Ingredients
For the Vanilla Cake
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups cake flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 cups sugar
6 eggs at room temperature
2 tbsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups undiluted evaporated milk
For the Strawberry Compote
4 cups fresh or frozen strawberries, cut in quarters.
¾ cup sugar
1/4 cup water
2 rounded tbsp corn starch
For the Vanilla Custard
3 cups whole milk
1/3 cup flour
2/3 cup sugar
pinch of salt
3 slightly beaten extra large egg yolks
4 tbsp butter
2 tbsp good quality vanilla extract
For the Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
2 cups sugar
2/3 cup water
6 egg whites at room temperature
¼ tsp cream of tartar
2 tsp vanilla extract
Pinch salt
2 cups softened unsalted butter
1 pound good quality chocolate chopped in small pieces, not milk chocolate
½ cup butter
Instructions
To prepare the Vanilla Cake
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour three 9 inch cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper.
Sift together the flour, cake flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
Cream together the butter and sugar very well for several minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl a couple of times during this process.
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating for a bout a minute after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract.
Gently fold in the dry ingredients in 3 equal portions alternately with the evaporated milk, which gets added in 2 equal portions so that you always start and end with adding dry ingredients.
Divide the batter evenly into the 3 prepared pans. Bake in a 325 degree F oven for about 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Watch it carefully, you will not want to over bake this cake, as soon as the toothpick comes out clean, remove the cake from the oven and let it rest in the pans for 5 minutes before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely. When completely cool, split each layer horizontally to create 6 layers in total.
To prepare the Strawberry Compote
Wash and hull the strawberries and cut them into quarters. Toss the strawberries in the sugar and let sit for 1/2 an hour. This will help to draw the juice from the strawberries before cooking them.
Bring the strawberries and sugar to a very gentle simmer for about 5-10 minutes.
Dissolve the corn starch in the water and slowly add to the simmering strawberries as you stir gently but continuously. Bring the mixture back up to a gentle simmer and cook for an additional minute before removing from the heat and cooling completely. Chill in the fridge when it reaches room temperature.
To Prepare the Vanilla Custard
Scald the milk almost to boiling point in the microwave.
In a medium sized saucepan, combine the flour, sugar and salt. Over medium heat, slowly add the scalded milk whisking constantly. Continue to cook over medium heat until mixture begins to slightly thicken.
At this point remove from heat and pour about a half cup of this mixture onto the beaten egg yolks, whisking constantly. Pour the egg mixture immediately back into the pot with the rest of the custard, continuing to constantly stir. Cook for an additional minute or two until the custard reaches pudding consistency and remove from the flame.
Stir in the butter, 1 tbsp at a time and finally the vanilla extract. Let the custard cool for a half hour, stirring occasionally, before moving it to the fridge to cool completely for a couple of hours.
