Strawberry season is upon us, so I thought this week I needed to give you something delicious to go with your berries. This is another recipe from Shauna Sever’s Midwest Made. I am so glad I had this cookbook home with me when this whole pandemic situation started. Most of the time, I bring cookbooks home, look at them and then return them to the library when they come due, but now I actually have time to try some new recipes. This is the third thing I’ve made from the book and my husband and I haven’t been disappointed (nor have family and friends who get to share in my baking adventure.) I’ve even purchased my own copy!
1 cup/225 g unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for pan(s)
3 cups/360 g cake flour, spooned and leveled, plus mor for pan(s)
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
¼ teaspoon baking soda
3 cups/600 g granulated sugar
6 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup/240 g full-fat sour cream
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Butter and flour a 12- to 15-cup Bundt pan or two 9 x 5-inch loaf pans. Barbara’s suggestion: Bake in the 2 loaf pans as it does get a nice crusty shell on the top. Since I baked mine in the Bundt pan, my crunchy top ended up on the bottom! The author says the cake freezes beautifully so you can eat one and freeze on.
Sift the cake flour into a large bowl. Whisk in the salt and baking soda.
In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy. Add the sugar and beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Reduce the speed to medium-low, and beat in the eggs, 1 at a time. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and stir in the sour cream and vanilla on low speed. Add the flour mixture ½ cup at a time, on low speed until the batter is smooth.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan(s) and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out mostly clean with a few moist crumbs, about 90 minutes for the Bundt cake, and 60 to 70 minutes for 2 loaf pans. Let cool in the pan(s) for 20 minutes before unmolding and allowing to cool completely on a wire rack.