The one thing that sets this strawberry cake apart from others? Reduce fresh strawberry puree down and add to the best white cake batter.
This recipe is such a fan favorite, that it deserved a spot in print! You’ll also find this recipe in my New York Times best-selling cookbook, Sally’s Baking 101.
This strawberry cake completely blew me away. After years of mediocre from-scratch strawberry cakes, my expectations were pretty low. It was time to taste test my efforts. Biting into the first pastel-pink forkful was the moment of truth…
I cried tears of joy. Or were those actual tears because I just dirtied every dish with all this strawberry cake recipe testing?
I find it challenging to pack real strawberry flavor into cake without the crutch of fake strawberry flavoring. My goal was to create a strawberry layer cake made entirely from real strawberries. We’re talking strawberries inside the cake and in the frosting as well. With the help of freeze-dried strawberries, I tackled strawberry frosting. I’ll get to that below. But for strawberry cake? Things have always been pretty lackluster in the flavor and texture department.
Strawberry Cake Problems
- Chopping up strawberries and folding into cake batter works, but then you’re just eating vanilla cake with chunks of strawberries.
- Pureeing strawberries and folding into cake batter has potential, but the texture is always off. There’s too much liquid. How about adding more flour to make up for that liquid? Then your cake is too dense. And the flavor is always lacking.
- Strawberry jam could work, but I prefer to start with real strawberries.
So how can we pack real strawberry flavor into cake batter without adding too much liquid? REDUCE THE STRAWBERRIES DOWN. Ding ding ding! We have a winner.
How to Pack REAL Strawberry Flavor Into Cake
- Puree fresh strawberries.
- Reduce down on the stove.
- Let cool.
- Stir into cake batter.
You’ll need a food processor or blender to puree the fresh strawberries, and again when you make the frosting.
Take that strawberry puree—don’t add anything else to it—and reduce it down on the stove. This, my friends, is where all the magic happens. Like I mention above, you want a lot of concentrated flavor within a little amount of liquid. We also do this with champagne in my mimosa cupcakes and champagne frosting. And with Guinness in Guinness chocolate cake, too.
You’ll begin with about 1 cup of hot pink puree and reduce down to 1/2 cup. After 30 minutes, it will be very thick and very red. Add this thick and highly concentrated strawberry flavor to your cake batter, instead of the thinner strawberry puree.
The reduced strawberry puree will go into the cake batter. No need to strain the seeds first—they disappear when the cake is baked.
Because the reduced strawberry puree needs to completely cool down, I suggest getting started the day before. Just let the reduced strawberry puree sit in the refrigerator overnight and make the cake batter the following day.
Strawberry Cake Batter
The cake batter starts from my white cake. This vanilla-flavored cake proved to be the best jumping-off point for a strawberry cake. I kept the majority of the recipe the same, but I removed some of the wet ingredients to make room for 1/2 cup of reduced strawberries. The cake is light, springy, soft, and fluffy.
The reduced strawberry puree will tint the cake batter a lovely pastel pink and, if you want, you can add a small drop of pink or red food coloring to brighten that hue. Not necessary, of course. (I added a single drop of pink gel food coloring.) Expect a velvety and slightly thick cake batter.
- No artificial strawberry flavor.
- Nothing from a box.
- Just pure strawberries.
The Strawberry Frosting
You can taste the fresh strawberry flavor in the baked cake, but the flavor is REALLY brought out when you combine it with strawberry frosting. Like strawberry cake, strawberry frosting has always left me feeling a little defeated. Fresh strawberries were the issue. The frosting would always curdle from the added moisture. And no amount of fresh strawberries could get me the strawberry flavor I craved. Instead of settling for artificial strawberry flavoring, I took a trick from Sally’s Candy Addiction: strawberry dust! Grab some freeze-dried strawberries, grind them up, and mix that magic dust into the frosting.
(I actually added freeze-dried strawberries to cake batter as one of my test recipes. This was an awful decision and an epic fail. The cake was atrocious. Texture, taste, and appearance. Just… no. But freeze-dried strawberries are a YES for frosting!)
- Where to buy freeze-dried strawberries? I find freeze-dried strawberries in my regular grocery store in the dried fruit aisle. I’ve also seen them in health food stores. Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Amazon, and Target all carry them, as well. Or, you can order them online.
- Baker’s Tip: Do not use “dried strawberries” which are like raisins, dried apricots, and dried pineapple. They have a gummy texture and don’t grind into a powder. You need freeze-dried strawberries, which have all of the moisture removed.
