This 100% from-scratch Strawberry Cake recipe has no Jell-O or artificial flavors! It’s a moist cake flavored with real strawberries, filled with a fresh strawberry jam, and covered with a whipped cream cheese frosting. Recipe includes a how-to video!
A Delightfully Fresh Strawberry Cake
I gave this strawberry cake recipe a makeover a few years ago, and I’m so excited to be sharing it with you again today! This cake is packed full of fresh strawberry flavor (none of that artificial stuff or Jell-O), from the cake itself to the jam filling. To finish, we’ll seal it all in with a whipped cream cheese frosting that’s not too sweet. Sounds heavenly, right?
I’ll give you a fair warning: this recipe requires quite a lot of steps and will dirty a few dishes. But it’s all worth it to get the BEST natural strawberry flavor (more on that below), a light, spongey texture (I took a few notes from my white cake for this) and a whipped, flavorful frosting (similar to what’s on my Chantilly cake!).
How Do You Get Strawberry Flavor Naturally?
So, how does my strawberry cake achieve its strawberry flavor without Jell-O or artificial ingredients? With fresh strawberries, of course!
If I’m being honest though, it’s not as simple as it sounds. In fact, it took a lot of attempts to get the flavor and texture of this strawberry cake just right.
Sure we could just blend our berries and add them to our cake batter, but too much pulp can weigh down the cake, making it too wet and spongey. To remedy this, we’ll take an extra step to strain out the juice from the pulp and use that in the cake instead. And we’ll even go one step further to cook down that juice to really concentrate the strawberry flavor.
However, there is still a lot of flavor in the pulp, and I didn’t want to just throw it away, so we’ll save it to make a homemade jam filling! We’ll spread this between our cake layers for an extra burst of strawberry flavor.
Side note: if you’re a total strawberry fiend, you could even try frosting this strawberry cake with my strawberry frosting–yum!
What You Need
Here are the key ingredients in today’s perfect strawberry cake recipe:
- Strawberries. Almost all of your flavor for this cake comes from the strawberries. Because of this, the more ripe, juicy, and flavorful your strawberries are, the better and more strawberry-like your cake will taste. Store-bought berries in the middle of December will work, but they will not yield as tasty of a cake as finger-staining, sun-ripened berries you picked yourself. THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT TIP I CAN GIVE YOU!
- Milk. I recommend using whole milk for a perfectly moist and soft strawberry cake. Several of you have asked if non-dairy milk can be substituted, and I haven’t tried this myself, so I can’t say for sure. If you do make my strawberry cake recipe with non-dairy milk, please let me know how it turns out for you!
- Cake flour. Because the strawberries can make this cake heavy, I recommend using cake flour for this recipe. If you don’t have it, you can still use all-purpose flour–just use the instructions in the recipe notes.
- Egg whites. Since egg yolks could also weigh down this cake, we’ll use only egg whites and make sure to whip them to stiff peaks before folding them into the batter. Note that I’ve included some recipes to use up the extra egg yolks in the recipe notes below.
- Food coloring. This is optional, but it makes your strawberry cake look nice and pink when it would otherwise be pretty dull. If you’re using food coloring, I strongly recommend using a few drops of pink gel coloring. If you use liquid food coloring, you will need to use red, and quite a lot of it.
- Cornstarch. This will help to thicken our strawberry jam.
- Lemon juice. A splash of lemon juice brightens the jam and keeps it from being too sweet.
- Cream cheese. We’ll beat this with some powdered sugar and vanilla extract until it is smooth and creamy. This creates a flavorful base for our frosting.
- Heavy cream. After its whipped to stiff peaks, we’ll incorporate our cream with the cream cheese mixture to make a beautifully light, airy, and flavorful frosting.
SAM’S TIP: If you’re not a fan of the frosting I’m using here, you can always try my standard cream cheese frosting, buttercream frosting, or Swiss meringue buttercream. Whichever type you use, make sure your cake is cooled completely before decorating, otherwise the frosting will melt.
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Strawberry Cake
- Blend your strawberries, strain them, and cook the juice until it has reduced. Save the pulp for later.
