I want to share with you my absolute most favorite recipe for homemade strawberry cake. For some reason, good from-scratch strawberry cake recipes are really hard to find. There are a wealth of recipes that use strawberry-flavored jello, strawberry extract, and a boxed cake mix but what if you want to make a cake to put a dent in that gallon bag of strawberries you have in the freezer?
If you ask me, strawberries just might be the world’s most perfect fruit. Well, pretty darn perfect as long as they’re ripe and clean 
Decadent enough to be considered dessert on their own, they most certainly don’t need artificially flavored Jello and food coloring to bring out the best in them.
If you are still looking for a good, completely-from-scratch strawberry cake without Yellow No. 5 and Red No. 6, this should go on the top of your must-try list. The cake is nice and moist, has a prominent strawberry flavor, and it’s pink! From nothin‘ but strawberries.
“This is so cool! Listen to this: Potatoes, sunflower oil, and salt. That’s all!”
My husband was really excited. I stared at him from across the booth at Jason’s Deli, no doubt a little puzzled at the time. He was reading the ingredients on a bag of potato chips and was completely blown away that the manufacturer was only selling us potato chips in our bag of potato chips.
I was a little surprised myself. Ingredient labels on packaged foods can sometimes be a little daunting – and sometimes extremely disappointing (cough Central Market and their pistachio-less Pistachio Muffins cough).
I’m most definitely not anti-packaged foods. I always have a couple boxes of Duncan Hines cake mix in my pantry. There’s nothing worse than being wide awake at 1am and having nothing sweet to munch on or getting smacked with a chocolate craving when the weather is too bad to leave the house. French Vanilla cupcakes, straight out of the oven, are the best! And your house still smells wonderful when you come downstairs the next day. That being said, I do mostly bake from scratch because it’s fun.
You know, “fun” to realize that you don’t have enough sugar, “fun” to get started and realize that there is actually an over-night step involved, or “fun” to realize that what you thought was a box of cake flour in the bottom drawer of the pantry was actually a misplaced box of Lucky Charms. You know. “Fun.”
This has been the most popular recipe on my site for over 3 years now. I’ve tried to condense the most common questions and comments from the comments below into a FAQ. Please do take a second to skim through so you get the best tasting cake from your efforts!
Strawberry Cake FAQ
Why is the cake in the picture three layers and the recipe only for two?
Because I doubled the recipe (4 layers) and froze the extra layer. If you want a 3-layer cake, you can do the same. Or just increase the recipe by 50% for the third layer (you’ll need 3 pans).
Why is my cake a different color than yours?
All of the color and flavor comes from the berries. Use the best, ripest berries you can find during strawberry season – all red berries with little/no white. Out-of-season berries that have been shipped half a world away won’t give you a pretty pink cake or much strawberry flavor so consider using frozen (no sugar added) berries instead. If your color/flavor is lacking, it was the berries.
For the strawberry puree, I’ve found that cooking the strawberries down gives the cake a more vibrant color (see the cupcake picture above) and a stronger strawberry flavor. To do this using fresh strawberries, rough chop the strawberries, toss with sugar, and let sit for an hour or so until nice and juicy. Add 1/4 cup water and then simmer in a small sauce pan for 15-20 minutes, until the berries are very soft.
To do this using frozen strawberries, place the thawed berries and any accumulated juices into a small sauce pan and then simmer 15-20 minutes, until the berries are very soft.
Pour into a fine strainer set over a bowl. With a rubber spatula or spoon, scrape and press the strawberries through the strainer until all of the juice is in the bowl and you’re only left with the juiceless pulp (don’t rush this step – it’s important). Discard the pulp and transfer the juice back to the sauce pan. Reduce the liquid down to 1/2 cup and cool. Proceed with the recipe, using 1/2 cup of milk.
What is this “cooked puree” business? That wasn’t here last time I made this cake.
See the previous question. If you use the cooked puree method described above, you’ll use 1/2 cup puree + 1/2 cup milk. If you use the original method described in the recipe below, you’ll use 3/4 cup puree + 1/4 cup milk.
What did you fill the cake in the picture with?
I used Quick Buttercream Frosting and leftover strawberry puree (from the recipe below).
What frosting do you recommend?
Quick Buttercream Frosting (pictured) and Cream Cheese Frosting are our two favorites.
What can I do with the extra strawberry puree
Fold it into some of the frosting and fill the cake with it, eat it on a PB&J sandwich, spread it on pancakes or biscuits… or grab a spoon!
Is the cake strong enough to support fondant and tiering?
Yes! I’ve done both with no problems.
Can I make the cake into cupcakes?
Of course! Check the cupcakes for doneness around 20 minutes.
Fresh Strawberry Cake
A completely from-scratch, fresh strawberry cake. No jello, food coloring, or artificial flavors!
Ingredients
- For the strawberry puree:
- 24 oz very ripe strawberries, hulled (or no-sugar-added frozen strawberries)
- 1-2 tsp sugar (optional)
- (see FAQ above for alternate strawberry puree method)
- For the cake:
- 1/4-1/2 cup milk, at room temperature
- 6 large egg whites, room temperature (4 whole eggs can be substituted, per reader comments)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cup cake flour, sifted
- 1 3/4 cup sugar
- 4 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 12 Tbsp unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), at room temp
Instructions
- If frozen strawberries in whatever form (sliced, whole, etc) and in whatever container/bag you have them in. Pour into a fine strainer placed over a bowl and let sit. Lightly toss the strawberries occasionally to remove any pockets of excess liquid. Reserve the liquid for another use or discard (see FAQ above for alternate use of the liquid).
- If using fresh strawberries, just hull, slice and toss with a teaspoon or two of sugar and cover. Let them sit at room temperature for a couple of hours, until nice and juicy.
- Place strawberries in a food processor or blender and puree.
- Reserve 3/4 cup puree for the cake. (If you are using the cooked puree method from the FAQ above, you will only use 1/2 cup puree.)
- Use leftover puree to fill the cake or fold into the frosting, if desired. It's also fabulous spooned over ice cream... and eaten straight with a spoon.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare two 8- or 9-inch pans: spray inside with baking spray with flour (or use some sort of grease/flour combination).
- In small bowl, combine puree, milk (if you used the cooked puree method in the FAQ above, you'll use 1/2 cup of milk and 1/2 cup of puree; if you did not cook your puree, use 1/4 cup of milk and 3/4 cup of puree), egg, vanilla and mix with fork until well blended. In bowl of stand mixer, add sifted flour, sugar, baking powder and salt and mix to combine. Continue beating at slow speed and add butter. Mix until combined and resembling moist crumbs.
- Add wet ingredients and beat at medium speed for about 1 minute or until full and evenly combined. Stop mixer to scrape down the sides of the bowl and hand beat for 30 more seconds.
- Note: The batter will not get any pinker in the oven so if you're disappointed in the color from your berries, maybe consider adding a drop or two of pink or red food coloring.
- Divide the batter evenly among the pans and smooth tops.
- Bake for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (time will vary). Let cakes rest in pan for about 10 minutes and turn out onto wire racks. Let cakes cool completely (about 2 hours).
Notes
Yields: ~12-16 servings
Estimated time: 40 minutes
{ 340 comments… read them below or add one }
I’m REALLY flattered at how much you like this cake. Really. Because it is TOTALLY one of my favorites. I feel the same way about strawberries. Mmm….. and you MUUUUUST tell me where you got that most BEAUTIFUL cake plate! Because now I lust it!!
Looks delicious and definitely perfect for any strawberry lover!
Hell yes for REAL cake – no packaged for me!! Your cake is absolutely spectacular.
Katie – Thanks! The cake plate is from Martha Stewart’s line at Macy’s. There are 3 in the set: 8, 10, and 12-inch. My mom could only find the 8 and 10-inch at Christmas because they temporarily sold out… I’m still looking for the 12
I always thought it was strange that there weren’t as many recipes for strawberry cakes as there should be. Martha Stewart has a good cupcake one that I’ve used. But now I have a go to layer cake one. Thanks!
I know what you mean about reading labels, it is very rarely a good experience. That’s way gorgeous recipes like this are such a triumph and so simple too. Lovely!
Your husband is cute. And he sounds like me at Passover. You’d be surprised how many potato chips include more than potatoes, oil, and salt!
If you want to really amaze him, show him a bottle of natural peanut butter.
What icing recipe did you use with the cake? Was hoping to make it this afternoon with my son.
Thanks!
Hi Little Miss Mel,
I just used your everyday basic American buttercream frosting:
2 sticks butter unsalted butter, softened
2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp almond extract
5 cups confectioner’s sugar, sifted
pinch of salt
Cream butter + flavoring until smooth. Mix in confectioner’s sugar + salt and beat 2-3 minutes. Add milk as necessary to thin for spreading (usually 2-4 Tbsp)
This cake looks delicious, and I was just wondering if anyone has tried baking a sheet cake with this Fresh Strawberry cake recipe? I want to make my grandson’s birthday cake with this recipe because he loves strawberrys. Thanks! Tina Miller Artho
From scratch…I just love this. I miss strawberries. I’m inspired to make this. I bet it was sooooo good.
i’ve been meaning to try this cake! i’m glad you reminded me! i should make it for my mom when i get back from my business trip cause i know she’d love it!
looks beautiful! i super puffy heart the cake stand too. its on my want list after seeing them during christmas too!
You got me – I use a box of jello I think in mine, but it does call for real strawberries, at least! I have a TON of strawberries frozen from over the summer so I’ll have to try this! My dad loves strawberry cake.
Thanks so much for this recipe! You’re so right–I always look at strawberry cake and frosting recipes and I’m disappointed because they’re not really from scratch…and my whole reason of wanting to make the cake is having lots of strawberries!
This one looks delicious!
This looks amazing. I bet my children would love it! Such a fan of anything strawberry. Looks so very pretty too!!
I do love that cake plate. SO pretty with the pink and white cake.
I just printed off a strawberry cake recipe from another blogsite and was looking for another to compare..and here you are! Thank you. This looks beautiful. You must have scaled up the recipe for three layers, yes? Could you share?
ok, I just iced the cake. Will have visitors this afternoon to try it. We’ll see how well I did!! The icing tasted great at least! haha (I used 4 tbs of milk.)
What is the key to not get crumbs in the icing? I had to do a lot of retouches!!
Some tips/tricks to I use to keep the crumbs to a minimum are:
-Make sure cake is COMPLETELY COOLED before frosting (cakes can crumb really easily
when warm because they are way softer than when left to cool completely). If you’re in
a hurry, you can speed the cooling by putting the cake in the fridge/freezer for 15- 20
mins–this also gives you time to make your frosting if you haven’t already.
-Lightly brush off existing crumbs from cake tops and sides. Heat some jelly/jam in a
microwave safe cup until melted. Quickly brush layers/sides with liquid and set aside
to cool. The jelly, as it cools, will help to form a “coating” that will seal in crumbs and
make frosting easier.