Instead of a thicker strawberry buttercream, I used my silky cream cheese frosting recipe. Added in the freeze-dried strawberry “dust” and milk and was left with a frosting so pink, Barbie would be jealous!
By the way, this frosting would also be a fantastic filling for homemade eclairs or on strawberry cupcakes. We scaled it down to frost these strawberry cookies, too!
Let’s Review
The tricks to homemade strawberry cake and frosting made with real strawberries? (1) Reduced strawberry puree in the cake batter and (2) freeze-dried strawberries in the frosting. Have fun baking!
Print
Homemade Strawberry Cake
- Prep Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 6 hours (including cooling)
- Yield: serves 10-12
- Category: Cakes
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
The one thing that sets this strawberry cake apart from others? Reduce fresh strawberry puree down and add it to the best white cake batter. This recipe is also in my New York Times best-selling cookbook, Sally’s Baking 101.
Ingredients
Strawberry Puree
- 1 pound (454g) fresh strawberries
Cake
- 2 and 1/2 cups (295g) cake flour (spooned & leveled)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup (12 Tbsp; 170g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 and 3/4 cups (350g) granulated sugar
- 5 large egg whites, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup (80g) full-fat sour cream or plain Greek yogurt, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup (120g/ml) whole milk, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup reduced strawberry puree (from step 1)
- optional: 1–2 drops red or pink food coloring
Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1 cup (about 25g) freeze-dried strawberries*
- 8 ounces (226g) full-fat brick cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3 cups (360g) confectioners’ sugar
- 1 Tablespoon whole milk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- pinch of salt, to taste
Instructions
- Make the reduced strawberry puree first, and let cool: Hull the fresh strawberries and place them in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth. You should have a little more than 1 cup (around 270g). Transfer the puree to a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until it’s reduced to 1/2 cup (about 135g). This usually takes around 25–35 minutes, but could take longer depending on your pan or the ripeness of your strawberries. Remove from heat, pour into a heat-safe bowl, and cool completely before using. I always make the reduced puree the day before so it has plenty of time to cool down. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Allow it to come back to room temperature before adding to the cake batter. (See Notes for additional make-ahead instructions.)
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease two 9-inch round cake pans, line with parchment paper rounds, then grease the parchment paper. Parchment paper helps the cakes seamlessly release from the pans. (If it’s helpful, see this parchment paper rounds for cakes video & post.)
- Make the cake: In a medium bowl, whisk the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until light and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg whites and beat on high speed until combined, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the sour cream and vanilla extract and beat on medium-high speed until combined, about 1 minute. Add the dry ingredients and then, with the mixer running on low speed, slowly pour in the milk and beat until just combined. Do not overmix. Whisk in the room-temperature reduced strawberry puree and food coloring (if using), making sure there are no lumps at the bottom of the bowl. The batter should be slightly thick. Pour the batter evenly into the prepared cake pans.
- Bake for 24–25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool the cakes in the pans set on a cooling rack for 1 hour. Run a knife around the edges to loosen the sides, remove the cakes from the pan, peel off the parchment, and place on the rack to finish cooling. The cakes must be completely cool before frosting and assembling.
- Make the frosting: In a blender or food processor, process the freeze-dried strawberries into a fine powder. If any larger bits remain, sift the powder through a fine-mesh sieve. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter on medium-high speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the confectioners’ sugar, strawberry powder, milk, and vanilla. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then gradually increase to high speed and beat for 3 minutes until completely combined and creamy. Taste, then beat in a pinch of salt if the frosting is too sweet. Cover and refrigerate it for 1 hour before using. Yields about 3 cups (720g) of frosting.
- Assemble and frost: (For additional help with this step, see this how to assemble a layer cake video & post.) First, level the cakes: using a large serrated knife, slice a thin layer off the tops of the cakes to create a flat surface. Discard (or crumble over ice cream!). Place 1 cake layer on your cake stand, cake turntable, or serving plate. Spread 3/4–1 cup (180–240g) of frosting in an even layer on top. Top with the second layer, upside down, and spread 1 cup (240g) of frosting all over the top and sides in a very thin layer to make a crumb coat. Run a bench scraper around the cake to help smooth out the frosting on the sides. Refrigerate the cake until the crumb coat has set, about 20 minutes. Cover the top and sides with the remaining frosting. Before slicing, refrigerate the cake for at least 20 minutes to set the frosting and help the cake keep its shape when slicing—it could slightly fall apart without time in the fridge.
