• IMPORTANT: For the vanilla cake recipe, I would highly recommend using gram measurements, especially for the flour, for accurate results. It has a high fat/liquid ratio, so slight adjustments to the quantities can throw off the balance of the cake 🙂

Vanilla Cake

• Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F) conventional (see note 2 if using a convection oven with a fan) and grease and/or line two 8-inch cake tins (I use my homemade cake release).
• In a bowl, sift together flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Using a whisk or fork, mix until well combined. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, add in butter, vegetable oil, and sugar. Using an electric mixer (a hand or stand mixer is fine - see note 3), cream together for 2 minutes until light and creamy.
• Add in eggs one by one, mixing well in between each addition (about 10–15 seconds between eggs).
• Add in vanilla, vinegar, and half a cup of the buttermilk (112 g), and mix until well combined. Now set your mixer aside, as the remainder of the batter will be finished by hand.
• Finish off by adding half of your premixed dry ingredients to your wet mixture, and gently fold it in with a spatula until just combined. Then add in the remaining 1 cup (225 g) of buttermilk and fold it in until just combined. Lastly, add in the remaining dry ingredients and gently fold until just combined. Do not overmix.
• Distribute the batter evenly into the two 8-inch cake tins. Drop the cake tins lightly on the counter to remove any large air bubbles and bake for 30–35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
• Once baked, allow the cake layers to cool in the cake tins for 20 minutes before turning them out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Once they are completely cool and ready to assemble, begin preparing the strawberry filling and frosting.

Strawberry Filling

• Combine sliced strawberries and sugar and stir until the strawberries are well coated.
• Allow to sit for 10 minutes to macerate while preparing the whipped cream frosting.

Chantilly Whipped Cream

• In a large bowl, combine the mascarpone, cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla. Using a hand or stand mixer, mix on a low speed for about 10 seconds, then turn the speed up to medium-high and mix until well combined and smooth. If using a stand mixer, use the whisk attachment.
• Add in the heavy cream and mix on a low speed for about 10 seconds (to allow everything to combine without the cream splattering), then turn the speed up to medium-high and whip until you reach stiff peaks. Keep a careful eye on the mixture as you don't want to overwhip the cream.

Assembly (see video for demonstration)

• Trim off the tops of the cake layers with a serrated knife so that they're nice and flat.
• Place the first cake layer onto a serving plate/cake stand and spread out a generous amount of whipped cream. Using a large piping tip (I used a 1M), pipe a dam of frosting around the edges of the cake layer. Fill the middle with half of the strawberries.
• Place the next cake layer on top and spread out more whipped cream on the top and sides of the cake.
• Using a 1M piping tip (or any large piping tip), pipe a border around the top edge of the cake. Fill the centre with the remaining strawberries. Slice and enjoy!