This Strawberry Cake is a light, moist cake and made with fresh strawberries! Topped with a homemade rich and delicious whipped cream cheese icing!
You know those days when you just feel like getting in the kitchen and getting down to business on making something beautiful and delicious? This is a recipe for that day. This beautiful cake is made completely from scratch… that’s right, no cake mix used here!
Strawberry Cake With Cream Cheese Icing Recipe
This Strawberry Cream Cake Recipe will give you some quality time in the kitchen and your finished product is something both your eyes and belly can appreciate!
It is so beautiful when it’s finished, it’s almost too pretty to eat. The secret is the addition of a couple of drops of red food coloring. This gives the cake and the icing the light pink perfect coloring that you see in the final product.
While this cake will take a bit more time and commitment than some other desserts, it’s not as difficult as it looks. As far as homemade cakes go, this one is actually pretty easy! But, it will leave you feeling accomplished, like you had a day well spent baking a picture perfect, delicious, and homemade cake.
This cake has quite a list of ingredients and instructions. While it may seem lengthy, it really is quite simple! Just make sure to read each step carefully, so you don’t miss anything!
Below are the ingredients you’ll need to make your strawberry cake. Make sure that you have all of the ingredients for both the cake mix and the cream cheese frosting.
Strawberry Cake Ingredients
These are the ingredients you will need to make the cake mix and cakes.
- 2 ½ cups of flour
- 1 ¾ cups granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup buttermilk
- ¾ cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup fresh and finely chopped strawberries
- ¼ cup of strawberry jam
- 4 eggs
- 1 tablespoons vanilla
- 2-3 drops of red food coloring (if desired)
How to Make Cream Cheese Icing Ingredients
These are the ingredients you will need to make the strawberry whipped cream cheese frosting.
- 1 brick of cream cheese (cut into cubes)
- ¾ cup of granulated sugar
- 1 ½ cups of whipping cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup fresh and finely chopped strawberries
- 3-4 drops of red food coloring (if desired)
There are quite a few steps that go into making your strawberry cake, so be sure you read carefully as not to miss any important steps!
How to Make Strawberry Cake
First, pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Then, line two 8-inch cake pans with parchment paper and set this aside.
Next, finely chop one cup of strawberries and place them in a small bowl. Sprinkle the strawberries with one tablespoon of sugar and place this bowl in the fridge while preparing the rest of your cake ingredients.
In a large bowl, cream together the oil and sugar, until you have a light and fluffy mixture. Then, with the mixer on low speed, beat in the eggs one at a time, followed by the vanilla.
Then, slowly add in your dry ingredients until the mixture is all combined. Finally, mix in the strawberry jam and add in your red food coloring (if using). Let the mix sit, do not cover it!
You will want to fold in the chopped strawberries into the mixture.
Then, divide the cake batter into the two prepared pans from before, and bake them for 40-45 minutes. Let them cool completely, then invert them onto a wire rack.
Once the cakes have cooled, split each cake into 2 layers. You will have a total of 4 cakes in the end. Wrap each layer in plastic and set them aside.
Next, you will be preparing the frosting.
How to Make Strawberry Whipped Cream Cheese Icing
Cream the sugar, vanilla, and cream cheese for about two minutes on medium-high speed. Slowly add whipped cream with the mixer running on medium high for 2-3 minutes. Mix in the red food coloring (if using). Lastly, fold in the finely chopped strawberries.
*Frost the cake immediately, otherwise the frosting will have to be chilled and re-whipped!
Fill a piping bag with a star attachment or a large round tip and pipe icing to fill the cake layers. Spread the icing with an offset spatula, and place the next cake layer on top until each layer has been filled.
Spread a large dollop of icing on the very top layer and smooth it across the top with light strokes, allowing it to spill over the edges. Smooth the edges and continue this technique as needed to cover the entire cake.