- Cover leftover cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. If the cake has been in the refrigerator for more than 4 hours, take it out 2 hours before serving so it can mostly come to room temperature.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: The cake layers can be baked, cooled, and covered tightly and stored at room temperature overnight. Likewise, the frosting can be prepared, then covered and refrigerated overnight. Let it sit at room temperature to slightly soften for 10 minutes before assembling and frosting. Frosted cake or unfrosted cake layers can be frozen for up to 2–3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before decorating/serving. See How to Freeze Cakes for instructions. You can also make the reduced strawberry puree ahead of time and store it covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or freeze it for up to 3 months. Thaw, bring to room temperature, then use in the recipe.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Food Processor | 9-inch Round Cake Pans | Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Pink Food Coloring | Cooling Rack | Cake Turntable | Straight Spatula and Bench Scraper (for frosting) | Round Cake Carrier (for storage)
- Cake Flour: I strongly suggest using cake flour in this recipe. If you can’t find it, try this homemade cake flour substitute.
- Whole Milk: If needed, buttermilk works in its place. I don’t recommend a lower-fat milk.
- Where to Buy Freeze-Dried Strawberries: I always find them in my regular grocery store in the aisle with the dried fruit. Target, Whole Foods, and Trader Joe’s carry them, and I’ve also found them in some health food stores. You can also buy them online. Do not use the chewy/gummy dried strawberries. You need FREEZE-dried strawberries, which grind into a powder. If you can’t find them anywhere, just leave them out of the frosting and add another 1/2 cup of confectioners’ sugar.
- Can I use frozen strawberries for the puree? You can use frozen strawberries, but they will take longer to reduce even if you thaw them first.
- 9×13-Inch Cake: Simply pour the batter into a greased 9×13-inch pan and bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cupcakes: Fill cupcake pans 2/3 full with batter. Bake for 20–22 minutes. Makes 30 cupcakes. For 14–15 cupcakes, follow my strawberry cupcakes recipe, which is adapted from this strawberry cake.
- Food Coloring: If you want, you can add 1–2 small drops of pink or red food coloring to deepen the pink color of the cake. I add 1 small drop of pink gel food coloring.
- No Cream Cheese in Frosting: If you’d like to skip the cream cheese in the frosting, use my strawberry buttercream recipe instead. You’ll have enough for a thin layer of frosting, or you can 1.5x the recipe for a thicker layer.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Can I use unbleached cake flour instead of bleached?
Hi Andrea, we don’t recommend it. The chemical process in bleached flour weakens the protein slightly, resulting in softer, more tender baked goods. Unbleached flour has a slightly higher protein content, giving more chew and structure, which is good for bread but not for cakes. As for cake flour specifically, bleached cake flour is best for delicate (non-chocolate) cakes, where a very tender, light crumb is desired. Unbleached cake flour, which is naturally aged by air, would be better used for pound cakes, sponge cakes, or cakes that need slightly more structure and less delicacy. Hope this helps!
Can I substitute freeze dried strawberries with strawberry jello powder?
What route would you recommend would be best if I want a 10inch cake? Increase recipe by 25% and bake two at once or make recipe twice and fill 10in pan 2/3rds way and leftover make into cup cakes?
I will adjust cream accordingly.
Hi Lena! Either way should work. Here is everything you need to know about converting recipes to different Cake Pan Sizes.
I just made this cake for a friend’s birthday, and it was outstanding. I did a three tier 8-inch round, and made a strawberry pastry cream which I put between the layers. I used the frosting for the sides and top of the cake. Super delicious strawberry in every bite!
One of my favorite Sally’s recipes so far (and my husband declared this the best one yet). I had leftover purée so I added a layer of that to the middle and it was so good!
I’ve made this strawberry cake several times now, always to rave reviews. Now I’m wondering if I could replace the strawberry puree with raspberry puree – straining out the seeds after blending, then cooking down to the thick texture. Do you think this could work?
Tiffany, yes, absolutely! You can use fresh raspberries to make the raspberry puree for the batter and freeze dried raspberries for the frosting. Enjoy!
Made this cake for Mother’s Day and it was a hit! My mom absolutely loved it, as did the rest of the fam! The cake was great and the frosting is truly the star of the show. I’m still in shock at just how much strawberry flavor shines through in the frosting. I used exactly one entire 34 gram bag of freeze dried strawberries from Trader Joe’s (I believe it’s slightly more than the recipe calls for but it turned out great!) Highly recommend this recipe!