Hope this helps you! =)
This cake was fantastic and a huge hit at the baby shower it was made for. It was the first time I have been to a party where almost all of the cake got eaten. There was only a small portion left.
Susan – I made the recipe twice for this post and have an extra layer wrapped in the freezer (dessert, anyone?).
Little Miss Mel – The key to crumbless frosting is to do a ‘crumb coat’ – apply a very thin coating of frosting to the entire cake and let it set for 30 minutes. It will look absolutely awful but the frosting traps all the crumbs. Then frost the cake as usual – there shouldn’t be a crumb in sight!
Debra – I am so glad to hear that you guys enjoyed the cake! Those fondant lady bugs made for a fun project
I would have totally used this a couple weeks ago for a little girl birthday party! It looks delicious!
Love your cake! I’ve made both Paula Deen’s and Sprinkle’s strawberry cake recipes both were good but I might have liked Paul Deen’s better. Yeah, it uses a box.
Strawberry season is starting up here so it’s time to break out the strawberry recipes. Thanks for sharing the recipe. I’m definitely going to give it a try as the kids do love strawberries & cake!
~ingrid
btw, that is a totally GREAT cake platter! Oh, and I meant to ask but what kind of frosting did you use? Recipe? THX!
this looks so simple, fresh & not to mention delish – this will be perfect for valentines day! thx!
I love strawberry cake. Can’t wait to try this!
You are so right about strawberry cake. And strawberries. They are perfect. I will definitely be trying this recipe out. Thank you!
Wow! What a gorgeous looking cake! I love strawberry flavored anything. This sounds so good!
This cake looks amazing! I love strawberries and am lucky enough to live near Plant City, FL (which is known for its strawberries). I really must find an excuse to try this recipe soon.
You can pick up the award on my blog.
I also wanted to let you know I nominated your blog for an award. That’s just my way of saying thanks for all the great recipes and the wonderful blog you have!
This cake is just too pretty for words. Splendid. I have a strawberry cake up on my blog, and I’m almost ashamed to admit that it’s made with cake mix. Thanks for giving me a from scratch alternative. Great shots too. It looks like the perfect slice!
Yuuuuummmmm!
Just curious, the picture for the strawberry cake looks like 3 layers but recipe only calls for 2 8inch pans. Do you usually use 3 layers or just the 2?
Tanisha – I usually use 3 layers but I just make the original recipe twice every other time that I bake the cake and store the extra layer in the freezer for the next time. I’m sure I’ve made it far more complicated than it should be… I should probably just scale the recipe up by 50%
Can I use all purpose or self rising flour or does it have to be cake flour. I always liked the smoother texture over the more course and airy texture that the cake flour produces.
Hi Carol, I’d probably not think twice about using AP flour but I’ve never used self-rising flour for anything.
I’m looking at making this cake for a birthday this weekend. The recipe says it yields 2-8 in cakes. In the picture shown, there are three layers. Do I need to double the recipe to make 3 fluffy layers? What is the portion used in the illustration?
I have long wanted to recreate for my Mum’s birthday a neopolitan cake that she made for me on my birthday when I was little. The chocolate and white layers are easy, the pink has always held me back. Mum used red food colouring
I need to make a 9 inch cake, could you offer some help in adjusting the recipe?
Thank you Periwinkle for mentioning a neopolitan cake. I have been having a difficult time trying to decide what kind of cake to make for my son’s 2nd birthday next week. I think a neopolitan will be perfect! I would have never thought of that.
Thank you foodiebride for sharing this recipe. It is exactly the type of cake I like to serve my family.
Jill – I usually make the original recipe twice every other time that I bake the cake and store the extra layer in the freezer for the next time. If you don’t want to do that, you could increase the recipe by 50% and make 3 layers all at once.
Periwinkle – A Neopolitan Cake sounds wonderful! Good news is that you wouldn’t necessarily need to change the recipe. the 9-inch layers might be a tad shorter because the pan is just a bit larger. You have a few options: proceed normally through the recipe, torte the two layers into 4 (this will give the cake a little more height), or increase the entire recipe by 50% and go with a three layer cake.
Wow, this looks great! I was looking for a recipe and printed one with jello. Now i think i’ll try this one instead. I just MIGHT add red food coloring maybe, since it’s for a child and he may think pink is girly.
Just wanted to add – I made this cake for the birthday I mentioned and everyone was floored! Here is what my 24 year old daughter just IM’d me at work:
“Your strawberrry cake is the freakin best. It is the best cake I have EVER tasted! I like it better than chocolate even! And that is saying alot.YEAH! It’s SO freaking moist and just the exact right amount of sweet with fruity! I have NEVER had such a great cake before! I was totally wowed! FOR REAL!!!”
Thanks so much, good to find another central Texas blogger.
By the way, I didn’t add the food coloring and it was still pink. I used 9″ layers and cut them in half, pouring the extra puree on the cut sides with a frosting dam. I will post photos on my blog with a link to yours on 4/7/09. Check it out!
I made this cake on Sunday for my daughter’s birthday/Easter. Literally the best cake EVER. That is saying a lot because I don’t like cake. I will now call it the Strawberry Love cake.
I made a buttercream frosting and (oops) added too much puree which made it a Strawberry Ganache really. It was so good. This is my new favorite and “go to” cake. We live in Raspberry country and I WILL be trying out a raspberry version.
Thank you for posting!
At last! A strawberry cake recipe that does not use a mix or Jello. I have strawberries in my garden and have been looking for a good cake recipe. I can’t wait to try this one. My dad’s 81st birthday is later this week and I want to make a him a “different” cake. As we all love cheesecake I’m using cream cheese frosting. I love the idea of doubling the recipe and freezing the extra layer.
ive had this recipe on my to-bake list for sooo long and your post was the last kick i needed! will def try it out. i love strawberry!!!
I’m looking for a REAL strawberry cake for my daughter’s b’day. I’m so glad to have found ur post! Thanks!. One quick question, is there a reason for excluding the egg yolks from this recipe? Will adding 6 whole eggs (instead of just the whites) make a difference to the final product?
Oh, my. Just made this with fresh, very ripe summer strawberries. Since we picked up a flat of berries at the farm stand, we also did strawberry icing and strawberry filling (from Martha Stewart). It’s Father’s day and my husband loves strawberry cake. Wonderful. Very pink, moist and sweet. Heaven!! Thanks for sharing!
Hi Zarina. My guess would be that the yolks would cause the cake to be heavier/more dense since it’s additional fat. I don’t think that you could use 6 whole eggs and get the cake to turn out because of the 6 Tbsp volume difference: The volume of 6 egg whites is approx 3/4 cup of liquid. The volume of 6 whole eggs is approx 1 1/8 cup liquid. You *could* try using 4 large whole eggs (approx 3/4 cup) but I’ve never used whole eggs in this recipe. Results not guaranteed
Thanks so much for the quick response! Just in time to bake the cake tomorrow!:)
Hi! I’ll add my thanks to the many others in the comments of this post. What a wonderful recipe! I’d was just getting goo and frustrated that every single recipe I found for strawberry cake called for either a white cake mix or strawberry jello, when I stumbled upon your recipe for an actual strawberry cake from scratch.
I made the cake earlier today and accompanied it with a lovely white chocolate frosting (this one, in case you’re interested. Turned out wonderful!
Thanks so much!
I made this last night and it was really good. Thanks for the recipe.
Could you substitute an equal amount of oil instead of butter? I find it makes a moister cake.
Thanks so much for a from scratch recipe for a beautiful strawberry cake!!!! It took me a while to find your recipe online. THANK YOU!!!!!!!
This recipe is great. I made it for my daughter’s birthday and everyone loved it. Although she doesn’t eat cake, she tasted this and liked it. Yes, that’s right, my daughter doesn’t eat cake but insists on a birthday cake for her birthday for her friends and family to enjoy. This one was the greatest and she ate it. Thanks.
THANK YOU!!!!
I have a cake to make for a baby shower, and the grandmother asked for a strawberry marble cake(its a girl). Because its marble, any cake I try to make with a jello mix on the strawberry side would be to heavy, and because of the extreme difference in the cake density, it wouldn’t raise right.
I have been searching high and low on the internet for a recipe that did not involve jello or a box mix, not only for the above mentioned density, but to maintain my stubborn ‘i make everything 100% from scratch’ reputation! (I make box mixes for myself, not for friends
)
I just came across this recipe and I think it will be perfect for a friend’s birthday coming up. One question: The recipe uses two 8-inch pans, but your picture has 3 layers. Did you 1 1/2 the recipe when you actually made the cake?
Love your blog! THANKS!
Hi Dianna – Yep, you can increase the recipe by 50%. I actually made the recipe twice for this post. The extra layer ended up as cake truffles
My cake, disappointingly, wasn’t pink, even though I followed the recipe exactly. ): Is it the strawberries I used?
Hi–My daughter wants a strawberry horse cake for her birthday. I’m wondering if this will work in a 9×13 pan. I’m planning to cut the cake into the shape of a horse’s head before I frost and want to make sure this cake will be firm enough for that. I will probably freeze the cake before I cut it. Any thoughts?
Thanks!
Elena – it should be fine. I was going to recommend freezing it before carving but you’ve got that covered!
Eugenia – yep, most likely the juice in the berries. In recipes where I don’t use many strawberries or ones that aren’t maybe quite ripe enough (ie, strawberry bread), the color can sometimes end up more on the bland, pinkish-grey side.
I adapted a white cake recipe once, and it was a lot like this. Even looked a lot like your photo. I think this recipe fixed some of my mistakes, though, like mine was a little TOO moist (kinda fell in the center) because I didn’t decrease the milk enough in the original recipe. Also, I think I didn’t use quite as many strawberries as this recipe did.
I made strawberry frosting for it, too, by using pureed strawberries instead of vanilla or milk in regular vanilla buttercream. It doesn’t take much, maybe a quarter to a third cup? I’m not sure, since I never wrote it down.
I think it would work with a cream cheese frosting, too. Maybe even better, since with mine I had to add WAY too much sugar to get it to set.
Can’t wait to make this for our Valentine’s day party!
A bit dense but a very delicious cake. I made food coloring with beets so it was more pink. Yums.
I am sooooo excited! I too love to cook from scratch and was super happy to find your recipe. We are celebrating my mom’s 82nd birthday this weekend and she requested strawberry cake…from a mix! This will be much more delicious and healthier too. I think I’ll try the beet idea as I want it to be a bit “pinker”.
Cheers!
I made this awesome cake for my daughter’s 11th birthday at her request. It was simply delicious! I made your american buttercream frosting and folded in the strawberry puree–too good for words. It has become the new request for all birthdays in my family. Thanks for sharing. It was important to me to make it completely from scratch, and I upped the recipe by half to make the three layers. My entire family thanks you for posting this recipe!
