Last week we ushered in strawberry season with a salad. But this week we’re getting serious: we’ve got a new cake from Abby Dodge that you’re going to love. The moist vanilla cake itself is a recipe you’ll want to hold on to for all kinds of occasions, but the strawberry whipped cream-mascarpone frosting is ethereal, easy to make, and the essence of early summer. Convinced?!

Better still, this is the perfect potluck cake because you can serve it right out of the 9 x 13-inch pan you bake it in if you like. If you want to go fancy, the Vanilla Cake with Whipped Strawberry Frosting can also be baked in round cake pans, layered, and frosted (with naked sides) to make a nice graduation or other celebration cake. Bookmark this one for Juneteenth.

I really think the cake may be my favorite Abby Dodge strawberry dessert yet, but there is stiff competition for my top spot: Strawberry Hand Pies are such fun to make and they double as breakfast or dessert. They can be frozen, unbaked, up to a month before serving so they are lovely for summer brunch, too.

I’m also a big fan of Abby’s Strawberry Short Cake recipe because of those buttery biscuits.