Cake Batter

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease with cooking spray 3-8-inch round cake pans, and line the bottoms with parchment. Lightly spray parchment rounds with cooking spray.
3. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Set aside.
4. Combine milk and vanilla.
5. Beat butter with a hand or stand mixer on medium speed until smooth. With the mixer running, gradually add the sugar and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
6. Add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the whole milk. Begin and end with the flour mixture. Beat until just combined. Do not over- mix cake batter.
7. Beat the room temperature egg whites in a clean* mixer bowl on medium speed until stiff peaks form, about 5 minutes.
8. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter with rubber spatula in three additions.
Place one cup of batter in 3 separate bowls until batter is evenly divided among the 3 bowls. Tint one bowl of batter with pink food coloring gel for strawberry layer, one bowl of batter with 2 tablespoons special dark cocoa and 2 tablespoons chocolate sauce for chocolate layer and remaining bowl remains plain batter for vanilla layer.
9. Spread the batter into the 3 prepared pans and bake for 18 to 20 minutes. Let the layers cool completely on a wire rack. Run a knife around the edges of the cakes and remove from pans. After cooling. Wrap and freeze if desired up to 30 days.  I usually will wrap and freeze 20 minutes to firm up cake before frosting.

Buttercream Frosting

1. In large mixing bowl with stand mixer whip softened butter for 5 minutes.
2. Gradually add confectioner’s sugar, whipping until smooth.
3. Add extract and milk, whipping buttercream util fluffy and smooth.
4. Separate 2 cups of frosting and tint with 2 drops of hot pink food coloring gel. Stir to blend. Place tinted frosting in disposable piping bag fitted with large round tip, set aside.
5. Place cake on lazy Susan so you can spin cake around while frosting

Cake Frosting and Assembly

1. Place dollop of frosting on an 8” round cake board and position first layer. With a large round tip fitted on disposable piping bag, fill with buttercream frosting. Frost cake side and on top of the first layer, repeat with second and third layer.
2. Using off set spatula, remove excess frosting as this is your crumb coat. Refrigerate cake until set.
3. Adding final frosting using a piping bag to frost around perimeter of stacked cake. Using a large metal stiff edge off set spatula, remove excess frosting making sure you keep the spatula straight to get clean frosting lines. Have a glass of warm water handy to dip your spatula in to warm that will help smooth your frosting. Be sure to smooth the top of the cake and create a sharp edge around cake rim.

How to Marble Frosting 

Fit end of disposable piping bag with large round tip and fill bag with pink frosting. Pipe large circles randomly on sides of cake. With off set spatula, gently smear the pink frosting  dots around the perimeter of cake blending with the base buttercream.  Reserve hot pink frosting to pipe on top of cake using 6B tip.

Make Chocolate Ganache/Sauce for Drizzle

Melt ¼ cup heavy whipping cream in microwave safe bowl, add ½ cup dark chocolate melting wafers or chocolate chips. Stir to thicken. Allow to cool slightly then pour into squeeze bottle. Carefully squeeze chocolate on top edge of cake so it will drip down the sides at different levels. If chocolate is too thick, place in microwave 10 seconds to soften.

Making Chocolate Chards

Melt dark chocolate wafers or chocolate chips in microwave at 10-second intervals until melted and smooth. On 5” x 8” piece of parchment paper, spread melted chocolate on paper in thin layer. Roll one end of parchment with chocolate like a jellyroll. Place parchment roll in freezer to harden 15 minutes. When ready to serve cake, unroll chocolate log and pick up chards to position on top of cake.

Final Garnish

With reserved  hot pink frosting  pipe swirls around perimeter top of cake.  Insert Chocolate Chards in center of cake.  Serve immediately.