Berry Tunnel Cake Recipes

STRAWBERRY TUNNEL CAKE

Steps:

• Prepare and bake cake according to package directions, using a 10-in. ungreased tube pan. Cool completely, about 1 hour. , Run a knife around side and center tube of pan. Remove cake to a serving plate. Cut a 1-in. slice off the top of the cake; set aside. To make a tunnel, carefully hollow out bottom, leaving a 1-in. shell. Tear removed cake into 1-in. cubes., In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Beat in milk and lemon juice until smooth. Stir in extract and food coloring if desired. Stir in cake cubes and strawberries. Fold in 1 cup whipped topping. , Fill tunnel with strawberry mixture; replace cake top. Spread remaining whipped topping over top and sides of cake. Refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.

FRESH BERRY CREAM CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease three 8-inch or 9-inch cake pans, line with parchment paper rounds (see #6 in Cake Baking Tips), then grease the parchment paper. Parchment paper helps the cakes seamlessly release from the pans. I recommend using nonstick spray for greasing. I also recommend 8 inch cake pans as the 9 inch cakes will be pretty thin.
• Whisk the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together. Set aside.
• Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the butter on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute. Add the sugar and beat on high speed for 2 minutes until creamed together. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the egg whites. Beat on high speed until combined, about 2 minutes. Then beat in the sour cream and vanilla extract. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients until just incorporated. With the mixer still running on low, slowly pour in the milk until combined. Do not overmix. You may need to whisk it all by hand to make sure there are no lumps at the bottom of the bowl. The batter will be slightly thick.
• Pour batter evenly into cake pans. Bake for around 22-24 minutes or until the cakes are baked through. To test for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of the cake. If it comes out clean, it is done. Allow cakes to cool completely in the pans set on a wire rack. The cakes must be completely cool before assembling.
• Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whip the heavy cream, confectioners' sugar, vanilla extract, and almond extract on medium-high speed until medium peaks form, about 3-4 minutes. Medium peaks are between soft/loose peaks and stiff peaks and are the perfect consistency for decorating cakes. Use immediately or cover tightly and chill in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours. Yields about 4 cups.
• If cooled cakes are domed on top, use a large serrated knife to slice a thin layer off the tops to create a flat surface. This is called "leveling" the cakes. (Discard thin layer or crumble over ice cream.) Place 1 cake layer on your cake stand or serving plate. Evenly spread 1 heaping cup of whipped cream on top. I always use an icing spatula to spread. Arrange a single layer of mixed berries on top. Top with 2nd cake layer. Spread another 1 heaping cup of whipped cream on top, then a single layer of berries. Top with 3rd cake layer. Spread remaining whipped cream on top and garnish with fresh berries. Add a dusting of confectioners' sugar on the berries, if desired, and/or garnish with fresh florals.
• Chill the assembled cake, uncovered, for at least 2 hours and up to 1 day before slicing and serving. This time in the refrigerator helps the whipped cream thicken and makes cutting neater and easier. If chilling for longer than a few hours, you can carefully cover it with plastic wrap or use a cake carrier for storing in the refrigerator (what I always store my cakes in!). *Note that the berries could begin to release their juices if kept in the refrigerator for longer than 2 hours. For cutting, I recommend using your sharpest knife and cutting slowly.
• Cover leftover cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

EASY TRIPLE BERRY CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 9-inch glass pie plate with cooking spray. In small bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside.
• In large bowl, beat 3/4 cup sugar, the melted butter and sour cream with whisk until well blended. Beat in egg and vanilla. Stir in flour mixture until smooth. Stir in 1 cup of the berries. Spread batter in pie plate. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup berries and 1 teaspoon sugar over top.
• Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 20 minutes. Cut into wedges; serve with whipped cream.

STRAWBERRY SECRET TUNNEL CAKE

Steps:

• Place cake on serving plate. Cut 3/4-inch-thick horizontal slice from top of cake; set aside. With small knife, cut 1-inch-wide and 1-inch-deep tunnel inside center of cake, being careful to not cut through to bottom or sides of cake. Remove and save cutout for snacking or other use.
• Add boiling water to gelatin mix in medium bowl; stir 2 min. until completely dissolved. Add enough cold water to ice to measure 3/4 cup; stir into gelatin until ice is completely melted. Remove 1/2 cup gelatin; place in separate medium bowl. Add COOL WHIP; whisk until blended. Refrigerate 10 to 15 min. or until thick enough to spread. Meanwhile, refrigerate remaining plain gelatin 5 to 10 min. or until thickened.
• Stir 3/4 cup strawberries into thickened plain gelatin; spoon into tunnel of cake. Replace top of cake. Frost cake with COOL WHIP mixture. Garnish with remaining strawberries before serving.

