Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Butter a 10 by 3-inch springform pan with 1/2 teaspoon of the butter and line with parchment paper. Butter the paper with 1/2 teaspoon of the butter and set aside.

Scald the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat. Remove from the heat. Place the white chocolate in a heat-proof bowl. Add the hot cream and let side for 2 minutes, then whisk until smooth.

With an electric mixer, cream together the remaining 6 ounces of butter, sugar, and vanilla until pale and fluffy. Add 4 of the eggs to the butter mixture one at a time, beating well after the addition of each. Beat the remaining egg in a small bowl, and add 2 tablespoons of the egg to the batter. Add the melted white chocolate and beat well, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Alternately add the dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the batter, beating after each addition and ending with the flour mixture. Pour into the prepared pan and bake until golden brown and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack for 1 hour. Remove the sides and turn out the cake on the wire rack to finish cooling.

Serve a slice of the cake with some of the Macerated Berries spooned over the top, with a scoop of Buttermilk Ice Cream on top of all.

In a medium bowl combine strawberries, sugar and liqueur and toss to combine. Allow to macerate until sugar is dissolved and strawberries begin to give up their juice, about 20 minutes. Add remaining berries and toss gently to combine.

Serve over the White Chocolate Buttermilk Cake, garnished with basil or lemon balm.

In a large non-reactive bowl combine sugar, lemon juice, zest, salt and buttermilk and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Cover with plastic wrap and transfer to the refrigerator until thoroughly chilled, about 1 hour. Process in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions.

Yield: about 1 quart