This recipe contributed by the Department of Spanish and Portuguese's Ruth Westfall in memory of Denise Hamer, who worked alongside Ruth in the DWLLC and gave her this recipe.

The Best Strawberry Cake Ever

· 1 white cake mix

· 1 (3 oz) box strawberry jello (I use sugar free)

· 1 (15 oz) package frozen strawberries in syrup, thawed and pureed

· 4 large eggs

· ½ cup vegetable oil

· ¼ cup water

Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting

· ½ cup butter, softened

· 1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened

· 1 (10 oz.) package frozen strawberries in syrup, thawed an pureed

· ½ teaspoon strawberry extract

· 7 cups powdered sugar (or to taste)

· Freshly sliced strawberries, for garnish, optional

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease 2 (9 inch) round cake pans. Ina large bowl, combine cake mix and jello. Add pureed strawberries, eggs, oil and water; beat at medium speed until smooth. Pour into prepared pans, and bake for 20 minutes, or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and cool completely on wire racks.

Frosting:

In a large bowl, beat butter and cream cheese until creamy. Beat in ¼ cup of the strawberry puree and the strawberry extract. (The rest of the puree is leftover but can be used in smoothies or on ice cream-or if you didn’t want left overs, you could get a smaller size package of strawberries to puree) Gradually add powdered sugar, beating until smooth. Spread frosting between layers and on top and sides of cake. Garnish with sliced fresh strawberries if desired.