1-2-3-4 Cake (Valentine's Day Edition)

Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone! I made this cake Saturday night, and I must admit, it was absolutely delicious. This cake is super simple to make and consists of ingredients that are already in your fridge and cabinets. I used the recipe from Swan’s Down, but I ran out of their cake flour and ended up using White Lily flour in combination with the Swan’s Down.

In addition to this, I didn’t use any almond extract like the original Swan’s Down recipe calls for, but it didn’t negatively impact the taste at all. I also added sour cream to this recipe. The sour cream compliments the vanilla beautifully (thanks, Mom, for the pro-tip).

I added these really cute flowers because I thought they would be a neat addition to the strawberries. While the flowers may look good, I would not recommend eating them.

Strawberries are the fruit we think of the most when it comes down to Valentine’s Day. So, I decided to decorate this cake with strawberries and use this homemade cream cheese frosting that my mom makes.

1-2-3-4 Cake

This cake is called the “1-2-3-4” cake. You’ll want to make sure you’ve buttered and floured your cake pans to ensure they do not stick. Pro tip: wait until the cakes have completely cooled to ice and decorate.

Ingredients (Cake)

• 1 cup (2 sticks) of soften, unsalted butter

• 2 cups of granulated sugar

• 4 eggs (room temperature)

• 3 teaspoons of baking powder

• ½ teaspoon of salt

• 1 cup of milk (I used 2%, but you can use whole milk or opt for a plant-based milk)

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1 heaping tablespoon of sour cream

Directions (Cake)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

2. Butter and flour pans (I used three 9 in round pans)

3. Sift flour and scoop three cups into a large bowl.

4. Add salt and baking soda to flour. Whisk together and set aside.

5. Add softened butter and sugar to the bowl and cream until fluffy.

6. Add eggs one by one while blending. Pro-tip from my mom: crack all four eggs in a bowl and pour each one into the mixture, one at a time.

7. Add flour mixture alternating with milk while blending.

8. Add vanilla extract and blend. Do not over blend, as it will result in dry cake.

9. Pour into floured cake pans.

10. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes or until the toothpick comes out clean.

11. Remove from the oven and let cool completely before decorating.

Ingredients (icing)

• 1 pack of cream cheese

• 1 ½ sticks of unsalted butter (softened)

• 3 cups Confectioners' sugar

• ¼ cup of milk (depending on the consistency you want; you can use less or more)

• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Directions (Icing)

• Add butter and cream cheese to mixing bowl

• Cream butter and cream cheese together until smooth

• Add confectioners' sugar, alternating with a splash of milk

• Add vanilla extract

• Continue mixing until the mixture is smooth

Decorating

After the cakes cooled down, I layered them with the frosting strawberries and did this until I reached my final layer. For my final layer, I decided to have a little fun and add these cute (real) flowers on top along with some extra strawberries.

Storage

Because this has fresh fruit, I decided to store in the refrigerator. I took it out a few hours before dinner time, so that it was room temperature; however, if you like cold cake, feel free to eat it straight out of the fridge!

In Closing

This cake was absolutely amazing. I wish I could share a slice of it with you all. If you make it, let me know how you like it!