- Combine the strawberry reduction with the milk and food coloring. Cream together the oil, butter, sugar, and vanilla in a separate bowl, and combine the dry ingredients in another separate bowl.
- Gradually alternate adding the dry ingredients and the milk mixture into the butter mixture. Stir on low speed after each addition until just combined.
- Whip your egg whites to stiff peaks and gently fold them into your batter. Divide the batter between greased, floured, and lined baking pans. Bake for 28 minutes at 350F or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs.
- Whisk together the reserved strawberry pulp, โ cup of sugar, lemon juice, and salt in a saucepan. Bring this mixture to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly, until it thickens. Transfer the jam to a heat-proof bowl and let it cool completely in the fridge.
- Prepare your frosting by combining the cream cheese, ยฝ cup of the powdered sugar, and vanilla in a bowl. In a separate (preferably chilled) bowl, whip your cream and remaining powdered sugar, then combine both mixtures until fully incorporated.
- Once your cake and jam have cooled, assemble your cake, using your frosting as dam to hold in each layer of jam filling. Top the assembled cake with your remaining frosting, decorate, and chill it in the fridge until you’re ready to enjoy.
SAM’S TIP: This strawberry cake can be baked in 9 inch pans instead, but it will cook faster, so keep an eye on it if you use them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can use frozen strawberries here–but remember, almost all of the flavor comes from the berries you use, and there’s no telling how flavorful your frozen berries will be. I highly recommend using in-season, fresh berries.
This strawberry cake recipe will work as cupcakes, but just know they won’t have nice domed tops. It will also work as a 9×13 cake.
Yes! Because the icing has both whipped cream and cream cheese, this strawberry cake needs to be refrigerated. Make sure you keep the cake covered in an airtight container to prevent it from drying out.
The jam and frosting can both be made a day in advance and stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container. The cake could be made a day in advance as well; allow it to cool completely then wrap it tightly with plastic wrap and store it at room temperature.
Enjoy!
More Recipes You Might Like
Letโs bake together! Iโll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Strawberry Cake
Ingredients
CAKE
- 1 ยผ lbs (570 g) strawberries remove stems and quarter
- โ cup whole milk
- ยฝ cup (118 ml) vegetable or canola oil
- 4 Tablespoons (57 g) unsalted butter softened
- 1 ยพ cup (350 g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups (330 g) cake flourยน
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 6 large egg whitesยฒ room temperature preferred
- Food coloring optional (I use two chocolate chip-sized drops of americolor gel โelectric pinkโ food coloring).
FILLING
- โ cup (70 g) granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
- โ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
FROSTING
- 2 cups (475 ml) cold heavy cream
- 1 ยฝ cups (190 g) powdered sugar, divided
- 1 ยฝ teaspoons vanilla extract
- โ teaspoon salt
- 8 oz (226 g) cream cheese softened
Instructions
CAKE
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and prepare two 8โ round cake pans by spraying with baking spray and lining the bottoms with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Place quartered strawberries in blender and puree until smooth. Run through a fine mesh sieve over a measuring cup until you have 1 – 1 ยผ cups of juice. Do not discard berry pulp, set this along with any remaining pureed berries for the jam filling.1 ยผ lbs (570 g) strawberries
- Pour strawberry juice into a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until reduced to โ cup (pour into a measuring cup to check, if itโs not reduced enough, return to the saucepan and continue to cook until it is). This usually takes about 10 minutes.
- Once reduced, add โ cup milk to the strawberry reduction and whisk together. If using food coloring, whisk that in here as well. Set aside.โ cup whole milk, Food coloring
- In a large bowl using an electric mixer or in a stand mixer, beat together oil, butter, sugar, and vanilla extract until completely combined.ยฝ cup (118 ml) vegetable or canola oil, 4 Tablespoons (57 g) unsalted butter, 1 ยพ cup (350 g) granulated sugar, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.3 cups (330 g) cake flourยน, 1 Tablespoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt
- With mixer on low speed, gradually alternate adding the flour mixture and strawberry/milk mixture to the butter mixture, stirring until just combined after each addition. (I start and end with the flour and add the flour mixture in 4 parts and the milk mixture in 3 parts.)
