Here's another recipe in my Aunt Cherie's long list of scrumptious desserts. (You may notice a pattern in my blog posts here...yes, my family has a serious sweet tooth!) I altered this recipe to include a teaspoon of Strawberry Extract. A pastry chef gave me a tip about working with strawberries: it can be difficult to coax full flavor and sweetness from even the ripest of strawberries. Add a little strawberry extract to boost the flavor. You can build this recipe in an 13X9 baking dish or create individual desserts in pretty wine or martini glasses. The truth is, you could make it in a galvanized bucket, and your guests wouldn't care. It's that good!
Ingredients
Yellow butter cake mix, prepared according to directions
1 pint whipping cream
1 can condensed milk
Juice of half of a lemon
4 cups sliced strawberries (reserve a few berries for garnish)
1 tsp Strawberry Extract
Directions
Prepare cake mix as directed in a half sheet pan (aka jelly roll pan or cookie sheet with sides). It will cook in less time than the box indicates because of the size of the pan. The batter is spread out more thinly, so the surface area is greater. This factor decreases the bake time. Allow the cake to cool.
In a stand mixer, whip the cream until stiff peaks form. Fold in the condensed milk. In a bowl, mash the berries and lemon juice a bit, breaking up the berries and allowing them to create juice (the lemon juice helps this process along). Stir in the Strawberry Extract. Fold the berries into the whipped cream/condensed milk mixture. The juice will tint the cream pink.
Break the cake into pieces and place the pieces in a 13X9 baking pan or divide the pieces among 12 individual dishes or glasses (like footed dessert bowls, large bowl wine glasses or martini glasses.) Pour strawberry cream mixture into the 13X9 dish over the cake pieces or spoon it equally among the individual glasses (if using). Refrigerate for at least two hours (if you can stand it). Garnish with reserved strawberry slices and serve.