MelsKitchenCafe.com has such amazing recipes and this is Mel’s Grandma’s Famous Sheet Cake. Mel makes it with a home made cake mix, but I had a million other things to do, so I just used a white cake mix.

It makes a wonderfully light, creamy and delicious cake – with the tartness of the berries and lemons creating a nice balance to the sweetness of the cream and cake. Even Kumy loved this cake – and he is not a cake guy at all. It makes a nice large batch perfect for a gathering, and I know I’ll make this again and again.

INGREDIENTS

Fruit Topping:
2 ½ cups (365 g, more or less) frozen blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, huckleberries, triple berry blend, etc
¾ cup cold water
⅓ cup sugar
2 ½ Tbsp cornstarch
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

Cake:
1 white cake mix
1 tsp almond extract

Cream Layer:
6 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
½ cup powdered sugar
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
½ tsp vanilla extract
2 cups chilled heavy whipping cream

Instructions

Fruit topping: combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan. Stir gently until cornstarch is dissolved. Cook over medium heat until mixture simmers, and large bubbles pop at the surface. Remove from heat and let cool. Mixture will thicken as it cools. You can store this in the fridge until needed.

For the cake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a half sheet pan (about 17X12-inches). Mix cake mix as directed on the box, adding the almond extract.

Pour into baking sheet and bake for 20 to 22 minutes until the center of the cake springs back lightly. Remove from oven and let cool completely in the pan.

With a mixer, mix the cream cheese and powdered sugar together until smooth and creamy.

Add the vanilla and lemon juice and mix until combined. Add 1 cup heavy cream and mix until somewhat creamy. Add remaining heavy cream and keep mixing until the mixture has thickened to soft peaks. Don’t overbeat!

To assemble, spread the cream topping evenly over the cooled cake. Refrigerate the cake for about an hour for the cream layer to firm up a bit. (I stopped at this point, and covered the pan with another sheet pan upside down over it, so I could store it in the fridge until the next day.)

Just before serving, drop spoonfuls of fruit topping across the top. Gently spread so each piece has a fruity layer.

Keep cake cool until just before ready to serve. Delish!