Strawberry Elderflower Cake
A simple, tender elderflower cake with fresh strawberries and a creamy elderflower frosting. All the easy summer vibes.
Servings: 9 servings
Equipment
- 8x8 pan or 8-inch round cake pan
Ingredients
Elderflower Cake
- 3 egg yolks
- ½ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup whole milk
- 1 teaspoon elderflower bourbon or St. Germaine
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- ½ cup cornstarch
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 4 ounces unsalted butter soft
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon dried elderflowers optional, see note
Elderflower Frosting
- 4 ounces unsalted butter soft
- 1 cup powdered sugar sifted
- pinch of salt
- 2 teaspoons elderflower bourbon or St. Germaine
Toppings
- 1 pint fresh strawberries
- 1 umbel fresh elderflowers optional
Instructions
For cake:
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Butter an 8x8 pan or 8-inch round cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper. The parchment is optional, but makes the cake easier to remove.
- Whisk together egg yolks, sour cream, milk, and elderflower bourbon in a bowl and set aside.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or electric beaters, cream butter until broken down. Add sugar and elderflowers; cream until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
- Add about one third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture and blend until almost incorporated. Then add about one third of the wet ingredients and fold in. Repeat alternating the dry and wet ingredients until all ingredients are just blended.
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan and bake until lightly golden all over and center springs back when touched, about 30-35 minutes.
- Place cake on a cooling rack and allow to cool completely.
For frosting:
- Cream butter, powdered sugar, and salt until completely smooth and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.
- Add elderflower bourbon, a little at a time, stirring to incorporate.
To assemble cake:
- Optional: Invert cake and remove from pan, removing parchment paper from bottom. Place on a cake plate. (Or just frost cake in pan)
- Top cake with elderflower frosting, using an offset spatula or a spoon to distribute frosting evenly.
- Decorate as desired with strawberries* and fresh elderflowers. Slice and serve!
Notes
Dried elderflowers: Adding this to the cake is optional, for additional elderflower flavoring. You can find dried elderflowers at herb shops or online from Mountain Rose Herbs.
*Decorating the cake: I recommend to wait to add fresh strawberries to the cake until just before serving, as the berries won't stay fresh for very long.