I’d like to make this as a two-tiered cake using two 8” and two 10” pans. Can you share how to scale this recipe?
Hi Andy, here’s everything you need to know about cake pan sizes and conversions. You might find this homemade wedding cake post helpful, too.
I’d like to use your recommended White Chocolate Strawberry Cupcake recipe to make a 3-layer 6-Inch cake but with the Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting you use in your Strawberry Cake recipe.
Can I use the recipe for the frosting for this 2-layer , 9 inch strawberry cake or will that be too much? Any adjustments needed?
Thank you!
Hi Lee! You should need about 2/3 of this frosting recipe for a three layer 6 inch cake, but it never hurts to have extra when filling and stacking a cake. We would make the full batch just to be safe.
Hi Sally!
How would I go about making this recipe in a single 9 in cake pan?
Thanks for your time 🙂
Hi Alex, you could halve this recipe for a single layer strawberry cake.
Hiya,
Do you think this would work if I reduced blueberries instead? Kiddo has gone and thrown a spanner in the works of what they’re wanting for their birthday!
Hi ICG, yes, many readers have reported success making a blueberry version with blueberry puree in the cake and freeze dried blueberries in the frosting. Enjoy!
Will King Arthur’s unbleached cake flour work for this recipe or should I use Swans Down Bleached cake flour?
Either works great! We usually use Swans Down.
Just to clarify, it doesn’t matter whether it’s bleached or unbleached as long as it’s cake flour?
One of the best cake recipes! The icing was the star! It made a lot too, I had a lot of extra frosting to lick clean off the bowl. Delish! About to make it again 🙂
I want to try this recipe but could i swap strawberries for raspberries instead?
Hi Sonia, yes, absolutely! You can use fresh raspberries to make the raspberry puree for the batter and freeze dried raspberries for the frosting.
Flavor was okay. Not much strawberry flavor. Cake very crumbly. Icing too sticky. Would not make again.
Hi Debbie, we’re so sorry to hear you were disappointed in this cake. If the flavor was lacking, it could be the quality and freshness of your strawberries. If your strawberries don’t have much flavor, that will unfortunately carry over to the cake. If the cake was crumbly, is it possible it was over baked or the flour was over measured? You’ll want to make sure to spoon and level (or use a kitchen scale) to make sure there isn’t too much flour in the batter. Thank you for giving this one a try and for sharing your feedback.
I made this cake over the weekend. Flavor was good and loved the cream cheese frosting. My problem was that the cake was dense and stodgy and took at least 5 minutes longer to cook. Would it have helped if I had whipped the eggs whites a little before adding them in?
Hi Lilli, we don’t find that extra step of whipping the egg whites necessary here. Is it possible that the batter was over mixed? That can often be the culprit for dense, squat cakes. This post on how to prevent dry and dense cakes may be a helpful resource to review. Thank you for giving this recipe a try!
I just made this for a 2 year old’s birthday cake – WOW! Everyone loved it! I split the batter between 3, 8” layers. I also made Sally’s Swiss meringue buttercream, but flavored the same way with powdered freeze dried strawberry plus added strawberry reduction. I also used frozen strawberries because the fresh ones aren’t in peak season yet. Would definitely make this again!
I made this for my mom’s birthday/mother’s day since they are a week apart. It turned out fantastic and the strawberry taste came through every bite!!
I am planning on making this for my daughter’s birthday! Is it possible to reduce the amount of sugar in the cake and the frosting to make it less sweet without messing up the recipe? Thanks!
Hi Cate, While you can certainly try it, the sugar plays an important role in the overall taste, texture, and structure of the cake. Final results will vary depending on how much sugar is omitted. We recommend starting small and then adjusting further for future batches. You can try reducing the sugar in the frosting, too, but it will be thinner.
I made this, it was delicious, everyone said they loved it, sponge was light and full of flavour, the freeze dried strawberry for the frosting was fruity and perfect!
I followed instructions completely, they were failsafe. ( I would have added photos, but there was no upload button)
Thank you Sally for a great recipie!
Hello! Could this be turned into a 3-layer 6″ cake? Or 8″? Can you assist with modifications? Hoping to make this for Mother’s Day this weekend!
Hi Karen! For a 3 layer, 6 inch cake, you can use the batter from these strawberry cupcakes and use the baking instructions for 6 inch cakes. The cake and cupcakes are very similar, just a different yield. You can discard the leftover batter or make a few cupcakes on the side. Enjoy!
