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Strawberry Dump Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream |
Introduction
The strawberry dump cake is an intriguing study in culinary economy. It is a cobbler like dessert, but made with none of the typical cobbler ingredients or techniques. The flavor of strawberry jam is pungent and bright with bright, jammy acidity, and it is balanced by deep, caramelized, buttery notes from the golden cake-mix crust. The texture of the dessert is also of two distinct layers, with a bubbling, molten fruit base, and a tender, sponge-like cake-layer with shatteringly crisp, buttery crumbs.
Another significant component to this strawberry dump cake is the dry-layering technique used here as opposed to making a traditional wet-batter to pour into a pan. The moisture from the dry-layered fruit does steam under the surface of the flour mixture, hydrating the flour of the cake-mix under the surface; and while the top is coated with the melted butter, it crisps up beautifully to golden brown, forming contrast to the tender, sponge-like cake in the layers on top of the fruit as well as creating deliciously shattery, buttery crumbs.
Ingredient Deep-Dive & Smart Substitutions
To take this simple commercial item to another level, an examination of its potential as a great showcase item would involve an assessment of the best selections of the basic ingredients and an evaluation of the component’s physical qualities to create a harmonious whole in terms of its form and shape.
- Canned strawberry pie filling: When purchasing canned pie filling from a store, pick a higher-end brand of strawberry pie filling. Look to see where the real strawberry is on the ingredients list – before the sugar or corn syrup. We like to mix the canned filling with fresh, macerated strawberries to balance the sweetness of the canned and improve the texture.
- Freshness indicators: The berries must be picked at the peak of freshness, this means selecting berries that are firm to the touch and have a wonderful fragrance. The red color of the berry should extend all the way down to the stem-end, the green leaves and white (green) shoulders on the berry are indications of under-ripeness (high acid-to-sugar ratio).
- Function: The juice from the fresh strawberries, released during baking, thins the filling and prevents it becoming too solid, due to the starches from the filling, while the acidity of the fresh strawberries will give a brighter more natural taste than the filling.
- Substitutions: Raspberries, blackberries or sweet cherries can be used in the same amount.
- Look for: a regular yellow or white cake mix 15.25 oz (432 g) - must contain flour and leavening.
- Function: It acts as the structural flour barrier, to absorb fat from above and moisture from below to create the bottom crust.
- Substitutions: Use a high quality 1-to-1 gluten-free yellow cake mix for this layer in a gluten-free version of this dessert. To lower the sugar content of this layer use a keto-friendly cake mix or reduced sugar cake mix. The dessert will not brown as much due to the Maillard reaction.
- High-fat European-style butter (min 82% butterfat).
- Function: Butter acts as the fat in the recipe, to hydrate the dry cake mix, and to create the crust on the outside of the cake, which will become crispy and brown in the oven.
- Substitutions: For a dairy-free or vegan version of this recipe, you can substitute in premium plant-based butter (in a stick form with low water content) sliced thinly to replicate the fat and leavening characteristics of traditional butter. Avoid using liquid vegetable oils as they over saturate the flour causing it to produce a greasy, dense and heavy texture.
- Function: The citric acid in the mixture cuts through the massive sweetness of the cake and also activates the natural pectin of the strawberries to create a fresh and vibrant taste experience.
Ingredient Measurements
| Ingredient | US Customary Measurement | Metric Equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| Strawberry Pie Filling | 1 can (21 oz) | 595 g |
| Fresh Strawberries (hulled and sliced) | 2 cups | 300 g |
| Lemon Juice | 1 tbsp | 15 ml |
| Lemon Zest | 1 tsp | 2 g |
| Yellow Cake Mix | 1 package (15.25 oz) | 432 g |
| Unsalted Butter (cold, sliced into thin pats) | ¾ cup (12 tbsp) | 170 g |
| Sliced Almonds or Demerara Sugar (optional garnish) | ¼ cup | 25 g |
Essential Equipment
9 x 13-inch (23 x 33-cm) Ceramic or Glass Baking Dish: Allows for excellent heat conduction because they are much thicker than typical metal baking pans and are made of ceramic or tempered glass. This pan prevents the bottom strawberry sugars in the wet batter on the bottom of the pan from scorching before the dry cake from the top of the batter is fully cooked.