Lady Logan
I just made this cake literally 30 minutes ago, and it is absolutely the best cake I have ever had! It has a wonderful taste, which is a given because of the strawberries. And the color is beautiful, a nice light pink which makes it look homemade and natural.
I made it for my sisters birthday, and she loves strawberry cake, but the store bought kind, and I wanted to make something homemade that would taste even better, and this recipe truly is!
Thank you so much for sharing this with us!
-Christina
I just made this and first will say that it is by far the MOISTEST cake I have ever made. Absolutely wonderful! But I had 2 major problems perhaps you could help with.
1. It fell in the middle and I’ve never had a cake do that before!
2. It didn’t really taste like strawberries. It tasted a bit “fruity” but not enough to scream “strawberry”. How defrosted should the strawberries be? Like super soft? I’m concerned that mine weren’t defrosted enough hence watering down the taste.
Thanks so much…love your blog
Thank you so much for posting this recipe.. Like a lot of others here I have been looking for a recipe for strawberry cake for a while and was very disappointed to find so many that call for box mixes and jello. That just sounds plain gross to me. I like to make most of my meals from natural ingredients. Also I live in Italy so it is impossible to buy box mixes and jello. Any american food that I make has to be from basic ingredients. This cake is amazing! I have always loved the betty crocker strawberry cake mix since I was a kid but now that I am an adult I know better than to use box mixes. This cake was very easy to make and fun (my five year old helped). My husband told me it was the best dessert he has ever had and that is saying a lot because he loves to eat.. I used a package of marscapone cheese mixed with zuchero vellato (powdered sugar) for the icing and it was AMAZING.
Thank You!
This is now my all time favorite cake!
Hi Natasha! I’m planning on making this cake for an upcoming baby shower, and was hoping to do a mascarpone topping. I’ve never thought or heard of mixing mascarpone with powdered sugar–that sounds wonderful! Can you tell me how much of each you used?
Thanks!
Wow I just clicked on your beef archives and I see that you are from Houston. I am too:)
Thanks for the blog!
Small world..
p.s. Lupe Tortillas is the best!
wow…fresh strawberry cake…what a wonderful thing…..your right about the recipe, though its rare to find one actually using real strawberries..
thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe
I’m making this cake for my daughters birthday. I made one layer in a heart shaped pan that she loves and used the rest of the batter for cupcakes she can take to school. I can’t wait to see how they turn out! Thanks so much for this recipe, my son is red dye sensitive so anytime I have to make something pink or red it becomes a challenge to do it without artificial colors.
I am going to make this cake tomorrow for my daughter’s birthday. I love that it is actually from scratch as that is difficult to find. Does anyone know of a healthier frosting recipe (less butter and sugar)? Would a whipped cream frosting go well with this cake? Thanks!
Stefanie – Cream cheese frosting goes really well with the strawberry cake.
Wow I made these last week for my birthday and they were awesome! I did tweak the recipe a bit and added extra strawberries and some lemon zest. But wow what a great recipe. Will definitely make these again. I also frosted them with cream cheese frosting. Simply delicious! http://tinypic.com/r/rhibub/5
I was wondering about using fresh strawberries: after the strawberries have been macerated in the sugar for a couple of hours, do i still drain the strawberries through a strainer and then puree the strawberrie, or do i just puree the strawberries with the juice?
Michael – when fresh, puree with the juice.
when using frozen strawberries, do you sweetened or unsweetened?
Lisa – I use unsweetened strawberries.
This recipe is the bomb!! I made cupcakes for my daughter’s birthday and they were delicious!! This recipe is a keeper! Thank you for posting it. With all the processed food products these days, it is so refreshing to have a “from-scratch” recipe to share.
How do I make a 1/4 sheet cake out of this. Is one receipe good enough?
Thx!
Athena – Yes, one recipe will yield enough for a 2 layer cake or a 9×13 cake. Good luck!
is the cook time and oven heating the same for a 9×13 cake? thanks
i tried this recipe but it turned out very greasy. I followed the measurement and the procedure step by step but still it was too oily. BUt the flavor is really good. Next time I’ll try to cut the butter see if it helps.
Melanie – the oven temp is the same and the baking time will be close – just start checking it ~5 minutes early.
I tried this cake for my daughter’s birthday and I used the leftover puree to drizzle on top with a homemade whip cream frosting and it was amazing! Thank you for the awesome recipe. I did cook it in a 9×13 pan and it was same temp and cook time as the round cake! thank you again, it has been added to my berry favorite recipes!
Do you sift the flour before or after measuring? How many cupcakes does this make? I can’t wait to try it out!
Hi Heather – sift the flour after measuring. The recipe should make ~24 cupcakes.
If I wanted to make a sheet cake using a 9 x 13 roasting pan, would this recipe be enough to fill a pan this size? Would the heaviness of this recipe make it hard to take out of the pan after it cools?
Thank you
Linda – the recipe will make one 9×13 or two layer (8 or 9 inch). I haven’t personally made the cake in a 9×13 but I know others have – no one has mentioned any trouble getting it out of the pan. Good luck!
I’m thawing strawberries now and I’d like to try this recipe, but I’m a little concerned about it having no egg yolk. Maybe I could sub 2 whites for 1 whole egg, or do you think it’s not necessary?
Jessica – I’ve never had any issues with the recipe not calling for a yolk (it’s a converted white cake recipe). I don’t think its necessary but you can always try!
Oh wow, this is just fabulous!! Thank you for a NATURAL cake- nothing here but goodness. I am going to make this for my son’s birthday. Made a trial run tonight and really, it is so great. Light as air.
Thank you for doing all the work of creating this recipe.
I am having a strawberry social on Sunday with 25 people attending. I was surprised to find all those jello/cake mix versions. As a former 4H’er farm kid who grew up in the 50′s & 60′s and became a restaurant reviewer, it is always horrifying to see what people consider to be good food.
My guests will be delighted with these strawberry cupcakes — and strawberry short cake, strawberry/rubharb mousse and strawberry ice cream with fresh strawberrys!
Thank you again.
Eve
Is anyone willing to share a good frosting recipe for this cake? Would you use a basic vanilla with some strawberry puree folded in?
I’ve made this twice in as many weeks. So delicious and moist, as everyone’s said. This recipe is a keeper. I’m inspired to bake from scratch more often– I’m even leaving the stand mixer on the counter! Thank you!
I loved Strawberry Cake. This looks Beautiful. I will try to make it. I hope my son will enjoy this recipe.
THIS IS A REALLY GOOD CAKE FOR MY GRANDSON
Do you think other fruit purees would work, peaches nectarines, cherries, maybe?
I’ve used blackberries so there’s a good chance that other fruits would work as well. Good luck!
Just made the cake and its cooling. One question: the center of the cakes are sunken in. Is that normal or did I do something wrong? Thanks
@nathan, the cake most likely sunken in center because there was alot of movement near your oven (examole: somebody jumped or was running around)
I want to use an 8″ round by 3″ deep cake pan…will it work? Will I have to decrease the temp of the oven, increase the time? Will it dry out the edges? I’ve got a flat of fresh juicy strawberries just waiting to be used…can’t wait to try this out!
Jennifer – the only cake I’ve ever attempted in the same manner was a 6″ carrot cake baked in a 3″ pan rather than two 2″ pans- and I turned the oven down 25 degrees and set the timer for the original cooking time. I did the skewer test when the timer went off and then judged how much time was left by how wet the center of the cake was. Good luck!
Hello, can this be baked in a bundt cake and do you have to modify the baking time. This is only scratch recipe that I found online with universally good reviews.
Thanks
Jen, I don’t know why it couldn’t be baked in a bundt pan. I’ve never done it with this particular recipe so I don’t have any worthwhile advice on the cooking time. If I were doing it, I’d just set the timer for 5 minutes short of the suggested cooking time and then have a skewer nearby to be able to start checking for doneness. After that first peek, you’ll probably get a good idea if you need to go 5 minutes, 10 minutes, or even longer. Good luck!
Best cake ever! Seriously!
Apart from wanting to make a strawberry cake from scratch because I *like* making things from scratch I also had the challenge of being from Denmark – I’d be reluctant to use cake mixes and jellos we have here as they are different from the American ones, and then who knows how many test runs I’d have to do to make an acceptable cake…
As I had to make two cakes and was running out of time I made a double portion and filled one full portion of batter in each pan, then I put both pans in the oven. Baking time was around 40-45 minutes; I switched the top and bottom cake every 15 minutes. The one originally in the bottom took 5 minutes longer. Then I split the cakes in two layers each with a thread. Worked like a charm
would like for you to suggest cooking temp & time for baking this cake in a 15 1/2 x 10 1/2 x 1 size pan. I am going to make 2 sheets with fresh strawberry’s between layers.
Meriyogi – that pan should bake pretty quickly. I’d turn the temp down to 325 and take a peek around 10-12 minutes, expecting it to go a few minutes longer.
I tried this, I made it for a bake sale. I tasted some of it that I had cut off to make it even for frosting.
I had added more strawberries, but I’m ending up it tastes like just plain flour with a hint of strawberries. It tastes alright, but I think I’m gonna cut down on the flour a bit and see if that helps.
But if you have any suggestions, I would appreciate it.
Melissa – If the strawberries are good and ripe, try letting them sit with the sugar for a longer period, even overnight in the fridge. if I can’t get my hands on ripe and juicy strawberries, I hit up the frozen section for strawberries. The freezing/thawing process makes it easier to release the juice. Good luck! It really is a tasty cake when the strawberries cooperate!
I am making a two tier cake for a friend who is having a small wedding. She wants strawberry cake and I like your recipe and all the great reviews you have gotten. How many recipes would you make to bake 2 10-inch layers and 2 6-inch layers? And, do you think a meringue buttercream would go well? Thanks for your help! I can’t wait to try it. I think I am going to make cupcakes tonight to try it. My kids will love me!
Julie – the recipe is standard yield so 1 recipe would make enough to bake in 4 6-inch pans. Doubling the recipe would yield enough batter for a 10-inch cake. I love making Swiss meringue bc, so I think it would taste great!
how about the Icing???
Can put Some Chocolate Gnash??
Thank you so much for posting this recipe! It was really hard to find a from scratch strawberry cake. When I made this cake I used a jar of Nutella to frost it and topped it with strawberries. It was amazingly good!!
Will this cake withstand fondant? I would really like to make this recipe for a friend of mine but she wants fondant on the cake! It looks like a great recipe!
I have put fondant on that cake – works just fine! Good luck!
This was NOT a good recipe at all!! I made this cake for my family it the taste was just awful. I followed the recipe perfectly. I have been making cakes here lately from scratch and I made an apple one and it wonderful and then I tried this one and it was terrible. You might want to fix a few things to make it taste better or look and see if there is a typo or something.
Ashleigh – Sorry you didn’t like it. I’ve made the recipe several times as posted as have many others. It’s an awesome cake when made correctly!
