Chocolate Cake with Strawberries

Hello readers! I'm sorry that I haven't posted anything in awhile.  But, i have been enjoying California's mild summer weather and eating my mother's amazing food:)
After about 5 days of pure relaxation, I decided to bake a cake! A chocolate cake, because it's my mom's favorite, and topped with strawberries, because I'm basically trying to eat as many California strawberries as possible while I'm still here. Seriously, they are delicious.

I baked this cake for a graduation dinner for

one of my close childhood friends. I can't believe we've gone from cutting our Barbie dolls' hair to college students!

I turned to a dear friend of mine for a chocolate cake recipe --Martha.  I truly believe that Martha Stewart makes some of the prettiest, moistest, and best overall cakes i've seen. and until I'm a good enough baker to come up with something better, i'm sticking to her basic chocolate cake. 

mmm chocolatey...

A small disclaimer: this cake was the first one that I had ever attempted to bake all by myself.  I was really scared that the cake would stick to the pan and I wouldn't be able to turn it onto a plate, or that I might drop something. yes, i know, dropping things is a problem for me.  Last year, I turned a 4 layer cake into a 3 layer cake by dropping a cake pan face first into the oven.  It was a mess.

But I had better luck this time:)

Frosting the cake was kind of an issue though  you see, my mom had requested a whipped cream filling and frosting, which, as i realized, melts very quickly if the cake is even slightly warm.  So I had to wait until the cakes were completely cool before frosting them.

all of the struggles were worth it though! my friend loved the cake, and I had yet another opportunity to use my dad's fancy camera:) 

well, that's all for now, folks! more food is on the way:)

Chocolate Cake with Strawberries:

The Cake:

1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder, plus more for dusting
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking soda
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
3 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups hot water

Whipped Cream Frosting:

1 pint heavy whipping cream

1/2 cup powdered sugar

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Sift all of the dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl.  Then, add the eggs, hot water, vegetable oil, buttermilk, and vanilla extract, blending thoroughly with an electric mixer.  Pour the cake batter into well-greased 9-inch round pans and bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean from the center of the cake.

To make the frosting, use an electric mixer to blend together the heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract at high speed, until the whipped cream forms stiff peaks. 

When the cakes are completely cool, frost the cake with the whipped cream, adding in fresh strawberries in the filling as well as the top of the cake.  Refrigerate cake for at least 1 hour before serving.