Eggless Fresh Strawberry-Tutti Frutti Cake.

"Eggless Fresh Strawberry-Tutti Frutti Cake" ... my quest to learn baking perfectly is still on ... tried this one today ... guess there is still more need for perfection ... but it was superb ... Yumz ...

** Strawberries are in season and a few days back I had prepared and kept the puree in concentrated form for making of dishes. I had prepared sheera using some of it, and some lassi and milkshakes, but there was still about a cup or so of the same was remaining. I had kept it aside to prepare fruit curd, but due to winter chills both hubby and me are having a bad throat, so I did not want to further aggravate the problem and decided against preparing it. I had been wanting to prepare strawberry cake for a long time now and thought of preparing the same from a recipe passed on to me by my friend and the only change I made was addition of butter, which I thought would give better result. The cake turned delicious and spongy but just the lowest part was slightly dense. May be the next time I will search for a better recipe. But this one is healthy and good as the addition of fresh strawberry puree goes into it. So the healthier the better I guess, Enjoy. 

** Ingredients : 

Maida / ASF : ¾ cup 

Powdered Sugar / Pitti Shakkar : ½ cup 

Strawberry Puree : ½ cup (Check out the method at the bottom of recipe) 

Oil : ¼ cup any edible oil 

OR 

Butter / Loni : ¼ cup fresh homemade white butter. 

Curds / Dahi : ¼ cup (beaten) 

Tutti Frutti : 2 tblsp rolled in maida. 

Baking Powder : ½ tsp 

Baking Soda (Cooking Soda) : ¼ tsp 

Pinch of Salt 

** In a fine sieve add in the maida, baking powder, baking soda, sugar powder, salt and sieve together twice into a large bowl. You can also put all the ingredients together into the bowl and mix well with a spatula. However, I sieved them as it ensures even mixing. 

** Now add in oil or butter, strawberry puree, curds (beaten) to the above and mix well with a balloon whisker till all the ingredients have mixed in well smoothly and there are no lumps whatsoever. 

** Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C), and place oven rack in the center of the oven. Prepare a round cake tin for baking by applying a little bit of ghee evenly inside the same and dusting it with maida. Add in half of the prepared batter and tap it to fill in the bottom evenly. Sprinkle the tutti frutti pieces that have been rolled in maida keeping a few aside, evenly and add in rest of the batter and again tap it to form an even layer. Sprinkle the leftover tutti frutti pieces on top. 

** Now place the prepared cake tin in the oven on center rack and bake for about 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cup cake comes out clean. The temperature of the ovens vary, so keep a keen watch on the baking cake after 15 minutes to get a perfectly baked cake and do not allow it to burn on top. Also use your judgement for baking as you always do. 

** Remove and transfer to a wire rack and let cool for about 15-20 minutes. Now run a blunt knife on the inner edge of the tin and loosen the cake. Keep a flat plate like a lid over the tin and in one swift movement invert it upside down. Slowly lift the tin which is now on top on inverted postion. The cake will be upside down on the plate. Gently flip it over another plate by gently inverting it to get the top side above. Allow to completely cool before slicing them. 

** "Eggless Fresh Strawberry-Tutti Frutti Cake" is done and ready to be served. They taste awesome when served fresh as a snack during tiffin time and children love them when they come home hungry from school. It also ensures that they eat fruits which otherwise they are reluctant to. Enjoy these with your family and friends during potluck or other occasions. 

** You can store this cake in airtight container in fridge for a few days. You can also send them in your children's lunch box if its allowed in their school or you can also carry them for picnic or when you travel to relish in between when you are bored or feel hungry. You can prepare these during weekends and let your children share them with their friends when they go out to play. They will all simply love it and you will be happy to see their smiling faces. 

** Preparation of Strawberry Puree (Thickened) : Wash and trim off the top stem portion of the strawberries and cut them into pieces. You can prepare this in bulk and freeze them and use as and when necessary. I used about 65 large sized, bright colored ripe strawberries here as I want to prepare a few dishes using the same. Put them in a mixer grinder and grind to a smooth paste without the addition of any water.

** Remove and put this in a thick bottomed kadai and add in about ½ cup of sugar and bring to a boil. Keep stirring till the quantity gets reduced a little bit and the puree is thick like that of sauce / ketchup in texture. Remove and allow to completely cool, before you put it in an airtight container and put it away in fridge if to be used within 3-4 days or in freezer if you need it later on. 

** Note : You can prepare the puree without the addition of sugar to, personally I do not know exactly how it is prepared, but whenever I prepare puree when fruits are in excess and store them in freezer to avoid wastage, I add in a little bit of sugar, which I find helpful in maintaining both color and the flavor in the puree. 

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