For the Strawberry Puree

1. Bring to a boil and boil for one minute. Remove from heat and cool. I like to pour the cooled mixture into my Blentec and puree it. If you don’t have a blender, chop the strawberries small so that little bits of strawberry go through the cake.

For the cake

1. Stir together the dry ingredients. Add the remaining ingredients (including the cooled puree) and mix on low speed until combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and then mix on medium-low speed for 2 minutes.
2. Pour into well-greased pans and bake at 325°F degrees for 35-45 minutes. You can use (2) or (3) 8″ round pans. Obvioulsy if you use 3 pans, you will have thinner layers, but it sure does make for a pretty layered cake if you add lots of frosting between layers!

Cream Cheese Frosting

1. Cream together cream cheese and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer or using a hand mixer. Mix for 3-4 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add in the vanilla extract and add one cup of powder sugar at a time while mixing on low speed. Once all powdered sugar is incorporated, mix on high speed for 5-6 minutes.  

Assembling Cake 

1. Take one cooled and leveled cake layer and place on a cake stand or plate. Top with about 1/2 cup cream cheese frosting and top with another later of cake. Continue with all layers of cake. 
2. Cover the outside of the cake in cream cheese frosting and top with fresh strawberries.
3. Serve and enjoy!!