Description
Made with freeze-dried strawberries in both the cake and cream cheese frosting, this homemade strawberry cake has a balanced fruity flavor and a soft but sturdy crumb perfect for layer cakes.
Ingredients
- Strawberry Cake:
- 1.2 oz freeze-dried strawberries or freeze-dried strawberry powder (34g)
- 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (420g)
- 3 cups granulated sugar (600g)
- 2.5 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1.5 cups whole milk, at room temperature (340g)
- 7 large egg whites, at room temperature (245g)
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil (30g)
- 1 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
- 1 tbsp white vinegar
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature (227g)
- 3–5 drops pink food coloring (optional)
- Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature (113g)
- 8 oz full-fat cream cheese, cool (227g)
- 1.2 oz freeze-dried strawberries or freeze-dried strawberry powder (34g)
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 4 cups powdered sugar (454g)
- 2–3 tbsp heavy cream or milk
- Strawberry Simple Syrup (optional):
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup fresh strawberry purée, strained to remove seeds
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line three 8-inch round pans with parchment paper.
2. If using whole freeze-dried strawberries, process into a fine powder. Reserve frosting portion in a sealed container.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the strawberry powder, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Mix on medium speed for 1 minute.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together milk, egg whites, oil, vanilla, and vinegar.
5. With the mixer on low, gradually add softened butter to the dry ingredients until crumbly.
6. Slowly stream in 1/3 of the milk mixture and mix until a paste forms. Scrape down the bowl.
7. Add half of the remaining milk mixture and beat on medium-low for 3 minutes.
8. Add the rest of the milk mixture and pink food coloring, beat on medium-low for 4 minutes until fluffy and silky.
9. Divide batter equally into prepared pans (about 630g each). Bake 40–45 minutes, or until tops spring back and a tester comes out mostly clean.
10. For the frosting, beat butter until smooth, then add cold cream cheese and beat until smooth.
11. Add reserved strawberry powder and salt, beating until smooth.
12. Gradually add powdered sugar, mixing on low then increasing to medium until fluffy. Add cream or milk to adjust consistency.
13. For syrup (optional), bring water and sugar to a boil until dissolved. Let cool, mix with purée, and refrigerate.
14. To assemble, level cake layers, brush with syrup (optional), frost, and garnish with fresh strawberries. Chill before serving if possible.
Notes
Chilling cake layers before assembly helps achieve a cleaner finish—wrap in plastic and freeze if needed.
Kara’s original recipe used two 8-inch pans and torted them into four layers; this version uses three pans for simplicity and shorter bake time.
This recipe can be halved and baked in 6-inch pans for smaller cakes.
Freeze-dried strawberry powder can be easily found online.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 610
- Sugar: 52g
- Sodium: 280mg
- Fat: 30g
- Saturated Fat: 18g
- Unsaturated Fat: 10g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 80g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 6g
- Cholesterol: 85mg