Strawberry Fields Forever

Can you hear the Beatles singing that classic track from the Blue Album? ” Let me take you down cause I’m going to, Strawberry Fields…”

When I stroll through the early morning St. Paul Farmer’s Market at this time of the summer, It’s all I can do not to spend every dollar in my pocket on these gorgeous fragrant strawberries.

Grocery store strawberries can’t hold a candle to these beauties. Not quite perfect looking (just like most of us!) but ripe and succulent, the flavor explosion is worth every penny. If you have a favorite local farmer’s market grab as many as you can afford.

Most of the time, they disappear straight from the strainer after I wash them. This summer, however, I got wise and learned how to freeze them. Just rinse the berries, cut the green tops off and freeze them single file on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Once frozen, store them in a zip top bag for up to 6 months. Easy as pie!

I use them all summer long in smoothies, with yogurt and in baked goods. This Almond Flour Cake with Strawberry Sauce is the perfect showcase for their loveliness.

I invite you hit up your favorite market this weekend, and enjoy one of life’s true culinary pleasures. As a bonus, the cake works beautifully for strawberry shortcake and the sauce is delightful with ice cream.

Almond Flour Cake with Strawberry Sauce

This yummy cake is the perfect host for a fresh summer strawberry sauce. Not too sweet, it's nutty flavor will please everyone at your table. The cake also works well as a base for Strawberry Shortcake

Servings people

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 25

Total Time 45

Ingredients

The Almond Flour Cake

4 large eggs
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanila extract
1 1/4 cups almond flour
1 tablespoon coconut flour optional
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

The Strawberry Sauce

1 1/2 cups strawberries fresh or frozen
2 tablespoons maple syrup or 1/4 cup sugar
1 small lemon
1/4 cup water

Instructions

Make the Almond Flour Cake

Preheat the oven 350 degrees and coat an 8" cake pan with cooking spray
Separate the egg yolks and eggs whites in two large bowls
Add the sugar and vanilla to the egg yolks
Using a hand beater, beat the egg yolk mixture on high until it's well combined, a little lighter in color and increased a little in volume - about 3 minutes
With clean, dry beaters beat the egg whites on high until stiff peaks form
Add the almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder and salt to a large bowl. If you don't have coconut flour, just leave it out - it adds a nice flavor, but isn't necessary
Mix to combine the dry ingredients
Add the dry ingredients to the egg yolk mixture.
Mix until it has all combined into a dense batter
Fold in the beaten egg whites half a cup at a time
Gently mix until all the egg whites have combined into a nice, smooth batter and add it to the prepared pan
Bake the cake until it's golden brown and a toothpick tester comes out clean - between 20 and 30 minutes

Make the Strawberry Sauce

While the cake is baking grab about 1 1/2 cups of fresh or frozen strawberries. The fresher, the better for this sauce - I often buy a bunch at the farmer's market and freeze them
Slice the strawberries
Zest the lemon with a Microplane or peeler, and set the zest aside
Add the sliced strawberries to a small saucepan along with the maple syrup (or sugar) and the juice of the lemon
Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until thickened - about 20 minutes. It will smell amazing!
Taste and make any needed adjustments - you can add more sugar or lemon juice as you like. Let the sauce cool and refrigerate any you don't use for up to a week
Serve with the Almond Flour Cake and a sprinkle of lemon zest and enjoy this celebration of summer! The sauce is great on ice cream too.