Adjustable Wire Cheese Slicer or Mandoline: Use to shave the cold butter into thin slices and spread evenly over the dry cake mix for complete coverage.
Microplane Grater: For retrieving clean, bitter-free lemon zest.
Step-by-Step Professional Method
1. Prep and Macerate
To start, heat your oven to 350°F (177°C). Place the rack in the center of the oven. Grease a ceramic baking dish with a thin layer of butter, allowed to soften to room temperature. In a medium bowl, combine the sliced fresh strawberries with the lemon juice and zest. Let it sit for 5 minutes to allow the natural juices to be released from the strawberries. This will balance the sweetness of the canned strawberries.
2. Establish the Fruit Foundation
Pour the can of strawberry pie filling into the prepared baking dish. Add the remaining macerated strawberries to the pie filling and use a rubber spatula to gently fold them together. Press the mixture out evenly to form a flat surface. Make sure the fruit reaches all edges of the dish.
3. Apply the Dry Barrier
Evenly sprinkle the dry yellow cake mix over the strawberry layer.
Critical Technique Step: This is a very delicate layer. Do not dump the mix in one spot and then drag it across the top of the layer. Instead, use your hands, or a fine-mesh sieve to “rain” the dry cake mix down evenly over the top of the layer. Then, use the back of a fork to smooth out any large clumps. Make sure you do not stir or mix the dry cake mix into the wet fruit.
4. Shave and Layer the Butter
Cut the cold butter into very thin pats using either a sharp chef’s knife or a wire slicer. Lay them out in a neat grid on top of the dry cake mix, overlapping them slightly.
Try to achieve a 90% or higher coverage of dry flour. If you do have any large dry patches that have been left uncovered, they will likely be powdery in the finished cake. If using nuts or a sweet sanding, sprinkle them over the top of the pats of butter. Sliced almonds or a tablespoon of Demerara sugar work particularly well.
5. The Bake and Visual Cues
Place the prepared dish on the center rack of the preheated oven and bake for 40-45 minutes. Check the oven at the 30 minute mark. If there are still small dry flour patches on the surface of the cake, use a spoon to spread a little of the bubbly butter over them.
Sensory Benchmarks: The cake is done when the strawberry filling is vigorously bubbling around the edges of the dish, releasing a sweet, cooked-berry aroma with hints of toasted butter. The top of the crust will have reached a deep, variegated golden-brown color and should be dry and crisp to the touch, with a light tap of your fingernail.
6. The Rest Period
Carefully remove the dish from the oven and transfer it to a wire rack to cool. Allow the pudding to rest for 15 to 20 minutes or more before serving. It’s very important that the dessert is left to settle for this length of time; this will allow the fruit’s starches and the pectins to gelify and set. If left for a while, the runny syrup will turn into a firm, sliceable dessert eaten with a spoon.
The Science Behind the Recipe
There is a trick to dump cakes, and that trick has to do with the partial hydration of starches in the dry cake mix that gets dumped into a 9x13 inch pan. As the cake in the pan makes its way into the hot oven, the water in the strawberries gets heated up and turns to steam. And as that steam rises, it hydrates the bottom half of the dry cake mix, a process called starch gelatinization, and that half of the cake becomes tender and cake-like.
While the bottom half of the mixture is being converted into a cake-like consistency through the starch gelatinization that occurs as the mixture of strawberries and cake mix is heated in the oven, the butter slices on top of the mixture are melting and pouring down into the dry flour on top. The butter is an emulsion of fat and water, typically containing around 18% water. As the butter melts, the water in the butter travels with it into the flour, hydrating it. The fat in the butter, on the other hand, coats the gluten in the flour, preventing it from developing too much and giving the top of the dump cake a shortbread-like texture that is tender but not tough, rather like a bread. Once the butter has melted and traveled down into the flour on top, the water in the butter evaporates, leaving only the pure milk fat. This fat then fries the surface starches, causing them to turn quickly and activate the Maillard reaction as well as the sugar caramelize, both of which produce the characteristic biscuit-like crispy crust on the top of a premium quality dump cake.
Pro Tips
Freeze Your Butter: Freezing your butter for 20 minutes before slicing is important for creating the flakiest pastry crust. When freezing, use a box grater to “grate” the frozen butter directly into the dry ingredients (in this case, the cake mix). Spread evenly throughout the dry ingredients for the lightest, fluffiest structure possible.