This recipe looks great. My daughter is requesting a “pink cake” for her birthday, so I am going to try this. Can you recommend a frosting? I’d love to know your thoughts on this. We aren’t big on overly sweet and fondant would be too difficult for me. Also, I was curious as to why you do not need to beat the egg whites separately first. Would you recommend this? Thank you so much, can’t wait to tell you how it turns out!
Maria – I think a cream cheese frosting would be great. The recipe is based on the Cook’s Illustrated White Cake recipe and they take the odd step of beating the egg whites. I’m not certain of the reason behind the yummy madness.
@foodiebride, As this is based on a white cake recipe that is (i assume) the reason for only whites. The beating of whites seperately is for a texture reason but if it is only for color that wouldn’t be necessary. Based on that I would assume substituting whole eggs would be acceptable as long as the liquid amount is the same?
@Sheri, I haven’t done it but I’d guess that substituting 4 whole eggs for the 6 whites would be acceptable.
Can i make these into cupcakes??
love love love it!!
I was wondering what you thought about subbing almond extract for vanilla extract? I had strawberry cake at a wedding and it was so good but it had a very unique taste and I think it may have been almond. I would love your opinion. Thanks!
@Stephanie, I *love* almond extract and there are few baked goods wouldn’t be made better by adding a few drops. I think 1/2 tsp of almond extract, maybe 3/4 tsp, would be plenty. If you try it, you’ll have to tell me how it works out!
Wow , I LOVED this cake! I made mine dairy free, and it worked out really well!
What type of frosting did you use for this cake? Just curious
@Debra, I just used your everyday basic American buttercream frosting for the cake in the picture – but cream cheese frosting is good, too:
2 sticks butter unsalted butter, softened
2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp almond extract
5 cups confectioner’s sugar, sifted
pinch of salt
Cream butter + flavoring until smooth. Mix in confectioner’s sugar + salt and beat 2-3 minutes. Add milk as necessary to thin for spreading (usually 2-4 Tbsp)
Thanks for a wonderful recipe! I just made this for my daughter’s Strawberry Shortcake b-day party today. It was received with rave reviews. I cheated and didn’t make the frosting from scratch but I did add some of the reserve juice to make it pink and strawberry tasting. If I weren’t so full I’d be ready for another piece.
I made this cake last night for our family’s Valentine dinner and we loved it!
I halved the recipe and baked in a 6″ round which I sliced in half (and had to take the top off, of course, to level and taste test lol). I had a cup of leftover buttercream from another cake last week that I put between the layers and on top along with the remaining puree. I made it on a whim so I did not have enough strawberries to put slices between the layers. Guess I’ll just have to make it again. I think next time I will try this with whip cream frosting or even as an ice cream cake. The smaller cake was perfect for the four of us.
This recipe is a keeper! Thank you so much for posting it. Later this week, I think I’l be trying your Mongolian Beef recipe.
I made this cake for my daughters birthday, and let’s just say i’ll never make cake from a box again! super moist and delicious…i frosted her cake with a toasted coconut cream cheese icing (from scratch) and made a great combo!
I was very excited to find a natural way (avoiding red food dye) to make a pink cake for my daughter’s very pink birthday party. Unfortunately, though, the cake did not come out pink. Not even remotely pink. I even added more puree than the recipe called for. I used frozen strawberries, and although they are a very nice red color, they are not particularly sweet. This accounts for the lack of strawberry taste, but not really the lack of pink color. I’m disappointed, but hope a pink strawberry frosting will make up for the lacklustre color of the cake.
Hey there, just made this cake yesterday and im wondering if you dont have a typo in your directions. You are using 2 8″ rounds? I dont know how that could possibly work. I used two 9″ because God hates me and i cant find 8s anywhere but online. But my 9″ puffed to the top at baking time. 8s would have over flowed. also you are picturing a 3 layer cake. So i am assuming you used 3 8′s is that right?
@Katie, No typo – I use 8-inch pans. To get three layers, I usually just make the cake twice and freeze the 4th layer (and I use that one as the third layer next time).
@Katie: I am obviously not FoodieBride, but I just wanted to mention this because I saw it in her directions – she instructs to use foil (or BakeEven strips) around the outside of the pan. These are meant to help the cake bake more evenly and prevent it from puffing in the middle (and therefore you don’t have to level the top – or not level it as much). I’m guessing maybe that was the problem with your cake? I can’t be totally sure, but I thought I’d mention it. Hope you figure it out!
Ab fab recipe. I followed it exactly except I used all purpose flour instead of cake flour. I adjusted for it as recommended in numerous cookbooks and on numerous websites (for every 1 cup of cake flour use 1 cup MINUS 2 tablespoons of all purpose flour). I added a bit more puree to the batter (maybe a quarter cup). For the recommended icing I used a bit less sugar and a little puree. Really turned out awesomely. If you follow the recipe and bake properly you will be so rewarded with a lovely cake!
I just made this cake….Next time I will reduce the sugar! It turned out well…Haven’t made the frosting because I think it’s a bit sweet. I am pregnant and so I probably need to reduce the sugar intake. Thanks for this recipe
I used the gold baking pan from William Sonoma and just sprayed it with baking spray and it worked out great!
ok, you are going to wish I never found your site by the end of the day….sorry. I’ve read all 131 comments on this post and couldn’t find anything about the jelly in between the layers. (perhaps I missed the explanation) but I was wondering first what you used, was it just the puree or did you make a preserve w/ corn starch? next)-did you sandwich the puree between a thin layer of the buttercream? I’ve used a puree on a cake in the past and the cake just soaked it all in, so I’m trying to avoid that from happening.
@Gwenevere, The jelly was a thin layer of leftover puree. I put it down before the frosting layer.
I ended up thickening up the leftover puree on the stove with a little flour (I was out of cornstarch). I, too, was worried about the plain puree soaking in (since I knew the cake would be sitting around for several days before we finished it). The thickened puree tasted just about the same and was more pink than bright red but it held up wonderfully between the cakes-after a few days hardly any of it soaked in at all.
Hi! My friend requested a strawberry cake for her birthday and I tell you I had a hard time finding a recipe that is not a box mix or include gelatin, eww! i am happy to stumble across this recipe, but as I do not eat eggs I was wondering if you had a recommendation for no eggs? usually when baking, I substitute 1/4 cup applesauce for each egg called for. do you think that might work for this recipe, or should I try omitting the eggs all together?
Thanks!
Jessica, I personally wouldn’t sub all of the egg white with applesauce. Adding 3/4 cup applesauce makes me think you’ll end up with a heavy applesauce cake instead of a fluffy strawberry cake. Do they make an EggBeater version of egg whites? I’d consider that sub first but I’ve never omitted the egg whited from this recipe so I can’t say for sure.
I just wanted to add to the list of comments that I made this cake the other day, with cream cheese frosting, and it was wonderful, moist, and delicious. I am going to make it again this weekend – but as cupcakes. Thank you for a strawberry cake recipe that wasn’t cake mix and jello!
Wow , I LOVED this cake!
@Janice, Glad to hear! It’s definitely a good one, especially during strawberry season!
I just want to double check, this cake is dense enough to be part of a two-tiered cake, correct? I have to make a tier of strawberry and a tier of chocolate chip. Thank you so much!
Brooklyn
@Brooklyn, Yep! I have actually used it in both tiers of a 2-tier cake.
This cake is DELISH! Thank you so much for sharing. My family liked it so much last weekend that they are requesting it again for Easter Sunday!!
THANK YOU for this wonderful cake recipe! I used your butter cream frosting recipe too. This is a cake I will be making over and over again…so much better than a box mix and strawberry jello!
Just adding to the comments thanking you for such a fantastic cake recipe! Getting ready to take it to my Mom’s for Easter this afternoon! So good!
Hi, I’m doing this cake for my daughter’s birthday this sat. Can i do the cake on fri? And can this cake withstand fondant? Thanks!
Yes and yes!
Great and great!!… Thanks so much!
Just made you cake, such a hit! I was even asked to bake another for a co-worker for a bake sale.
@Jennifurla – Glad to hear it!
Hope this is not a crazy question, but why wrap the outside of the cake pans in heavy duty tinfoil? I’m going to make this cake tomorrow and I can’t wait! It sounds so delicious and I have some fresh strawberries that I can’t wait to use!!! Thanks for this recipe from scratch. I can’t stand box recipes!
Amy – not a crazy question! I use those Bake-Even strips every time I bake a cake. It keeps the batter near the edge of the pan cooler for longer so that the cake bakes and rises evenly. I almost never have a dome (or much of one) to level when I bake cakes. Less wasted scraps to munch on while I’m frosting the cake. It’s definitely not mandatory, but I believe they help a ton.
Thank you for sharing this recipe! What a fun website you have here.
My daughter’s third birthday is next weekend, and she very clearly told me she wanted strawberry cake. A google search led me to many recipes calling for jello, but I kept looking until I found your recipe. As a trial, I baked two nine-inch rounds. The cake stuck in the older, cheaper pan I have, so I’m replacing that before I bake the “real” cake. The stuck cake was a crumbly mess, but I put it on top, and the frosting helped me make the cake presentable. I used the cream cheese frosting from your red velvet cupcakes. My husband and I aren’t big fans of cake, and we both agreed it is the best cake we have ever tasted. Most importantly, little Lucy loved it! After three days sitting on the counter, the cake was still moist! I am a former cake mix mom who is starting to figure out homemade is worth a little extra effort. Thank you!
Kelly, Glad to hear you could save it! It really is a delicious cake. And happy birthday to your sweet little Lucy!
I forgot to mention, I made one substitution: I used four whole eggs, and the cake turned out perfectly!
Thanks for letting me know – I’ll update the ingredient list with your results so others can benefit from not having those spare egg yolks sitting around.
PS, I just posted this recipe on my blog!@ Thanks for the kick butt recipe
I made your strawberry cake last night and now I have two very stinky, broken ovens! I am a fairly confident baker and I have been looking for a good strawberry cake recipe from scratch, with real strawberries, so I was excited to try this one. Aaugh! I followed the recipe exactly, and the cakes volcanoed over everywhere in my oven! What was left did not even resemble a cake. So I self-cleaned my oven, and now they won’t even turn on. *sigh* I had high hopes. I have nothing against you, I just wanted to tell you my sob story!
@Nan, I’m sorry to hear that
Those cakes don’t usually rise abnormally, not anymore than a “normal” cake. I hope your ovens return to normal soon!
Sounds like your oven may have a heating proble,. I haven’t heard of a cake volcanoing like that unless it was way too hot. The fact that it’s unresponsive right now suggests that maybe the electrical unit might have been burning out.
Hope things work out!
I’m in the process of making this cake for a dinner get together today. I had a bunch of strawberries laying around (still fresh) so I decided to use them before they went bad. I read some other scratch recipes on other sites and the majority do require gelatin or gello; however, I found a substitute. Agar agar is an asian style gelatin and I was debating trying it out. I am also going to use the 4 whole eggs instead of wasting the yolks. I was also considering adding red food coloring to give it that reddish pink color. Also what do you think of adding a little vegetable oil or sour cream to the batter??? Just wondering.
