Strawberry Sparkle Cake

(Courtesy of Ree Drummond)

Ingredients:
15 whole egg whites, at room temperature
1 tsp. cream of tartar
1 1/2 c. plus 2 Tbsp. sugar, sifted 3 times
1 c. cake flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
FILLING:
1 pkg. (3 oz.) strawberry gelatin
2 1/2 c. boiling water
1 pkg. (1 lb.) frozen sliced strawberries
ICING:
1 1/2 c. heavy cream
2 Tbsp. sugar

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine the cake flour and salt and sift together 5 times.  Set aside.

Beat egg whites until frothy.  Add cream of tartar and beat on high until stiff.

With mixer on medium-low, slowly sprinkle in sifted sugar as it mixes in.

Remove bowl from the mixer and fold in sifted flour gently until it's all combined.  Sprinkle vanilla into the bowl and fold gently.

Spoon batter into tube pan- make sure there's no grease or butter in the pan.  Smooth the top and bake 35-45 minutes, or until a wooden skewer stuck all the way to the bottom comes out clean.  Don't open the oven until you believe it is done.

Carefully remove the cake from the oven and immediately invert it on a wine or vinegar bottle.  Let it cool completely while hanging upside down.  Once totally cooled, remove it from the pan.

To make the filling, sprinkle the gelatin powder into a bowl and pour in a 2 1/2 c. of boiling water.  Stir to dissolve, then add the bag of frozen sliced strawberries.  Stir to cool the mixture and set it aside.

Turn the cake upside down so that the end that was stuck on the bottom of the pan is now facing up.  With a serrated knife, carefully cut the top 1 inch of cake from the top.  Remove it and lay it beside the cake.  Next, with a small paring knife, make 2 concentric cuts in the cake: 1 cut is 1 inch from the outside rim and the other cut is 1 inch from the inside rim (be careful not to cut all the way through to the bottom of the cake.  Leave about 1 inch from the bottom).

Tear out a trench in between the 2 cuts and save the torn cake pieces for another use.

By now, the strawberry mixture should be cool and somewhat gelatinous.  Important: if the mixture is not thick, stick it in the freezer for about 15 minutes or until it thickens and sets.  Carefully spoon the mixture into the trench of the cake, filling it all the way to the top and ever-so-slightly above to allow for a little settling.  Place the top of the cake back on top, lining it up just right.

Refrigerate cake for a couple hours or you can stick it in the freezer for an hour if you are in a hurry.

To serve, whip together the cream and sugar until stiff.  Spread all over the cake.  Cut into slices and serve.  Note that once you make a cut, the filling will slightly seep out of the remaining cake, but not overly so.

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