Acid Adjustment: If your strawberries are especially sweet, add an extra 1/2 teaspoon of lemon juice to the batter to ensure the proper balance of flavor and ensure it is bright and delicious.
The Sieve Method: You can use The Sieve Method to sift your cake mix in the pan. Sifting the dry mix through a medium strainer breaks up the big flour clumps that would otherwise be unevenly hydrated making dry patches in your finished croissant.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
| Mistake | Why It Happens | How to Fix / Prevent |
|---|---|---|
| Powdery, dry flour patches on the baked crust | Uneven butter distribution or insufficient fat coverage. | Ensure butter slices cover the surface completely, or grate frozen butter over the top. Spot-treat dry areas with melted butter mid-bake. |
| A completely soggy, mushy top | Over-saturation of wet ingredients or stirring the dry mix into the fruit. | Never stir the layers. Keep the dry mix strictly on top of the fruit base, allowing steam to do the work. |
| Runny, liquid strawberry base | Serving the dessert too hot, before the starches have set. | Allow the baked dump cake to cool on a wire rack for 15 to 20 minutes to let the filling solidify. |
Culinary Safety & Hygien
Fresh Fruit: Always wash fresh strawberries, hull them and allow them to dry completely before cutting into other fruits to prevent entering of mold spores.
Storage Temperature: Make sure to store leftovers immediately. Do not leave the baked cake for more than two hours at room temperature, because of the high moisture content of the fruit in it it can quickly become a breeding ground for bacteria.
Hot Sugar Warning: We have all known that hot sugar can burn our tongue when it comes into contact with it, but most people are unaware that the melted sugar from the fruits holds a higher temperature than usual. Hence, do not even think of tasting the cake straight from the oven for fear of severe oral burns.
The Perfect Pairing
The Dairy Component: This warm pastry should be served with a scoop of high-quality French vanilla bean ice cream. The cold fat of the ice cream will melt into the warm pastry and jam, tempering the high acidity of the strawberries. A dollop of unsweetened crème fraîche or Chantilly would also be good. You could even spike the Chantilly with a splash of elderflower liqueur.
Beverage Pairings: Moscato d’Asti or demi-sec Champagne - The drinker is delighted by the popping of the bubbles of the wine over the buttery pieces of the crumb, and the demi-sec wine of the Champagne is sweet enough to pair well with the red flavor of the strawberries.
Storage & Reheating Excellence
Refrigeration: Refrigerate the cooled baking dish, tightly covered with plastic wrap or placed in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
Freezing: Casseroles can be frozen for up to 3 months. Cover cooled baked casseroles with a double layer of plastic wrap and then with aluminum foil. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight and then reheat as desired.
Reheating: For the best results keep the crispy top on your chilled pie by avoiding the microwave for reheating. Instead cut a portion from the pie and reheat in an oven at 163°C (325°F) for 10 – 12 minutes or until the filling is bubbling and the top is crispy once more.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Can I use frozen strawberries instead of fresh?
Yes. If you are using frozen strawberries for this recipe, you must let them thaw first. After they have thawed, drain off any excess moisture and then sprinkle with the lemon juice and mix well. If you were to add the frozen strawberries straight away, the excess moisture from the frozen berries would make the filling far too runny and soggy.
Why is my dump cake powdery?
Dry patches on your dump cake are caused by sections of the cake mix not coming into contact with the moisture and/or butter in the recipe. Make sure to distribute the butter evenly throughout the dry cake mix ingredients and rub into all the floury spots until no dry patches are visible before spreading out evenly in the pan and baking.
Can I make this dessert ahead of time?
Assemble layers up to 4 hours before baking and then store in the refrigerator covered. The dry layer and the wet layer can be assembled separately and then put together before baking. Due to the chilled dish, you will need to add 5 minutes to the baking time.
Nutrition Facts
We’d love to hear from you. Do you make a fresh variation of dump cake using macerated fruit, or do you add a favorite spice such as cardamom or ginger to this simple cake? We would love to see your creations and hear your ideas for variations. Try Dump Cake and then your beautiful golden topped photos with our comment on our website.