Once the cake is covered, allow it to chill in the refrigerator to firm up. When ready to serve, garnish with whole strawberries. Make sure to keep any leftover cake in the fridge!
How Long To Bake a Strawberry Cake
When you see the final product that this cake produces, it looks like the baking time would be quite long! In reality, you’ll just be baking two 8-inch cake pans. You’ll bake them together in the oven at 350 degrees F, for about 40-45 minutes. (Tip: to tell if it is baked completely, I take a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake. If it comes out clean the cake is done.)
When they are finished you will cut each cake in half, leaving you with four cakes! This is what eventually makes the cake have it’s height, with four layers. In my opinion, the height along with the color, is really what makes this cake so beautiful!
It stands out, and could even be used as the centerpiece of your table… that is until it’s gone!
Strawberry Cake with Cream Cheese Icing
Ingredients
Strawberry Cake Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups flour
- 1 ¾ cups granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup buttermilk
- ¾ cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup strawberries fresh and finely chopped
- ¼ cup strawberry jam
- 4 eggs
- 1 tablespoons vanilla
- 2-3 drops red food coloring if desired
Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients
- 1 brick cream cheese cut into cubes
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 ½ cups whipping cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup strawberries fresh and finely chopped
- 3-4 drops red food coloring optional
Instructions
Strawberry Cake Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Line (2) 8 inch cake pans with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Finely chop 1 cup of strawberries place in a small bowl and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of sugar and place in the refrigerator while prepping remaining cake ingredients.
- Cream Oil and Sugar until light and fluffy.
- With mixer on low speed beat in eggs one at a time, followed by vanilla. Slowly add in dry ingredients until combined. Mix in Strawberry jam and add in food coloring if using. Do not over mix!
- Fold in Strawberries.
- Divide cake batter into 2 prepared pans.Bake for 40-45 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes. Invert onto cooling racks.
- Once cool, split each cake into 2 layers (for a total of 4). Wrap in plastic and set aside.
- Next you will be preparing the frosting.
Strawberry Whipped Cream Cheese Icing
- Cream the sugar, vanilla, and cream cheese for about two minutes on medium high speed. Slowly add whipped cream with the mixer running on medium high for 2-3 minutes. Mix in the red food coloring (if using). Lastly, fold in the finely chopped strawberries.
- *Frost the cake immediately, otherwise the frosting will have to be chilled and re-whipped!
- Fill a piping bag with a star attachment or a large round tip and pipe icing to fill the cake layers. Spread the icing with an offset spatula, and place the next cake layer on top until each layer has been filled.
- Spread a large dollop of icing on the very top layer and smooth it across the top with light strokes, allowing it to spill over the edges. Smooth the edges and continue this technique as needed to cover the entire cake.
- Once the cake is covered, allow it to chill in the refrigerator to firm up. When ready to serve, garnish with whole strawberries. Make sure to keep any leftover cake in the fridge!
Nutrition Info
More Delicious Easy Cake Recipes
- Banana Split Cake
- Easy Ice Cream Layer Cake
- No-Bake Eclair Cake
- Cherry Dump Cake
- American Flag Sheet Cake
- Pineapple Upside Down Cake
- Apple Crumb Cake with Cinnamon Apple Drizzle
- No-Bake Oreo Pie
- Peanut Butter Oreo Icebox Cake
- Gooey Caramel Apple Dump Cake
- Ice Cream Cake
- Ice Cream Sandwich Layer Cake
There’s nothing like a moist cake with fresh strawberries. It’s just light and creamy enough to satisfy any sweet tooth without leaving you feeling like you overindulged. This Strawberry Cake recipe is a classic, made from scratch dessert that will be loved by all – both by their eyes and their tummies!
All purpose flour or cake flour?
All purpose flour!
When do you add in the buttermilk?
I see it in the Ingredients list but not in the instructions.
When do you add the buttermilk
The ingredients call for buttermilk but is not used within the actual recipe. This is unfortunate as I’m realizing this as I’m making it.