BERRY BUTTERMILK CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Brush a 9-inch baking dish or pan (square or round is OK) with oil and line with parchment paper. In a medium bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup oil, buttermilk, eggs, vanilla and 1 cup sugar. In a separate medium bowl, whisk 1 1/2 cups flour, the baking powder, baking soda and salt to combine. Whisk wet ingredients into dry until just combined. (Some small lumps are fine.) Toss berries on a plate with remaining 1 tablespoon flour. Fold into batter and transfer to the prepared baking dish.
• Sprinkle evenly with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Bake until golden and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean, 53 to 58 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving. Cake will keep, loosely wrapped at room temperature, for about 4 days.

BLUEBERRY-LEMON SECRET TUNNEL CAKE

Steps:

• Place cake on serving plate. Cut a 3/4-inch-thick horizontal slice from top of cake; set aside. With small knife, cut a 1-inch-wide and 1-inch-deep tunnel inside center of cake, being careful to not cut through to bottom or side of cake. Remove cutout and reserve for other use. (See tip.)
• Add boiling water to gelatin mix in large bowl; stir 2 min. until completely dissolved. Add enough cold water to ice to measure 3/4 cup; stir into gelatin until ice is completely melted. Remove 1/2 cup gelatin; pour into separate medium bowl. Add COOL WHIP; stir with whisk until blended. Refrigerate 10 to 15 min. or until thick enough to spread.
• Meanwhile, refrigerate remaining plain gelatin 5 to 10 min. or until thickened. Stir in 3/4 cup blueberries; spoon into tunnel of cake. Replace top of cake. Frost cake with reserved thickened COOL WHIP mixture. Top with the remaining blueberries just before serving.

BLUEBERRY LEMON TRIFLE

Steps:

• Set aside 1/4 cup blueberries for garnish. In a large bowl, combine pie filling and yogurt. , In a 3-1/2-qt. serving or trifle bowl, layer a third of the cake cubes, lemon mixture and blueberries. Repeat layers twice. Top with whipped topping. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Garnish with reserved blueberries and, if desired, lemon and mint.

BERRY TUNNEL CAKE

Steps:

• Slice the top 1/4 of the cake off and set aside. Hollow out a tunnel in the cake leaving 1/2 inch walls on either side.
• In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until fluffy. Beat in the milk and lemon juice until smooth. Stir in the food coloring and extract.
• Cube the cake removed from the tunnel and add them and the berries into the bowl. Fold in 1 cup whipped topping. Spoon into the tunnel and replace cake top.
• Spread the cake with the remaining whipped topping. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight.

BERRIED TREASURE ANGEL FOOD CAKE

Steps:

• Using a 1-1/2-in. round cookie cutter, cut out the centers of half of the cake slices (discard removed cake or save for another use). Spread butter over both sides of cake slices. Grill, covered, over medium heat or broil 4 in. from heat 1-2 minutes on each side or until toasted., In a small bowl, beat cream until it begins to thicken. Add extract; beat until soft peaks form., To serve, stack one solid and one cutout slice of cake on each desert plate, placing the outer edges on opposite sides for a more even thickness. Spoon almond filling into holes; top with whipped cream, berries and nuts. Dust with confectioners' sugar.

TUNNEL-OF-FUDGE CAKE

Steps:

• Place a heavy baking sheet or pizza stone on a shelf in the lower third of the oven. Heat the oven to 350 degrees (see note).
• On a large baking sheet, roast nuts in the oven for 10 minutes. Keep watch that they do not burn. Pour into a bowl, and add 2 tablespoons butter and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Toss well and set aside.
• Generously butter the inside of a large 12-cup Bundt cake pan.
• In a mixer, beat butter to soften until it becomes fluffy. Add sugar, then the brown sugar and continue to beat until airy. While beating, if the bowl does not feel cool, place it in the freezer for five minutes, then resume beating.
• Beat in 3/4 teaspoon salt, vanilla and vegetable oil.
• Beat in two egg yolks. Crack the four whole eggs into a large mixing bowl. With a small knife, cut yolks and barely stir the eggs, minimally blending the whites and yolks.
• With the mixer on the lowest speed, beat the eggs into the batter in three batches. Mix in confectioners' sugar and the cocoa.
• In a large mixing bowl, stir flour and nuts together. Then with a spatula stir the flour-nut mixture into the batter. Pour the batter into the Bundt pan.
• Bake for 40 minutes. You cannot use the toothpick test because the cake contains so much sugar that the center will not set but will remain a tunnel-of-fudge. You are dependent on a correct oven temperature and the 40-minute cooking time.
• When removed from the oven, the cake will have a runny fudge core with an air pocket above the fudge. About 30 minutes after taking the cake out of the oven, press the inside and outside edge of the cake bottom down all the way around to minimize the air pocket. Let the cake, still in the pan, cool on a rack for two to three hours. Invert the cake onto a platter and let cool completely.