Celebrate Mother's Day with this delicious vintage strawberry cake recipe

Mother's Day just happens to fall in the midst of one of loveliest times of the year. Sandwiched as it between the chilly days of early spring and the sizzling heat that generally returns by the second half of June when summer rounds the bend again. Though May can be rainy at times, it's also prone to luminous bursts of sunshine, carefree breezes, and gardens that are beginning to swell to the breaking point with scrumptious produce once more.

Few flavours go hand-in-hand (or perhaps more fittingly, fork-in-mouth) with this beautiful time of the year than that of fresh strawberries. Ripe, juicy, gorgeously crimson and packed full of flavour and nutrients alike, strawberries are practically a must come May.

Unlike a great many fruits out there, strawberries are (knock wood!) one that my health still permits me to eat without running into any trouble. In fact, because I'm unable to have so many fruits (and vegetables, for that matter), I eat strawberries nearly every day year-round, even paying three times their springtime cost in the dead of winter (when you're lucky if one or two shops in our small town even brings them in). None however compare to those that one gets fresh, picked a wee bit south of us here in B.C. (in the Lower Mainland, which has been producing stellar strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries for ages), when possible, during the middle and tail end of spring.

You might think that eating strawberries so often, I'd grow tired of them, but (again, knock wood!) even after many years of consuming a bevy of these succulent little fruits, I haven't lost my passion for them iota, and continually enjoy coming up with new ways to safely incorporate them into my diet (if you've never partnered grilled strawberries and chicken breasts, give it a go, you'll love it!).

Though I may consume more strawberries per annum than many people, I'm by no means alone in my passion for these plump, pretty berries. Strawberries are a beloved food the world over and one lends itself especially well to springtime celebrations, such as wedding showers, Victoria Day weekend sweet treats, and of course Mother's Day desserts.

With today marking the marvelous celebration of moms and those who take on the role of being a mom (grandmas, aunts, foster parents, etc), it seems only fitting that this week's vintage recipe - called rather charmingly Strawberry Long-Cake - includes this much admired springtime fruit.

{One baking dish, some fresh fruit, and a few basic panty ingredients are all it takes to whip up this crowd pleasing strawberry cake. Image via Eudaemonius on Flickr.}


Many of us - myself included - prefer not to bake with lard most of the time (or at all), so by all means feel free to sub in butter or margarine here if you prefer. By the sake token, if you're not a fan of strawberries (or of course if you happen to be allergic to them, strawberries being a relatively common food allergen after all) then why not try the peach variation suggested at the bottom of the page? 

You could also use any other soft, juicy fruit here that you'd like. Blackberries and pears would be a fetching combination come late summer/early fall, new season raspberries would tantalize the taste buds in a few weeks, and apricots would be a fantastic summertime spin on this easy-to-make mid-century dessert.

For those like me who need to follow a gluten-free diet, I can report that this recipe works wonderfully when made with two boxes (a single box doesn't yield enough for to match the original recipe here) of Betty Crocker's Gluten-Free Golden Cake Mix, as well as just about any good, standard white or golden GF cake recipe.

Strawberries and whipping cream go together like robins and spring, so definitely don't hold back if you feel the urge to serve each slice of this lovely cake with a generous dollop on top. Lightly sweetened crème fraîche, a nice creme anglaise, or vanilla (all the better if it's French vanilla) ice cream would also be delectable accompaniments, too.

Mother's Day, much like this wonderful vintage cake recipe, should be sweet, enjoyable and fun, and that is precisely what I hope today will be for each and every one of you, dear ladies.