Southern Cake Girl: Early Birthday Love.

So one of my best friends from college came home this weekend!! She took a break from her new life in the Big Apple (totally jealous by the way) and came back to see friends and family, it was a great weekend! Her birthday is at the end of April, so duh I wanted to celebrate it early so she could have cake with all of us.... so I baked an awesome chocolate cake with strawberry meringue buttercream frosting... so delicious.... just trust me.

The cake recipe I have already given before, so click here for it (for a 2 layer, 8in cake double the recipe).

The strawberry frosting has this really good, creamy texture that only Martha Stewart can achieve. I'm uncertain about a lot of things in this world.. but this frosting isn't one of them... try it on something chocolate (because everything is better with chocolate.... I think I've said that before...). And, of course, in honor of Mallory's birthday, drink it with some champagne, because that's what she does.

Ingredients:
1.25 cups sugar
4 egg whites
3 sticks (1.5 cups) unsalted butter, at room temp
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
12 oz strawberry jam, pureed in a food processor

Directions:
1. In the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer set over a saucepan of simmering water, combine the sugar and egg whites. Cook, whisking continuously, until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is warm to the touch.

2. Attach the bowl to the mixer with the whisk attachment, and beat on a high speed until it holds stiff, not dry, peaks. Continue beating until the mixer is fluffy and cooled (~6mins).

You can tell when the peaks form, it will look like this when you put your finger into it.

3. Switch to the paddle attachment. With the mixer on a medium-low speed, add the butter a couple tablespoons at a time, it must be at room temperature, and beat well after each addition. If the frosting seems to seperate after all the butter is added, mix on a medium-high speed for 3-5mins.

4. Add the vanilla. Beat on the lowest speed for a few mins to eliminate any air bubbles.

5. Stir in the strawberry jam with a rubber spatula until frosting is smooth.