Easy Moist Cake for Strawberry Shortcake or any other Fruit! Egg Free Cake

 I'm not a fan of the dry, crumbly, biscuit style of shortcake. I want a moist tender cake for my berries. 20 years ago, we ordered the strawberry shortcake at a restaurant and I was in heaven. It was the perfect cake for berries. It's moist and dense and perfect with any kind of berry or just on it's own.

 I had to have the recipe and with a bit of flattery and begging, the chef shared the recipe with me. The one catch was, he had to leave one ingredient out to give it to me. Thankfully, he made it easy when he told me that it was a vanilla cake and guess what ingredient was missing?
We always have this on Easter to usher in berry season and is one of our favorite spring  and summer treats.  It's so fast and easy to mix up and bake. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

It's also EGG FREE! My granddaughter is very allergic to eggs,so this was her birthday cake this year. Pour into round pans and frost with whipped cream for a wonderful layer cake.

 Click here for a Printable Version of this recipe

Moist Vanilla Strawberry Shortcake

Makes one 9x13 pan or 12 cupcakes or one jellyroll pan or 2 8" rounds
Ingredients

• 3 cups of flour
• 2 cups of sugar
• 1 1/2 TBS baking powder
• 1 cup melted butter
• 2 cups milk
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°
2. In a 2 cup glass measuring cup or a microwavable container- microwave 1 cup of butter for 60 seconds or until melted. I leave the sticks in the wax paper and micriwave it that way. No spatters and you just have to pull them out when it's melted. Easy and no mess. 
3. In a large bowl stir together the flour, sugar and baking powder
4. Stir in the milk and vanilla then the melted butter and mix well. There may be a few small lumps but just leave them. Don't over stir! 
5. Pour batter into a greased pan and bake in the preheated oven until golden on top and a toothpick comes out clean. 
6. Baking Times: 
1. For a 9x13 or round layers-  25 to 30 minutes  
2. For jelly roll pan or cupcakes-  20 mins  or so.

For a large half sheet pan 2”x13”x18”- Double the recipe and bake for 40 to 45 minutes.