Strawberry Frosting – Without Dyes or Artificial Flavors

As a companion to the White(ish) Layer Cake, I was looking for a recipe that didn’t require food coloring or strawberry puree and came across this one at Your Cup of Cake.  This was the perfect addition to fill and cover the cake.  Recipeas follows:

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 package (1.2 oz) of freeze-dried strawberries (I got mine from Trader Joe’s)
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 3 teaspoon lemon juice, or milk
• 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 cups powdered sugar, 1 cup more if needed

DIRECTIONS:

1. Dump your freeze dried strawberries into a food processor. Be sure and take out the little white packet inside, this packet keeps out any moisture but it’s not edible. Finely crush the berries in your food processor or blender.

   

2. Pour into a sifter to remove any larger chunks, and discard what doesn’t go through the sifter.

   

3. In a stand mixer, beat sifted strawberries and butter until smooth.
4. Add lemon juice and vanilla extract and beat again.
5. Slowly add in powdered sugar until you reach your desired consistency. Cupcakes will need a stiffer frosting while a cake can be a little more soft. To check, I always pull out my spatula and swipe my finger through the frosting. If the frosting keeps it’s shape and doesn’t sink, you’re good to go!

I wanted to call this “Natural Strawberry Frosting”, but mother nature doesn’t freeze-dry strawberries.  It’s probably the most natural you’ll get for really colorful frosting!

To avoid writing on the cake and possibly ruining it with my not-so-great frosting script, I topped the cake with some fresh strawberries that Kevin picked up from the farmer’s market.  However, they were so juicy that they “leaked” a bit on the drive over to the potluck!  Here’s a photo of the finished cake:

This frosting will definitely be a go-to for me.  It wasn’t too sweet thanks to the lemon juice.  You can always add more lemon juice to make it more tart too!