I have a friend that is moving away and wants a strawberry cake for his going away. I bought a strawberry cake mix a week ago and was going to put either cream cheese or regular buttercream icing on it and decorate. However, Albertsons had a killer sale on fresh strawberries today. Buy 1 2-pound container, get one free. There is no way my family can eat all of those strawberries before they go bad, so I was thinking maybe I'd fill and decorate with the strawberries.

My question is...do you think that would be too much strawberry? Should I buy a white cake or something else instead?

I need ideas...I've got a vision in my head of how to decorate it with the strawberries. Large rosettes with upside down strawberries dipped in chocolate and maybe some sliced ones fanned out in the center...surrounded by a border. Maybe even some strawberry glaze underneath?

Please help...I've got too much going on in my brain and it's gettin cramped in there.

mmm yummy.. i say the more strawberries the better ... or maybe u can even bring a small platter of extra cho dipped strawberries to the party

I would probably use a chocolate cake mix or white with all the strawberries-it would really compliment them-but if the guest of honor wants strawberry cake then I would go with that-if she just states she wants strawberrys or "strawberry something"-I would go with the complimentary cake...just my thoughts.

When I asked him what kind of cake he wanted, he said strawberry, but hem-hawed around about exactly what he wanted...he said other things too. He's very meek and mild and not forward at all. He's from another culture (Asian) and I don't think they are accustomed to asking for what they want in this type of situation. So I just ran with strawberry. I don't think he would mind at all if it were another flavor cake with strawberry accents. He'd be appreciative if I gave him a mud pie. He seems kinda embarrassed that I'm even doing it for him.

what a humble man he is--I am sure a white cake with the strawberries or a chocolate cake with the strawberries would turn out wonderful with your ideas in mind---and with the friendship included-who could ask for anything more??

Thanks for your help (again) nanni! and thank you too magenta!!

Here's another suggestion. I've made a cake from a recipe on Sandra Lee Semi-Homeade. I've had to moderate it a little from the original, but it's a great cake. I'm trying to post the recipe, but I'm not sure if it's working. So I'll just give it to you.

Strawberry Decadence
Cake:
1 box strawberry cake mix
1 (11.5 oz) can strawberry nectar
3 eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil

Filling:
1 pound fresh strawberries, cleaned
1 cup strawberry jam, divided

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Butter and flour 2 (9-inch) round cake pans. Combine cake mix, nectar, eggs, and oil in large bowl. Beat with an electric mixer for 2 minutes, or until well blended. Divide batter between prepared pans. Bake for 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Cool cakes in pans on cooling racks for 20 minutes. Invert cakes onto cooling rack and cool completely.

Thinly slice enough strawberries to yield 1 1/4 cups. Using a serrated knife, cut each cake horizontally in half, forming 4 layers in total. Place 1 cake layer, cut side down, on a serving platter. Spread 1/3 cup jam over top of cake layer. Arrange 1/4 cup of sliced strawberries in a single layer atop jam. Top with second cake layer, cut side down. Repeat layering with jam and sliced strawberries. Top with third cake layer, cut side down. Repeat layering with jam and sliced strawberries. Top with remaining cake layer, cut side down. Spread frosting evenly over top and sides of cake to coat completely. Arrange remaining 1/2 cup sliced strawberries and 1 whole strawberry decoratively atop cake. Refrigerate cake for 40 minutes. Serve cake with remaining whole strawberries.

** This was wonderful & it's been requested of again & again. The nectar makes it very moist. The original recipe called for strawberry icing, but it turns out way too sweet. So, you could use buttercream or cream cheese. Even a whipped topping works. As long as a non-strawberry icing is used, the combo of strawberry cake & actual strawberries works wonderfully!

~ Erin

I'll tell you something that is really yummy! A Frech Vanilla cake, with whipped cream and fresh sliced strawberries in between the layers. Then cover with a buttercream and decorate however you please!

Ooh, that sounds really good. Where do you get strawberry nectar??

I actually just get it from Wal-mart. It's in the juice isle. I imagine you could find it in the juice isle of any grocery. It makes a very yummy cake! A friend of mine even joked the other day that I should "practice" one of those strawberry cakes again. Ha ha!

Hi marknrox! I recently did a butter pound cake with mocha frosting between the two layers of a 9 inch cake and added fresh strawberry cut in half and put strawberry glaze prior to putting the strawberries than I put some more frosting on top of berries then put top cake layer and frost the top and sides and then I put glaze on top of cake before adding remainer of strawberries on top and if you like you can put some slice or whole strawberries on base of your cake once you put the border on, which can be either white or yellow border and then apply the strawberries. It gives a nice contrast to your cake. I thought that my cake was terrible, but the customer loved it and the taste was beyond words the customer told me. People think that I should open up my own shop, but I tell them I'm far from doing that, I still need alot of pratice with my designs and see what people have to say about my decorating of cakes before even considering a business. It is more than just baking a good cake, that is just the starting point the finishing product is what really counts, at least that is what I think, I might be wrong, but just my opinion.

Hey Rox,

I use that same recipe!! I get my nectar from the Taco Mix & picante sauce isle in Brookshires or Walmart. It's on the isle w/ Mexican, Chinese & other cultures foods. That nectar is very good to drink too!! It has way too many calories in it though! That cake isn't too strawberrie either. It's fabalous!

Ok, I couldn't find the strawberry nectar, so I figured I'd keep looking and try that in the future...I still have the strawberry cake mix. What I did do though, is get a french vanilla cake mix, filled it with chopped strawberries and whipped cream and iced it in buttercream. Then I used the remainder of the chocolate from the dipped strawberries (does anyone how to make them look better?) and put it in the buttercream and added a little cocoa powder and made chocolate buttercream (oh my it is good!) and used that for the decorations. I'm pleased with how it came out. The cake is in the Retirement gallery since there isn't a Going Away gallery. Let me know what you think.