Strawberry Torte

"Very easy to make, yet elegant. A friend of mine had already made it and made a couple of suggestions. She first added 1/2 teaspoon almond extract to the cream cheese mixture. Then the order used wa..." See mores lady fingers on bottom and sides, half the cream cheese mixture, another lady finger layer, all of the strained strawberries, the strawberry juice/cornstarch mixture (with 1/2 to 3/4 cup reserved), the rest of the cream cheese mixture, then in a spoke pattern add the reserved juice mixture. With a skewer, swirl the spokes until a pretty pattern emerges. Pile fresh strawberries in center. Garnish with mint sprigs and white chocolate curls. It won her first prize in the local Strawberry Festival."

"This recipe is fabulous. I changed it slightly. I put the frozen strawberries in a pan with the cornstarch. Cooked down the strawberries and then took the cooked mixture and pureed it with 1/2 cup of ..." See moresugar and once cooled poured it over the top of the torte. I think it complemented the torte more than just a little strawberry sauce. It looked great,everyone at my work raved about it, and none was left. Will make again!"

"The first time I made this I found the 11 oz cream cheese overpowering, so I've always used 8 oz after that. Even then I think I could use with a bit less cream cheese, but that's totally up to perso..." See morenal taste. Then, because of the other reviews, I layer instead of putting the ladyfingers on the sides -- this allows the ladyfingers to soak in moisture and better complement the texture of the cream. I just use a nice, transparent flat-bottomed rectangular glass bowl and it still looks good enough to serve at a party. And the most important tip -- since I use fresh strawberries, I mash them and instead of putting aside the strained strawberries, I fold them into the whipped cream/cream cheese mixture. This transforms it into a really strawberry dessert instead of just a strawberry-and-cream concoction. Although shaved chocolate looks good as a topping, I think it deflects the taste of strawberries, so I don't recommend it. This is a really good strawberry refrigerator cake."