- Place egg whites in a separate clean, dry bowl, and beat on high speed with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form.6 large egg whitesยฒ
- Using a spatula, gently fold egg whites into cake batter until completely combined (donโt use your electric mixer at this point or you will over-beat the batter). Divide cake batter evenly into prepared pans and bake on 350F for 28 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
- Allow cakes to cool in pans for 10 minutes then run a knife around the edges to loosen cakes from pan and invert onto cooling rack to cool completely. While cooling, prepare the jam filling.
JAM FILLING
- Combine remaining strawberrry pulp, โ cup sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, and salt in a small saucepan and whisk to combine.โ cup (70 g) granulated sugar, 1 Tablespoon cornstarch, โ teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- Cook over medium heat and bring to a boil. Boil, whisking constantly, until mixture is thickened and the whisk leaves a trail through the jam (this takes about 5-10 minutes).
- Remove from heat, transfer to a heat-proof bowl, and place in the refrigerator to cool completely. Meanwhile, prepare your frosting.
WHIPPED CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
- Combine cream cheese, ยฝ cup (65g) powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and salt in a large bowl and use an electric mixer to beat together until creamy and smooth.1 ยฝ cups (190 g) powdered sugar, divided, 1 ยฝ teaspoons vanilla extract, 8 oz (226 g) cream cheese, โ teaspoon salt
- In a separate bowl (preferably a chilled metal bowl), combine remaining (1 cup, 125g) powdered sugar and cold heavy cream. Beat with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form.2 cups (475 ml) cold heavy cream
- With mixer on low speed, stir together the cream cheese and whipped cream until completely combined.
ASSEMBLY
- Once cake and jam are completely cooled place one layer of cake on serving tray. Use a piping bag fitted with a round tip (I use an Ateco 808) to pipe a dam around the layer. Fill with your jam filling.
- Top with second layer of cake. Cover the entire cake with frosting.
- Refrigerate until ready to serve. Enjoy!
- Cake will keep refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Heidi Prime
Hi Sam,
First let me say that I just LOVE your recipes and advice. Do you think I could spread this recipe into 3 round pans to make 3 layers? I realize the cooking time will be less and the layers will be thinner.
Sam
That will work just fine, Heidi! ๐
Leslie
This looks amazing! My son has requested a strawberry cake for his birthday baked in my new Bundt pan. I want to use this recipe for the most part but Iโm inexperienced at what adjustments to make to temp and/or bake time when using a different style pan. Any tips?
Sam
Hi Leslie! I haven’t baked it in a bundt pan. The temperature would still be the same, but on the bake time, I’m not really sure. It will probably be longer but just keep an eye on it and test it with a toothpick (Maybe a skewer here since it will be much thicker) to see if it’s done. ๐
Aubs
Delicious! Its the best frosting Iโve ever had! All together this cake is the bomb
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much! ๐
Vachana
Hi Sam, I wanted to thank you for the recipe. I followed the recipe exactly and made it for my son’s birthday. It turned out amazing and very delcious. I would be keeping this recipe for ever and doing it again more often.
Melondi
In the tips you say donโt refrigerate because it will dry out but you also say refrigerate until ready to serve so Iโm confused I want to make a day ahead but I will be using a different cream cheese frosting so do I make cake and leave on counter over night or refrigerate I donโt want a dry cake
Sam
Hi Melondi! Sorry for the confusion, the tip is specifically for just the cake without frosting. This is for if you have made the layers in advance and need to store them until you frost and fill, if you’ve done that then do not refrigerate. The fridge does dry out cakes, but once assembled with the filling and frosting it will need to be refrigerated, just keep it in an airtight container. The container, filling, and frosting will all help keep the cake from drying out too much. I hope that makes sense!
Shylah
Hi! Lol my cake is in the oven right now! Your recipe is amazing! I have a cake making business and needed a good strawberry cake but everyone I found used box cake! This recipe was amazing and very easy to follow, although I did have to add some strawberry jello because I wasnโt getting any strawberry flavor.๐๐
Sam
I am so glad you enjoy it so much, Shylah! I have a problem with the strawberry flavor being very mild when strawberries aren’t in season and they don’t quite have that excellent flavor. ๐
Amy
My three girls are all born 10 days apart so for their birthday in 2 weeks I agreed to make each their own cake. The best white cake recipe (made about 10000 times and it is always a show stopper), the best chocolate cake and a strawberry cake. With the best chocolate cake and the strawberry cake is it possible to decorate them with piping or is the frosting not thick enough? The girls agreed to three different flavors but each want a pretty cake (ariel, elsa and rapunzel). Would the choloate be as good with a regular buttercream frosting that I can color?
