1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease three 8x2-inch round cake pans. Line bottoms of pans with parchment paper. Grease the paper; set pans aside. Bring water to boiling.

2. In a very large bowl whisk together the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

3. In a large bowl whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, and oil. Add the egg mixture to the dry ingredients. Stir to just combine with a rubber spatula, scraping down the bottom of the bowl to make sure there's no dry bits (mixture will be thick). Pour in the boiling water and stir to just combine, scraping down bottom.

4. Divide batter between prepared pans, filling pans about 1/2 full (about 3 cups batter per pan). Bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center of each comes out clean.

5. Cool in pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and cool completely. Before icing, wrap cooled cakes in plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour.

6. Place a cake layer on serving platter. Frost layer with 2 cups buttercream. Repeat with remaining cake layers and frosting.

Fresh Strawberry Buttercream

1. In a very large heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water continually whisk egg whites, sugar, cream of tartar and salt until sugar dissolves and mixture reaches 160°F. Remove.

2. Beat with a mixer on high speed until stiff peaks form. Add butter, one Tbsp. at a time, until mixture thickens and becomes smooth and spreadable (If it begins to curdle, continue to beat, adding another piece of butter until smooth). Stir in vanilla bean seeds and vanilla.

3. In a food processor or blender, blend strawberries until smooth. Press through a fine mesh sieve. Stir strained strawberry mixture into the frosting.

To make Ahead:

Prepare and frost cake as directed above. Loosely cover and chill in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Let stand at room temperature for 1 hour before serving to allow the frosting to soften. If you like, prepare cake layers. Wrap or place in freezer containers. Freeze for up 1 month. Thaw and frost as directed.