I’m a *big* fan of using buttermilk, sour cream, or greek yogurt in place of whole milk in baking recipes. I don’t think I’ve tried it here, but it wouldn’t be a substitution that I’d be worried about going in. Let me know how it works!
Thank you for sharing this recipe. My friend’s husband surprised her with wedding vows renewal for their anniversary. I made this cake for the reception afterwards. I had extra strawberry puree so I filled the cake with the puree and add it to the frosting. Everyone liked it a lot. I made it again over the weekend, but I mixed it differently. I creamed the butter and sugar, added each egg yolk at a time, then I added alternated adding flour and liquid, starting and ending with flour. Then I beat the egg whites and added the sugar. Then folded in the egg whites. The cakes did not sink in the middle and it seemed more moist. I love this recipe. I want to try other berry cake recipes (blueberry, raspberry, blackberry). Thanks again for a great recipe.
Hi,
This sounds so wonderful but I am confused, how many eggs did you use? You mention yolks and whites.
I am also confuse about the sugar. You mention it twice, once with the butter, and once with the egg whites?
It’s added to the bowl of dry ingredients (see step 6).
6 egg whites
WoW! definitely great. . thanks for sharing the recipe.. =)
Came across your blog via googling “strawberry cake from scratch” and thank god I did! I made 24 cupcakes and used 4 eggs and they were uh-may-zing..I also used super ripe straight from the farm strawberries- which I think was also key. I topped it with steawberry cream cheese icing (using the extra puree) these were a huge hit at the lunch I took them to.. A couple of other things… Was out of cake flour so had to use AP and because I was worried about it coming out too dense since I used the whole egg.. I separated the whites and beat them until they had soft peaks and folded them in..they came out light and moist and fluffy..
Any reason that this recipe doesn’t call for beating butter and sugar together prior to adding in other ingredients?
Any particular reason
this recipe is the bomb.com!!!!! I kept eating the batter!!! this was my first strawberry cake and I’m so happy! and that foil around the pan tip….LIFESAVER!!! thanks and best wishes!
I haven’t even tried this cake yet and I already want to thank you! My girls can’t have red food dye (they’re “allergic” to it…makes them bounce off the walls) so I was getting frustrated trying to find a strawberry cake recipe that didn’t call for strawberry gelatin! I tried my own strawberry cake a while ago…FAIL! Can’t wait to try this one!!!!!!!!!
@Cakesnob or Foodiebride:
)
Curious how long the recipe converted into cupcakes has to bake – please post! I’m making this recipe tomorrow for my b-day which is Saturday — I also found a recipe for Strawberry Frosting to top it here – http://bigfatbaker.com/blog/frosting-recipes/strawberry-frosting-recipe/
Thanks for filling me in
@Sheryl – ~20 minutes or so, check it with a toothpick at 17 minutes. They don’t dome up, they’ll be pretty flat on top.
fabulous – thanks so much! I’ll be back to this site for sure -
Made this cake for my friend’s birthday- everyone loved it! Thank you so much for sharing the recipe with us.
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I was assigned the cake making for my niece’s birthday and was told she wanted a strawberry cake, but not a fake strawberry cake. I thought, “This will be easy, no problem.” Well was I wrong! I can’t tell you how long I searched for a recipe that didn’t have jello in it, or came from a box! This was the first one I found, and I am so happy
Thank you very much!
I am so so sad. I made this cake for my husband’s birthday last year and he loved it so much he requested it for his party tomorrow. I made it TWICE thinking I missed something on the first try but both times I’ve ended up with something that is closer to a cookie than a cake and it’s too late at night to try again.
Sorry to hear. If you didn’t get any rise, it’s very likely the baking powder.
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was so happy I found this recipe because I wanted a real from scratch no gellitin strawberry cake.
Wow, thank you for sharing this! I just made it for Father’s Day, and it was excellent. The cake itself was not pink (sadly), but it was very soft and fruity.
Like some of the others, Thank you in advance. I have been looking and looking for a Blueberry cake actually and could not find one…I had decided to take a strawberry cake and convert it to a blueberry cake, and like so many others I was only finding the semi homemade cake mixes. I love to bake, because I can’t cook, and love to bake all homemade. I can not wait to try this recipe and hoping I don’t screw it up in the process with making it a blueberry cake. My son is turning 3 on July 2, he doesn’t ask for much. But the other day I was sharing a strawberry cake with him, that we bought, and he looks at me and says “Dade needs a blueberry cake.” So then I decided to make it for him. I was about to give up when I came across your recipe and blog. Thank you. If you have any suggestions on how not to screw it up that would be greatly appreciated.
Just out of curiousity–could you sub oil for the butter in this recipe? I don’t want to mess this up as it looks delicious, but I have made butter cakes in the past and they always seem to be dense-oil seems to make things more moist, not to mention a little heart-healthier!
I haven’t tried this recipe yet, but I am so glad I found a cake recipe that has good reviews that doesn’t call for jello, food coloring and other junk-I try to make everything from scratch and natural for my family so I am really hoping this is as good as it looks! 
THANKS!
I haven’t personally made this cake with oil but I don’t think there would be any issues. The cake is pretty light on its own, even with the butter. Good luck!
Thanks!! By the way, this is a very good website! I have enjoyed looking at all of your recipes- I am looking forward to trying them!
Well, I tried your cake for a special occasion yesterday and all I can say is yes it tasted good but what a total flop. I do not consider myself a novice baker. I bake almost every day and I did not like the way this cake went together and I told my husband when I was putting it in the oven it was not going to be right. I followed the directions to a “T” and if I decide to try it again I think I will try a different mixing method. No, I did not over or under beat the cake, I just think the way it is put together is wrong. I had to make one of my old standby cakes and add strawberry puree to the batter, they turned out perfect, but your flavor was a bit tastier, just very disappointing that it did not turn out.
Sorry you didn’t like it. It definitely has a unique mixing method that Cook’s Illustrated swears by. I’ve never had any issues with it but every time I make it, I think “I’m going to mix the ingredients the ‘regular way’ next time.” And I always forget.
I’m excited to try – NOTHING is from scratch online – NOTHING.
Can’t wait!
Tried and love this recipee…will definitely use as one of my main cake types…thank you so much for sharing!!!
Worked perfectly as a cupcake
I made this over the 4th of July weekend along with your Quick Buttercream Frosting recipe and it was a hit! Everyone loved it! I added some blueberries and strawberries on top to make it festive for the holiday. So, so good – thank you for this recipe. I know I’ll be making it again soon!
Do you have an approximate amount of fruit puree in cups that you add? If using fresh strawberries is it also 24 ounces? It looks like a fun recipe!
Thanks.
Camille – you need 3/4 cup strawberry puree for the cake. Frozen strawberries tend to have more liquid to drain away but using fresh or frozen, you should have a little over the required amount for the cake.
I, like others, got a 4th birthday “order” for a strawberry cake. In my case, it was a “Snow White strawberry cake.” I found this w/ that “strawberry cake from scratch” search, and was excited to try. Even sliced very thin, this disappeared completely at the party. Completely. I had to swipe my daughter’s unfinished piece to share w/ my H (she never eats a whole piece of any cake). But it got a huge thumbs up from the birthday girl and others, including H, who isn’t a “cakey” person. Will be making again soon, and thinking about translating it to other fruit…peaches might be first up this summery July.
Thank you! for the great recipe!
Glad you liked it! And it definitely works great with blackberries, for sure
My boyfriend asked for a strawberry cake for his birthday. I made this one (dairy-free because he has a lactose allergy), served it with homemade (lactose-free) ice cream…. and everyone who ate it absolutely LOVED it!! Thanks for this great recipe…I’m all about making things from scratch! Keep up the good work
***** (Five star rating) Thank you so much for this recipe. This was just what I was looking for. I needed a summer cake that was not too sweet for a Korean friend’s party, and she loved this. I found a whipped cream frosting that had cream cheese in it as well to make it more stable for the summer heat, put some chopped sweetened strawberries on top of the frosting in the middle layer, and served the left-over strawberry puree as a sauce on the side. It was such a hit! Also, I understand why it is important to use the bake strips/aluminum foil around the pans in baking. I neglected to do that and it browned unevenly. But still tasted great and was gone in about 5 minutes at the party. A real crowd-pleaser!
I made this cake and it really did turn out delicious! I used cream cheese frosting for the top, and I flavored that with the strawberry puree’ also. One secret to making the cake more pink without adding dye, is to throw a few fresh or frozen (depending on the season) cherries to the puree’. They will darken the color without changing the flavor too much.
While the cake is ultra delicious, mine turned out a bit funny. I think next time I will stick with the 6 eggs whites rather than 4 whole eggs.
I just made a trial version of this cake today for my sister to taste for her upcoming birthday. I halved the recipe and just put the batter in a 8×8 inch pan. After baking and letting it cool for a little over two hours, I took it out and it turned out really dense. I made the whole egg version but whipped the two egg whites separately. Could using the whole eggs be the cause of it being so dense?
I’m icing it now and so far…wow!
Wasn’t as pink as your picture but I added cream cheese, as well as some of the puree, to the icing and wow. The cake was super moist, the icing was super delicious. I took advice from an earlier baker about creaming the butter and sugar together, adding a yolk at a time and then folding in the egg whites (after beating them) and that has brought me to this super moist cake. Great recipe!
I have always done cakes the fast easy way but have gotten into doing cakes as a business. I was looking for a raspberry cake recipe and found this recipe. I think I will try doing a decorated cake from scratch for a change!! Hope it works with raspberrys also!
Hi I have a question I hope you can answer and soon!!!
I want to make this cake for my daughter’s first birthday, happen to be HORRIBLE at math. I want to do a three tier (actually a 9x9x3, 7x7x3, and 4x4x3) and just want to make sure we (I called hubby lol) got the right amounts, when adding 50% 
36 oz strawberries
3 tsp sugar
heaping 1/3 (I don’t have 1/8 measuring cups)
9 egg whites
1 1/2 tbsp vanilla
3 c 1/3 heaping OR 1/2 weak sifted flour
2 c 1/2 heaping of sugar
6 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
18 tbsp/ 2 c softened butter
I really appreciate the assistance, this is my first time baking something of this nature. I usually just use a boxed mix. Thanks again!!
Looks good – the butter should be 2 sticks + 2 Tbsp. Good luck!
I saw that there was a mention to French Vanilla Cupcakes in this article. Is there a recipe for this?
Debbie, that reference was about the boxed cake mix. If you want a great vanilla cake/cupcake recipe, try this one: http://www.jasonandshawnda.com/foodiebride/archives/714
Can you tell me how you filled the cake in the pic? Did you just our some of the puree on top of the frosting and then put the second layer on top?
