This was a recipe given to me by another CCer and it was fabulous!:
Cindy's Fresh Strawberry Filling

2 pounds washed sliced strawberries (weighed after slicing) - to puree
1 pound strawberries (to add to filling before putting in cake)
1/2 cup sugar
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 Tbsp Grand Marnier
2 Tbsp cold water
5 and 1/2 Tbsp Cornstarch leveled

1) Puree the 2 pounds of strawberries in the blender. I do not strain as I like everything in my filling except for the green leafy tops.

2)Mix lemon juice, liquer, cold water and cornstarch in a mixing cup with a fork or small wisk.

3) Place puree in a large sauce pan and add sugar. Cook on medium heat stirring occasionally until it just starts to boil.

4)Give the cornstarch mixture a quick mix and gradually pour into berrie puree while stirring. It is very important to keep stirring during the addition of the cornstarch so that it doesn't form clumps.

5) Once the cornstarch is added boil for two minutes while stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

6) Pour into a container and place plastic wrap directly on the surface of the filling. Let cool to room temperature and then refridgerate overnight.

7) When you are ready to fill your cake - wash and slice the 1 pound of berries and stir into the filling. Fill cake and enjoy!

*****Hints and Tips*****
To check if the mixture is thick enough after the two minutes of boiling after adding the cornstarch you should be able to drop filling off of a spoon and it won't completely disappear back into the mixture. It should coat the back of a spoon quite thickly.

You could substitute orange juice for the grande marnier but I think the flavor would change a bit and it may take some experimenting to be sure it is not to much orange at 2 tbsp. I have not tried this so I cannot say how it will effect the flavor. If anyone does try this please post what you thought.

I mixed the berries into the cooked part on Friday and the leftovers have been kept in the fridge (did I mention this is good on toast -- LOL It is still thick and perfect for filling a cake. I will be putting some in the freezer to see what happens but I am confident it should be fine.
The little cake I made looked great cut and the filling did not turn my white cake pink.
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Check Wilton's website, they have a good recipe for strawberry filling using frozen strawberries, cornstarch and lemon juice.

When I first made it, it had too much gel for my taste so the second time I added the gel to my strawberries instead of the other way around.

Hi, if you want to use fresh strawberries i use a whipped topping and make a barrier then i take strawberries that I have halved and let sit for an hour or so with sugar and i fill the middle then put on the next layer of cake

thanks everyone!

If you use frozen berries, for a normal 9-10 inch round cake, I normally use one 8 oz package of berries. I sometimes have a little left over but not much. I also torte all my cakes so there is an extra layer of filling in mine with this amount.

Hope this helps.

Barbydoll

yay, thanks!