Sam
Hi Amy! That’s a lot of birthdays in just a few days! The frosting for all of these cakes can be piped without issue. The chocolate cake will still be great with a regular buttercream. Good luck and happy baking! Tell the girls I said happy birthday! ๐
Melissa
This cake was yummy! I made it for myself for my bday the other day and I barely got an extra little piece to have for the next day lol. Omgosh and the whipped frosting- so light and delicious!
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, Melissa! ๐
Mai Aoki
Could you tell me what the substitution for cake flour is? I can’t find it, and do you think it would be a good idea to mix the jam withe the frosting instead or should i avoid that?
Sam
Hi Mai! You can find the substitution in the notes below the actual recipe. I don’t think I would mix the jam with the frosting. I’m not sure how the frosting would hold up after doing that. ๐
Athena
hi! I really like your recipes! Thanks for sharing this one, I just made this cake. Everything was good (the cream cheese frosting was also excellent) but my cakes were dense. Do you have any tips for that? Can I use the reverse creaming method here? I ask because I tried making your caramel cake recipe and the cake there was really light! Thanks again ๐
Sam
Hi Athena! I’m so glad you enjoyed! This cake should be really fluffy, usually if it is dense it is because it was over-mixed. If you haven’t already, I would definitely recommend checking out the video. To answer your question, you can reverse cream this cake. ๐
Carol O'Neill
Can I make this cake in advance?and if so how long in advance?
Sam
Hi Carol! It will last about a week as long as it is covered and refrigerated it will stay fresh for up to 5 days. ๐
Elizabeth
hi! I tried your recipe and i didnโt turn out very well, haha, well that was probably my doing. Iโve never been good at cakes but i thought i might try this one out. The cake went very brown on the top and on all sides were hard. i was sorta hoping a soft moist cake. i also couldnโt taste any strawberry. ๐ Do you have any suggestions? Cuz as you probably know, i need it. haha!! Thanks!
Sam
Hi Elizabeth! So this is definitely not how it is supposed to turn out! From the sound of it definitely sounds like the cake was over-baked. If you baked it for the time indicated in the pan sizes indicated and in the center rack then it I would guess that your oven is running much hotter than it is letting on and I’d recommend checking its temperature with an oven thermometer (I keep two in my oven at all times, it’s crazy how many ovens don’t run true to temperature). This would also be why the strawberry flavor didn’t shine through like it is supposed to. It sounds like just reducing your oven temperature or time will help with this quite a bit!
Elizabeth
Ok i’ll check. Thank you! ๐
teeka
Hi! This cake sounds so delicious and and am hoping to make it but was wondering if I could sub out the whole milk for a non dairy alternative such as coconut or soy milk. If not one of these do you have a suggestion that would work better?
Sam
Hmmm I haven’t tried it. It may work. The cake may be a little less moist but I think it’ll still turn out for you. ๐
Vanessa Maldonado
Will this recipe work for cupcakes?
Sam
Hi Vanessa! That should work fine. ๐
Tara
Hi do you think this recipe would work with blueberries instead of strawberries? What things would you adjust if so?
Sam
Hi Tara! I haven’t tried it. It’s possible you may need a little more liquid when making the reduction because blueberries tend to be less juicy. If you try it I would love to know how it turns out. ๐
Jennifer
I’ve actually made it with blueberries instead, twice, added lemon juice and zest to the frosting. I had a excess of blueberries from a local farm and I followed the recipe exactly. The flavors of the cake came out amazing you could really taste the blueberries and my family loved it. But both times my cakes sank, which leads me to believe I might have expired baking powder. Tasted too good to care how it looked in the end ๐
Sam
Thank you for the feedback, Jennifer! I am so glad you enjoyed it. Sounds like it’s time for some new baking powder, and hopefully it won’t sink next time. ๐