Absolutely gorgeous cake and super fun to make! I’m wondering if you know how much of the powdered freeze-dried strawberries goes into the frosting?
I made the mistake of blitzing more than a cup/25 grams of the sliced freeze-dried strawberries and now am wondering how much of the powder to put into the frosting? Any guidance would be much appreciated!
Hi Danielle, it should be about half a cup of powder! Or you can measure our 25g if you have a kitchen scale.
Hi Sally,
I was wondering about the sugar. I try to use maple sugar and usually less than what the recipes call for.
Do you think it would work here? ( I use a blender to make into a powder form) And would it be ok to use less for the frosting? Or does the quantity plays a role (aside from flavour)
Hi Vasiliki, we wish we could help, but we have no experience with using maple sugar or a powdered version of it, so aren’t sure what to recommend. The amount of confectioners’ sugar in the frosting plays a big role in the thickness and stability of the frosting, though, so we don’t recommend decreasing the amount.
i followed the recipe exactly as instructed. the texture of the cake came out great, but it’s lacking in strawberry flavor, despite the amount of time and care i put in to make the strawberry puree. the flavor department is lacking severely. however, the strawberry cream cheese frosting came out AMAZING. i think the mild flavor of the cake is really just a vessel for this delicious frosting, lol. maybe next time i should try incorporating blended freeze dried strawberries into the batter, like how i did with the frosting.
Hi Shay, I’m sorry to hear you found the cake was lacking in flavor. It’s possible that the reason is that your strawberries weren’t very ripe or flavorful to begin with; using out of season berries won’t give you as much flavor. Glad you liked the frosting, though!
Hi, Team!
Love so many of your recipes, thank you! When we first started talking about my daughter’s birthday cake she said “Let’s search up Strawberry Marble Cake on Sally’s Baking!” <3 I was hoping that you'd let me know your thoughts on marbling this cake with vanilla (ultimately I'd like to do 3 9-inch layers). Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Hi Zoe, thank you so much for your kind note! We haven’t tried swirling the two batters together, so we’re unsure of the exact results. Could you do a test in a small 6-inch pan or even cupcake pan? If it works, then you can use the rest of the batter in the same way, or, you could simply make the layers separately and stack them with alternating flavors. Let us know what you decide to try!
Whenever I make this cake, it turns out way too moist. How can I fix this?
Hi Erin, this is a very moist cake, but it’s possible that your puree needed to be reduced more. It should be about a half of a cup after it’s reduced and very thick – see the photo in the post above for a good visual of what it should look like after it’s reduced. It could also simply need a few extra minutes in the oven to finish baking through. We hope this helps for next time!
Hey sally! Since I don’t have freeze dried strawberries available in my country, is there any way I could flavour the frosting without it?
P.S, all the love! Your chocolate chip cookies were the first to ever work out for me.
Hi Eshal, you could try the strawberry whipped cream from these strawberry shortcake cupcakes instead!
Hi there! Excited to try this recipe. I love the flavor of strawberry and lemon. I still would like to use the freeze dried strawberries in the frosting. How do you suggest incorporating lemon? Thank you as always – love every single recipe!
Hi Ashely! You could add some lemon zest to the cake batter or frosting without any changes. A layer of lemon curd between the cake layers would be a lovely addition as well – let us know what you try!
Hi Sally,
We love this recipe and have used it frequently over the years.
It has been requested yet again but I was thinking of changing things up, hopefully not a mistake. Have you ever used raspberries in replacement of all strawberry elements? If so what were the results?
We have a fabulous baking shop close by that sells the pantry ingredients required so that wouldn’t be a problem.
Many thanks
Hi Roxene, yes, absolutely! You can use fresh raspberries to make the raspberry puree for the batter and freeze dried raspberries for the frosting.
So I have freeze dried strawberry powder that I made last year. What would be the equivalent amount that I would need of that for this recipe?
Hi Jan! You’ll need about 1/2 cup freeze dried strawberry powder for the frosting.
The strawberry frosting is excellent. I did use a tablespoon of the puree instead of milk and I’d do that again. I’m disappointed that the cake doesn’t have much strawberry flavor despite all those strawberries in the puree. I think that making a strawberry jam-type middle layer with the berries would have been more effective and dramatic.
Hi Maggie, the strawberry flavor in the cake really depends on the strawberries you start with – the sweeter and riper, the more flavor you’ll get! Thank you for giving this recipe a try.