Yep! I spread a thin layer of puree onto the cake, piped on some frosting, and then topped that with the next layer of cake.
Thank you so much! I used a Pampered Chef tbsp measurer when I did the vanilla, and I don’t know if it leaked into the back area, would definitely have added 1.4- 1/2 tsp too it, but there is a tad too much vanilla for me, hubby says its good.
With that being said, I definitely ate the top layer 
The only other thing is it didn’t fill up even the 9x9x3, it’s only about 2 inches. When I went to the website for the pans, I need 20.25 cups of batter. I would like to make my little girl, an additional top piece so she can have all to herself. Total I would need 22.50, I am completely and utterly new to this. Any suggestions? 
I am about to attempt to make another round, I only ended up making the bottom layer before kiddos woke. Onto another note, I am going to use that Vanilla cake recipe, I have a birthday cake to make for this weekend! You have such amazing recipes, thank you so much for sharing with us!!!
Ericka, I’d double the recipe, use what you need for the 9x9x3, and then if you have any batter leftover, maybe make a handful of cupcakes?
This cake taste good but it was really heavy Not light and airy as I had hoped…
Sorry, Sheri. I don’t think I’ve ever had issues with it being too heavy.
Sheri I noticed the same thing, I have decided to make it this weekend for a friends birthday party. She is used to using the Betty Crocker Strawberry and said it must be that it’s homemade? I have never made a cake from scratch. The only thing I could find about lightening the cake up a little was milk…I am not sure though.
One more thing, when I put the butter cream on the cake it didn’t work so well. Well it went on nicely but this being my first time icing a cake I am chucking it up to me doing it wrong.
But I wanted to know if you could use a fondant on this cake? I read somewhere that if your cake has a layer that requires refrigeration it’s best not to use fondant. What do you think about using it? Thanks again!
Ericka – What happened with the frosting? Was it hard to spread/too thick? And I’ve used fondant on this cake before several times with no issues. The cake was always completely eaten within the first two days so I don’t think it would have suffered any from lack of refrigeration.
I’m so glad I found this- We are just starting to make our own cake pops and we love to work with real, organic ingredients. Next week, we wanted to try strawberry cake pops with white chocolate coating- I think I’ll probably do a buttercream frosting to mix with your cake recipe. When we make them, I’ll link back to your page so folks can see where the natural strawberry cake recipe came from! Thanks! The cake is a beautiful color!
I’m going to make this today for my friend’s birthday! I just want to confirm something. You only use 3/4 puree in the cake, right? Thanks for you help!
Yep!
I am making this for an 8 year olds birthday cake in the am, THANK YOU so much for a Strawberry Cake with NO jello – I was amazed that I had to look thru hundreds of recipes to find it. Strawberry Cake has been frequently requested in our house (5 kids) and the chickens laid lots of eggs finally so your cake should be a huge hit!!!
I was wondering, I have fresh (true) buttermilk and would like to use it in the place of the milk, good idea or not??? Thanks!!
Athena, I’ve never ever gotten my hands on real buttermilk so I can’t say exactly how it would turn out. BUT there’s only 1/4 cup of it in the recipe – that small amount probably wouldn’t do too much damage, you know?
We made cake pops using your cake and cream cheese frosting recipe! They came out great!!! Both recipes really worked for the cake pops- And, I can’t wait to try your cake and frosting recipe as a frosted cake.
I have folks coming back to your site for the actual recipes since I didn’t want to misrepresent anything and I wanted to give full credit to you guys! Such awesome recipes. Thanks!
http://crittersandcrayons.wordpress.com/2011/09/09/fresh-strawberry-cream-cheese-cake-pops/
Haven’t used cake flour much, did you sift before or after you measure?
Post measurement. I spoon the flour into a measuring cup, level it off, and dump it straight into the sifter. It sounds a little fussy but it will keep the cake light.
Tried the cake out for my sister’s birthday. I found it to be was more reminiscent of corn bread than I would have liked, but it DID have a very good berry flavor, especially for using fresh strawberries. Any suggestions on how to make it a tad fluffier?
You must be in Austin with the CM conmment. The cake looks lovely!
This is my first cake and from scratch and it turned out wonderful. Thank you for this recipe, it beat so many other fakes. This one really takes the cake!
I cannot wait to make this cake. My son is turning 5 in a few weeks and he wants a strawberry cake. Red is his favorite color and strawberries are his favorite fruit. Only problem is that he is allergic to all food coloring, especially reds. Thank you so much for your recipe and I will let you know how it turns out!
What will happen if i use strawberries with the seed in it?
You might be able to detect them when eating the cake.
Explain it to me clearly what to do w/ the foil? Is the regular foil ok?
So excited to try this. I’ve made strawberry cake from the box a few times and my honey says its his favorite. Not a fan of using the box mix except in those moments you mention, 9 pm, craving something sweet stat! I make everything else from scratch so if I can recreate his favorite cake….I will truly be the kitchen goddess! thank you!
looks like a great recipe – can it be used for cupcakes?
thanks!
I’m so late in reviewing this, but I just had to leave you a note of thanks. I made this for my 2 girls’ summer birthday party, and it was AMAZING!!! I used fresh, in-season, delicious strawberries and topped it with my favorite cream cheese frosting (with pureed strawberries mixed in). I’m telling you, the cake disappeared. Everyone raved about it. Thank you so much. I will definitely be making this again. and again….
Glad you liked it! And the frosting sounds super delicious!
I tried this cake twice. The colour did not come out right. You would think I made it with Brown Sugar. Cake way too dense. Is it suppose to be light like a chiffon cake or bit heavier like a pound cake? What could I be doing wrong?
The color has everything to do with the strawberries used – the prettiest pink cake comes during strawberry season. Or with strawberries from the freezer section that come packed in the concentrated liquid (just be sure to drain, but not rinse). The cake should be very light – the recipe is based off of Cook’s Illustrated Classic White Layer Cake, which is a light and fluffy cake.
I am going to bake this for my little princess 4th years old birthday as she request for a strawberry cake and would like to know if this is a sponge cake as i have baked and throw many sponge cake
does not rise or not spongy.
Just would like to know when do i put the combine puree, milk, egg, vanilla. is this refer to item 6 add liquid? Also you mentioned in a bowl of stand mixer, add sifted flour, sugar, baking powder and salt and user mixer to beat until combine before adding the butter. is that right? Thanks.
YAY! I can’t wait to try this recipe! I am making a topsy turvy cake, bottom chocolate, middle strawberry, top vanilla and I hated seeing so many “fake” strawberry cakes and that “strawberry cake” mix from a box is DISGUSTING! Gross, makes me cringe just thinking of it. Thanks for a real recipe! I will definitely let you know how it turns out!!
I tried the recipe and follow the directions, but why did the center sank? *tears* and I didn’t quite get the strawberry pink, mine turned pink-brown hahaha. Was that the strawberries? But for the taste, its great!
Anastasia, it was the strawberries. The color comes from the strawberries alone. In the off season, I find that frozen strawberries usually give a better color than the “fresh” ones which are usually underripe and from half a world away. A cake will sink in the center if there is too much liquid in the batter or it was over mixed. Sorry it didn’t totally work out for you!
I just made this with my giant cupcake pan I just bought to test drive it and it came out amazingly! Thanks for the great recipe its delicious!
Thank you so much for this! I have a daughter who can’t have red dyes and we do try to keep non food items out of our food as much as possible!
I find the instructions here a little confusing. In step 5, you’re mixing the puree with stuff in a small bowl and then in a separate bowl you’re doing other things with sifted flower. Then in step 6 it says to “add liquids” to the second bowl. Does it mean the stuff from the small bowl or is the small bowl used only to put in between the cake layers? If so, why is that in the same step (5) as something that shouldn’t be mixed together? Or am I misunderstanding, and in step 3 when it says “use leftover puree to fill the cake” that’s the part that gets used between the layers? The last step ends with baking the cake, but it doesn’t talk about putting it all together…
- Bart
Bart – you mix the liquids together (puree, eggs, etc) and then add the liquids to the dry ingredients. If you have extra puree leftover that wasn’t used for the cake batter recipe, then you can use that to put between layers of the cake if you wish.
This is the first blog comment I’ve ever posted and I haven’t even made it yet, that’s how excited I am. I’m thinking about beating the egg whites and folding them in. Would that ruin my cake? I’m also going to use a white chocolate frosting, cause white chocolate and strawberries are the ultimate combination. I’m also planning on wrapping the outside of the cake with white chocolate cigarillos ant topping it with fresh strawberries to give it a classy look for the bday party. Can’t wait!!!
I just read that you used this cake recipe in a blackberry version and was wondering how it turned out and if you made any changes when using blackberries
i am so excited to try this, have been looking for a strawberry cake recipe that did not include jello or jams for some time. i am gonna make this for my daughters birthday, but modify it into a sugar free cake with sugar free whipped cream frosting.
I made a gluten free version and it turned out wonderfully. I was so excited. I substituted for the 2 1/4 cups cake flour, 1 1/2 cups white rice flour soaked in 1/2 cup buttermilk plus 1/2 cup potato starch (not flour) plus 1/4 cup tapioca flour (same as starch) plus .625 tsp xanthan gum (version of food.com’s Gluten-Free Cake Flour Mix). When dry ingredients were mixed with butter it resembled mashed potatoes, not moist crumbs. Used good fresh strawberries drained overnight. Baked at 325 convection. I was so pleased to offer a gluten free, naturally colored, naturally flavored strawberry layer for my grandson’s Neapolitan birthday cake. Thank you sooooo much.
I made this cake tonight for my daughter’s 2nd birthday, since all of the comments have been nothing but raving about this recipe. Iam alittle disappointed to be honest. It tastes like a white cake and cant even see the strawberries! When I take a bite, I can only taste the seeds of the strawberries mixed in the cake. The cake doesnot look like the picture. Its not pink by any means, more off white. I dont know what I’ll do now. I guess I will stick to another recipe I know that is alot better than this one!!
Sorry you didn’t like the cake, Renee. When fresh, ripe, in-season berries are used, it most definitely doesn’t taste or look like only a white cake. Please refer to the FAQ above for tips.
In the picture it looks like a filling what did You use for the filling
I used Quick Buttercream Frosting and leftover strawberry puree.
Hi! I love to bake myself and asked my husband what kind of cake he wanted this week and the answer was strawberry. I came across your blog in search of a scratch strawberry cake. Let me say the whole time I was making the cake I couldn’t wait to taste the cake. I used a 9×13 glass pan and the cake was a touch warm when I put the icing on. I also used your buttercream frosting and added a couple of tablespoons of the puree. We just split a small piece because we couldn’t wait for dinner first. The cake and icing was THE BEST scratch cake I have ever made. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE your strawberry cake recipe! Needless to say I will be visiting your blog more often and trying your various recipes. Thanks so much.
