Recipe: strawberry skillet pound cake

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — "I just don't think you can beat Arkansas strawberries, and fortunately it looks like the crop is going to be really good this year," says Debbie.

Make use of Arkansas’ abundant strawberry crop for this easy, yet delicious, strawberry skillet pound cake recipe from Dining with Debbie.

Ingredients

• 1 pound fresh strawberries
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups plus 3 Tablespoons granulated sugar, divided
• 3 large eggs, at room temperature
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3/4 cup sour cream (or thickened Greek yogurt), at room temperature
• Garnish: whipped cream or powdered sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Butter and flour a 10-inch cast-iron skillet or a 10-inch round cake pan.
3. Chop half of strawberries; cut remaining strawberries in half lengthwise.
4. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar at high speed until fluffy and light, 3-4 minutes, scraping sides of bowl occasionally.
5. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
6. Beat in vanilla extract.
7. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt.
8. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture alternately with sour cream (yogurt), beating just until combined after each addition.
9. Fold in chopped strawberries. Do not overmix.
10. Spoon batter into prepared skillet or pan, spreading evenly.
11. Arrange strawberry halves on top, gently pressing into batter.
12. Sprinkle 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar over top.
13. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 50 minutes in skillet or 1 hour and 20 minutes in pan.
14. Cover with foil after 30-35 minutes of baking to prevent excess browning.
15. Sprinkle remaining 1 Tablespoon sugar over baked cake.
16. Let cool completely in skillet or pan on a wire rack before slicing.
17. Top each serving with whipped cream, if desired. Or, sprinkle with powdered sugar.

“One thing I want to caution people about is with batter once you start combining your wet ingredients with your dry ingredients, you do not want to overmix,” says Debbie. You don’t want to create the gluten in there that will toughen it up. Once the flour is incorporated, stop mixing.

Note: Cake may be baked ahead and refrigerated. It is best eaten fresh, not frozen.

For more recipes from Debbie Arnold, visit https://diningwithdebbie.net/.