawberries have finally reached their sweet, rosy ripeness. We make do all year with the bounty of California and Mexico, or do without. Until now. It’s a short window, and deserving of its own holiday season status.
You can even pick your own, just follow this link to find a farm.
Strawberry Season Bacchanal
The first berries were spotted at my local farmer’s market last week, and the first pint was eaten out of hand. Juice running down my chin, dipped in a little powdered sugar for old-time’s sake. But I had plans for the other berries I had greedily snatched up. A big fat bundt cake, lush as pound cake, but oh so plant-based.
The first berries of the season
Bake a Cake with the Best Strawberries of the Year
This cake is a recipe I’ve been working on for a while. It looks odd on the page, with so much oil, and no real egg replacements. The batter looks odd, too, because it’s so thick you might think it is a fail. But it’s not. Trust me. Once you whip all that luscious fat and spread it in the pan, it all bakes up just wonderfully.
As always, I was too lazy to make frosting or coconut whip, but you certainly can. I just wanted a little strawberry glaze on the bundt, to show off the shape and accentuate the flavor, so I pureed a few berries and added powdered sugar. It would be lovely served with a pile of berries and whipped coconut cream, or your fave ice cream.
Strawberry season is short, so I’ll be binge-ing on more of these sweet delicacies for as long as they last. It will be blueberry season, soon, and my favorite plum and cherry grower tells me it’s going to be a good year for those succulent treats as well.
Enjoy your own strawberry season with a cake, and seize the day!
Fresh Strawberry Bundt Cake
Equipment
- Bundt Pan
Ingredients
- 3 cups unbleached flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon zest
Wet Mix
- 1 cup avocado oil
- 1/2 cup coconut oil melted
- 1 1/2 cup organic sugar
- 1/2 cup mashed banana
- 3 cups quartered strawberries
Glaze
- 4 large strawberries
- 2 cups powdered sugar approximately
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Garnish
- 2 cups whole strawberries
- 1/4 cup organic sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Lightly oil a bundt pan and reserve
- In a large bowl, whisk the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and lemon zest.
- In a bowl with an electric beater, or in a stand mixer with the batter paddle, beat the avocado oil and coconut oil with the organic sugar for 3 minutes. Add the banana and beat for another minute. Add the flour mixture and stir in just until mixed, then fold in the strawberries using a spatula.
- Scrape the very thick batter into the Bundt pan and smooth the top.
- Bake for 1 hour to an hour and 10 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out with no wet batter attached.
- Cool for about 10 minutes before running a paring knife around the edges and inverting onto a cake plate. Allow to cool completely.
- For the glaze, place the strawberries in a blender and puree, scraping down as needed. Add the powdered sugar and process to make a pourable glaze. If it is thin, transfer to a bowl and stir in more powdered sugar to make a thick glaze.Drizzle over the cooled cake.
- To serve, fill the center of the cake with sweetened whole berries.