What size pan did you use to bake the cake in
I think 9″ is pretty standard.
FINALLY! A cake without Jell-O! My son wanted a fresh strawberry cake and I’ve been searching and searching for a cake that didn’t need food coloring or Jello!
THANK YOU!!
I just love this recipe. I had this basket of strawberries sitting in the fridge on the borderline of going bad. I just thought I need a strawberry cake. Can’t wait to try it, gonna go make one right now. And those thing 1 and thing 2 cupcakes are way too cute, my nieces would go crazy for them.
-Gina-
I made this into cupcakes with cream cheese frosting. The batter tasted like strawberry ice cream! Haven’t tried the cupcakes yet. Only thing was that they didn’t get the nice rounded cupcake top, but instead were more flat on top (they did rise and spilled over the top of the cups, just no rounding).
I also only had a bag of frozen strawberries that was 14oz and after draining I still had more then 3/4 cup puree.
SO TRUE! I have searched high and low for a strawberry cake with natural ingredients-just strawberries. I cannot wait to make this cake.
Thank you!
Hi,
My husband and I love fresh strawberry cake…had it at our wedding, but cannot find anyone to make it now
I was wondering if you could sub rice or quinoa flour for the cake flour and it still turn out well?
Thanks,
Jeanette
Hi Jeanette, I’m afraid I don’t know – I’ve never used either in a cake recipe.
See my post #246 for a gluten-free version using rice flour and other non-gluten ingredients instead of cake flour.
Made this for my daughter’s 2nd birthday and it turned out great! I upped all the ingredients by 1 1/2 X what the recipe called for to get that desired 3-tiered effect. I had bought a bag of strawberries that were 32 oz, I pureed them all but still had some I didn’t use. I’m not a fan of buttercream so I made cream cheese icing instead. Everyone raved about it!!! I’d certainly recommend this to anyone who wanted to make a deliciously pure, straightforward cake with just the right amount of strawberry flavor.
I am planning on making it this week for a friend’s bday. However, I wanted to bake the cake over the weekend and freeze it so I can ice it the morning of before I go to work. Do you think it is ok to freeze?
Can’t wait to try this recipe! Thank you!
It freezes great!
hello, i attempted to make this cake in the form of cupcakes.. and so far, sadly to say its not working out
from the get-go the batter seemed a bit too watery, and now it doesnt seem like the cupcakes are rising. also, when i check the cupcakes, there is excessive amounts of steam coming up from them. any idea what i did wrong?
I made this cake yesterday. Well I started it yesterday…Anyway it was different baking experience. The cake was not nearly done enough after 25 minutes so I baked it another 15. They seemed soft but the toothpick came out clean so I took them out of the oven. They were hard to remove from the pan but that may be my fault because I let them sit overnight. (Fell asleep waiting for them to cool). When I finally got them out the cakes were lopsided and started to sink a little in the middle. I didn’t have any vanilla flavoring left for the icing so I used a dash of lemon and a dash of rum flavorings. And I only had two cups of powdered sugar. The icing was divine nonetheless. I put some of the strawberry puree in the center of the cake and then frosted over that. It gives a fruity moist filling. However, this is the ugliest cake I ever made but the best tasting strawberry cake I ever had. I call it my butt-ugly strawberry cake. Oh yeah, I had four egg whites left from another recipe and used those and one whole egg in the cake batter. Thanks for the recipe.
I was happy to find your recipe in time for Valentine’s Day. . . my family loves strawberry cake and I wanted to make a good and proper scratch cake. The flavor was outstanding–well done! I did experience a problem with the center of both layers collapsing though. A quick and unrelated search through Cookwise (by Shirley Corriher–fab book if you don’t already have it) allowed me to stumble on the words “Fallen Baked Goods”. I learned that too much baking powder can actually be counter productive and cause the cake to fall. She recommends a ratio of 1 tsp baking powder per cup of flour (she gives a max of 1.25 tsp/cup of flour). I thought of your ratio of double that–2 tsp/ 1 1/8 cup of flour and immediately wondered if this was the problem. I will try again with 2 tsp of baking powder and see if I have better success. Just thought I’d mention this for your consideration, as well as your readers. I just filled the gap with fresh strawberries–not a bad way to go! I also found that 25 minutes was nowhere near enough time–I left them in for an additional 10 or 15 minutes. Thanks again for a truly delicious cake!!!
Hi! I got lost. Please help! So I puree 24 oz of strawberry. But I am only suppose to put 3/4 cup of puree into the cake mix? What do you mean use the rest of the puree to fill the cake?
I tried this recipe. But I put all 24 oz of puree into the cake mix. It didn’t turn out bad but I want to bake this cake the right way. This is my first time baking. Any help would be great. Thank you!
Yes! Only 3/4 cup of the puree goes into the cake batter. You can use the rest to put between the layers of the cake, if you want, by either spreading it on top of the first layer or by mixing it into some frosting and spreading that over the top of the first layer (before topping with the 2nd layer).
Thank you for your reply. I will try again. Even though I did not follow the recipe correctly, the cake turned out quite good. It was sweet but not too sweet. Maybe I will get it right next time. Thank you!
Love the site and the recipe! How long the cake lasts? I want to do it on a Friday, cover it with fondant in the Saturday to serve in Sunday. Do you think it will keep fresh? Do I need to refrigerate it? Thank you so much for the site and help!
It will be just fine to bake on Friday and serve on Sunday! I’ve done it myself exactly that way before. You only need to refrigerate it if you’re frosting or filling it with something perishable.
I made this recipe over the weekend for my son’s 2nd birthday, and it was so good! I baked it in a 13×9 pan for 30-35 minutes and then used it to construct a fire truck cake. Everybody was impressed with a strawberry cake made with natural ingredients!
I’m planning to use this recipe to make cupcakes. Does this recipe require refrigeration, or can I leave the cupcakes in an air tight container for a couple of days?
No refrigeration necessary, unless you fill the cupcakes with something perishable.
Just used this for cupcakes for my girls’ 5th birthday party. Oh my god….so good. Moist flavorful. Wow. Used 4 whole eggs and AP flour (adjusted as suggested in another comment.) Perfect. Tons of compliments. I used a different icing. But added some if the strawberry puree.
The last two times that I’ve baked this cake it sinked in the middle. Do you have any idea what I might be doing wrong. The first time I made it it turned out beautiful.
Great recipe! My husband doesn’t usually like cake, but he loved this one!
Hi I made this cake last your cake recipe last night but found the cake did not have lots of strawberry flavour to it, the cake is lovely and fluffy and moist so a great recipe but just want it to have a bit more of a strawberry zaaz to it
Thanks
I would like to make this cake – but need it for a larger group??? Do you know what the adjustments might be for 9 in cake ???
The recipe is the same for an 8- or 9-inch round pan, no adjustments necessary.
Hi,
I just found your site, and this recipe through pinterest. After searching for a fresh strawberry cake recipe this one by far looks the best. I do have one question though, do you think it would be okay to add chunks of fresh strawberries in the batter along with the strawberry puree. I like the idea of having little bits of strawberry in the cake. How much, if any, would you suggest adding without altering the texture.
Thank you so much for your help!
The liquid from the fresh strawberries will bake out and weigh the cake down quite a bit. If you want strawberry chunks, consider adding sliced strawberries between the cake layers instead, as long as you plan to eat the cake within a couple of days.
I forgot to mention that I would like to bake this cake this weekend for my dad’s birthday so any insight you can give me before then would be very much appreciated.
Thanks again!
I see. Thank you so much for your quick response. I love your creations! I will make just as the recipe says.
Can you use the Bake Even Strips on non-rounded pans? Like rectangular or square?
Okay, just a few more questions I promise. I’m planning on making the cake this weekend for a birthday party, can you tell I’m a little nervous. What is the process for freezing a cake? and then for defrosting? Do you think this cake would pare well with a white chocolate buttercream or do you think it would overpower the strawberry cake? Do you know if you can color white chocolate buttercream? If I use your Quick Buttercream Frosting without the puree, and without the vanilla bean, will I need to add more vanilla extract? If I do put some of the strawberry puree in it, will it make it look pink? Can I tint that frosting even with the puree in it? Will this need to be refrigerated? Sorry so long.
Thank you a ton for your help!
- To freeze a cake, let each layer cool completely out of the pan. Double-wrap each layer separately with plastic wrap and freeze flat. If you’ve got more than one layer, don’t stack them on top of each other until they’re frozen.
- To defrost, take the cake layers out of the freezer the night before and let them thaw on the counter overnight – leave them wrapped in plastic.
- I think a white chocolate buttercream sounds great! A couple of drops of food coloring should do fine.
- Taste the frosting and then add vanilla if you think it needs it.
- Adding puree to the frosting will make it look a little pink and you can add more pink/red food coloring to it.
- If you add puree to the frosting, you should probably refrigerate it.
Oh, and does the frosting need to be refrigerated once it is put on the cake because it has milk or heavy cream in it?
Nope, the sugar in the frosting acts essentially as a preservative to such a tiny amount of milk/cream.
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! for getting back to me, you have been more than helpful! =)
I want to make this cake, but only want to make a smaller cake,what would the measurements be if I was to only make a half of a cake?
Half a recipe will fit in 2 6-inch pans or a single 8- or 9-inch layer.
Thank you! My daughter is turning 6 and wants a strawberry cake. I have always made both my kids’ cakes from scratch, and was having trouble finding one! I can not wait to make this for her!! I will then decorate it as Hello Kitty! Perfect!
Hi! I just found your recipe on pinterest, and I am very excited to try it! But I do have a question. I do not have a stand mixer and I feel like my electric hand mixer might be too fast and cause me to over mix the batter. Before I found this recipe I had been trying out another “from scratch” (except it included jello) recipe, and I could never seem to get that one light and fluffy. Maybe it was never meant to be light and fluffy to begin with, but I am wondering if you have any tips for me and my hand mixer to keep me from over-beating or under-beating my batter. I’m really looking for that fluffy and soft but moist cake that is characteristic of boxed cakes but without the box and artificial stuff
.
Love this cake! it takes absolutely delicious and is super moist. My first attempt was a complete disaster. Cake seemed very greasy and totally caved in the middle. I did not all the ingredients sit to room temperature before I made it so I question if that is why it caved? My second attempt the cakes came out absolutely PERFECT! Today I am baking two 9 inch cakes and two six inch cakes. My 9 in cakes look ok although there is a slight curve towards the center, they started to cave slightly, but still useable. My 6 inch cake however looked great while baking up to the last 5 minutes and then started to cave! I have another 6 inch to bake, hopefully the same doesn’t happen. What am I doing wrong. Everything has sat at room temperature for hours, I used the bake even strips….HELP! This cake is for a bridal shower this weekend!
Please don’t throw out the juice that drains out of the defrosted strawberries, and do frost and defrost even fresh strawberries. Press on those defrosted berries to get the maximum juice out. Then reduce the juice to 1/5 th of its original volume in the microwave in a glass bowl. Let it cool, add a couple drops of lemon juice, then add back to the puree. Maximum strawberry flavor. Idea not original – taken from The Cake Bible by rose Levy
I just made this cake to occupy my young nieces for the day. Have just tasted it and it has this very odd aftertaste. I followed this recipe to the letter.
I’m based in Australia and I’m wondering whether our versions of vanilla extract are the same? Normally you would put what we call vanilla essence in cakes, not extract. But following the recipe, I used vanilla extract (which is brown and syrupy). I’m wondering whether you are actually using essence which is more of a clear liquid?
My daughter requested strawberry cupcakes for her 3rd birthday and I really wanted one without a whole bunch of junk in it. Thank you! It turned out really well converted to cupcakes. Moist cake with a wonderful flavor. I iced them with strawberry cream cheese frosting which was perfect. I recieved a ton of compliments at her party!
I’m completely new to cake baking but my son’s birthday party is coming up this weekend. I have one cake pan — will the batter act funny if I bake one cake in the pan then bake the other? Should I refrigerate the batter while I do this? Sorry for this totally newbie question, but this cake looks delicious & I’d love to do it without having to buy another cake pan.
Nikki – it might act a little funny. When I bake the recipe as cupcakes, I only bake one pan at a time, but I have the second one on the counter ready to go. Don’t refrigerate the batter – leave it in the bowl at room temp while the other layer bakes, cools. You’ll have to wash the pan, dry it well, and then re-nonstick it. Try to be as quick about it as possible without rushing anything.
Thank you so much for your quick reply. On your suggestion I just went out & picked up another cake pan — since it was my first from-scratch cake I didn’t want to mess with any tricky situations. The cake was definitely a success! What a great recipe! My son loved it & so did our party guests. Thank you!
I made this cake and used it for cake pops..the cake alone was AMAZING! Thanks for posting the recipe! I’ll definitely be using it again! When I made the pops though, the strawberry flavor didn’t stand up to well to the chocolate coating. Do you think adding more strawberry puree would mess up the cake? I’m sure you’ve tried different amount of puree in the batter. I used fresh berries…maybe next time I’ll try draining the ones frozen in syrup and using those. Does that usually add more flavor for you?
Thank you!
Adding more puree would definitely throw off the ratio of wet/dry. There’s a suggestion a few comments up that I plan to try this spring – making more puree than needed and then simmering it to reduce to the amount needed to concentrate flavor.
Thanks for the quick reply! I figured that would mess up the cake. Maybe I’ll try simmering the puree first. This is a great blog!
Whats the chance that this would work in a bunt cake pan? I’m thinking @350* for 40 min or till done?
I made this for Easter and it was a hit. I used the following frosting and it was perfect!
http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/desserts/thate28099s-the-best-frosting-ie28099ve-ever-had/
do you think i could use carton egg whites instead of cracking 6 eggs? i’m not quite that adept at separating egg whites yet. thank you! i’m planning on making this cake for this weekend.
Should be no problem!
Hi. This cake sounds delicious and I love the idea that it’s made with all fresh ingredients – no boxes required! I do not do much baking and do not have a standup mixer. Do you think I could make the entire recipe with a hand mixer? Thanks!
Yes!
HEY! i really want to try out this recipe… Any tips???
I read all 300+ comments and there were some really good tips. I didn’t have spray with flour so I used Pam and then put flour on after. This worked perfect. I made 2 8″ and 2 10″ cake layers. Each cake pan was 2″ deep. The first batch I took out after 30 minutes and the centers sunk. I left them to cool but when I transferred them after an hour the centers were doughy! I put them back in the pans and stuck in the oven for about 10 minutes more. I think they needed more time since they were so full and big. The second batch turned out perfect after 30 minutes. For the 4 layers I tripled the recipe. Hopefully I can salvage the bad layers with frosting since I am doing a tier cake. Thanks for the recipe!
Thank you for a cake using real strawberries. I typed in strawberry cake from scratch and the first one that came up used strawberry jello – ugh. We need the internet to understand what “natural” means, very overused and misleading to the point of dishonesty.
I AGREE WITH U ABOUT THE NATURAL .IM WONDERING IF U CAN HLP ME UNDERSTAND THE 3/4 PUREE,IS IT FOR THE FROSTING OR CAKE.IM A FIRST TIMER LOL.
IM CONFUSED ASBOUT THE PUREE ,U SAID PUT 3/4 ASIDE DOES THT GO IB THE CAKE OR FROSTING.
i made it,its in the oven.i tasted the batter and its thee most delicious batter ever.thank u.im gonna make the frosting next.
omg i made this last night and it is yummy. everyone loved it !!!! thanks
Really great cake! I followed the instructions exactly – even the different mixing technique & draining the strawberries & separating the eggs (all of which I was tempted to ignore). The cake was amazing with a buttercream including some of the remaining strawberry purée. Thanks for a wonderful recipe that met & exceeded my little boy’s birthday wish for a strawberry cake. (It’s his hands down favorite food.) Everyone loved the taste and I loved that our sweets were real food.
FANTASTIC!!! Made these for a wedding shower. I have been dying to find a recipe that did not end up tooo heavy. This was perfect! I wanted to add more strawberry puree, I tend to go overboard with strawberries, but I was afraid it would be too runny! But again turned out perfect!
Thansk for sharing
Delish! Moist! LOVED that this cake was from scratch- no jell-o, no strawberry extract, no cake mix. Straight-up strawberry cake. Next time I will add a little beet juice for a more “pink” cake- somebody at the party asked me if it was a spice cake. I was appalled- NO! It’s strawberry!
I made cupcakes with the recipe, piped on Strawberry Rum Swiss Buttercream. Heaven.
Thank you!
You saved the day (and more importantly, our party!) with this cake. Thank you!!! Earlier today I had made a cake using one of those Jello recipes. It turned out so terrible. Into the trash it went and as I was measuring the ingredients to try it again, I discovered this recipe. On a whim, I changed my measurements and just started making this! It seems to have turned out beautifully, and I could only try crumbs, but we will dig into it on Saturday and I will let you know how it tastes.
In the meantime, I would like to make a Swiss Meringue Strawberry Buttercream to go with this as a filling and frosting, in fact, I plan on making a ruffle cake so I need the meringue to be pretty firm so the ruffles hold their shape. Do you have a recipe or this? I have never made this kind of frosting before, but really want to try it — plus I promised the birthday girl those ruffles.
Hi there!
I just made this cake and based on the fact that you have soooooo many people that have made this cake and love it, I have to assume that my issues are user error. But if you have had any feedback at all from people who did NOT have success, maybe you could help me?
I followed your recipe exactly and the only two steps that I didn’t follow are that I used 4 whole eggs instead of 6 egg whites. The cake seemed to fall in the middle and I read somewhere that might be the cause?
I also didn’t use foil on the outside and it seems like the outsides got done way to fast. I have never had this be a problem with any other cakes I’ve made, so I don’t know exactly why it was this time, but I’ll know next time to make sure to follow that step.
Lastly, the cake is not pink at all. However, I did have the freshest, reddest strawberries. We had picked them the day before and they were super ripe. The cake is definitely not pink though.
I’m not sure what I could’ve done differently there.
I haven’t tried the cake yet- it literally just came out of the oven and is cooling, so we will see. Maybe it will turn out okay in the end. But I’d love any thoughts you have!! Thanks for the recipe! Hope to try it again with better luck!
Okay, so I just took the cakes out of the pans and it isn’t salvageable enough to frost. I am not sure what I did wrong. Maybe it was not using egg whites, I’m not sure. I tasted it and it tastes pretty good, just doesn’t resemble anything close to a cake!! LOL! Oops!
Hi Sharon! I *just* made this cake this week, part cupcakes and part 6-inch layers. I have still not had a problem with it sinking in the middle. I know others have reported it in some of the comments. I didn’t use the bake even strips either – the edges do brown a little more, which looks weird when it’s supposed to be a pink cake. One thing I did differently this time, and I’ll mention it above in the FAQ, was that I cooked my strawberries down on the stove instead of making a puree and discarding the liquid. Seemed like such a shame to keep throwing out all that strawberry goodness! It was a beautiful (almost artificially so) pink (those are the cupcakes in the picture above). I need to test it out another time or two to make sure the reduction:milk ratio is right, but I think doing this will really help the color of the cake when the berries won’t give up enough color the other way.
So, I’ve made this cake twice now and feel I have made errors with measuring. Third time is a charm, right? Should I try the strawberries on the stove? Can you share how to do that and if there are any other adjustments that need to be made to the recipe? I plan to start here any minute so if you are on your computer, I would LOVE some help. Thanks!!!!
Carolyn
I cut the green tops off of a generous 1 lb of strawberries, cut them in half, tossed with 2-3 tsp of sugar and 1/4 cup water. I simmered that on the stove until the berries were very, very soft (completely flatten with very little pressure from a spoon). Then I poured it through a fine mesh strainer and used a spoon to press every drop of liquid I could get from the strawberry pulp. I reduced the strawberry liquid to ~1/3 cup, let it cool to room temp, and then added milk to reach 1 cup for the recipe.
And, I haven’t been draining any liquid from my purée since they are fresh strawberries. Should I be? I am just cutting the strawberries, mixing with sugar, letting them sit, pure ring and then using. And, I am using the recipe another commenter saved on adding 50 percent for three layers. With that recipe, how much strawberry purée should I be using? 3/4 plus 1.5/4 equals…oh I am terrible with math! I really hope you can respond soon so I can give this one more try. Party s getting closer! Thanks!!!
The recipe as-written is for a 2-layer cake. Increasing by 50% will get you 3 layers – but if you increase the puree by 50% and nothing else, that will probably just get you a big mess
Thank you so much for your response! For some reason i couldn’t see it earlier so I just made it as described originally (will have to try stovetop next time). I made sure to be very careful with the measurements and I just pulled it out if the oven. It rose beautifully and smells delicious! I followed the instructions for adding 50 percent to all ingredients and added three drops of soft pink color. Tomorrow I will tackle the Swiss meringue buttercream. I will check out your recipe for that right now. Thanks for everything!!!!
I am making 1 – 9inch cake right now. Smells so good. I will cut it in half once its cooled and fill it. Thank you for this recipe!!
This recipe has taken me pretty much all day. Waiting for things to cool and come to room temp is pretty time consuming. Hopefully it tastes like I have been baking it all day, since that is pretty much what I have been doing!
So I just made the batter and haven ‘t baked the cake yet. But the batter is super delicious! Ready to bake the cake.
I’ve made this cake about 20 times now (will be doing so again this weekend for a baby shower), and it never fails to get rave reviews. It’s absolutely fabulous. Thanks!!!!
Thank you for the recipe. I have tried a couple of Strawberry cupcake recipes and have had no luck. I can’t seem to find one I like. I am trying this one.