Description
This delicious Strawberry Cake features a moist, strawberry-infused sponge layered with a sweet homemade strawberry jam filling and fluffy whipped cream cheese frosting. Perfectly balanced between fresh fruit flavor and creamy richness, this cake makes an impressive dessert for special occasions or anytime you crave a fresh, fruity treat.
Ingredients
Scale
CAKE
- 1 ¼ lbs (570 g) strawberries, remove stems and quarter
- ⅔ cup whole milk
- ½ cup (118 ml) avocado, vegetable or canola oil
- 4 Tablespoons (57 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 ¾ cup (350 g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups (330 g) cake flour
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 6 large egg whites, room temperature preferred
- Food coloring optional (2 chocolate chip-sized drops of Americolor gel “electric pink”)
FILLING
- ⅓ cup (70 g) granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- Remaining strawberry pulp from cake preparation
FROSTING
- 2 cups (475 ml) cold heavy cream
- 1 ½ cups (190 g) powdered sugar, divided
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 8 oz (226 g) cream cheese, softened
Instructions
- Prepare Pans and Oven: Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and prepare two 8” round cake pans by spraying with baking spray and lining the bottoms with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Make Strawberry Juice: Place quartered strawberries in a blender and puree until smooth. Strain through a fine mesh sieve into a measuring cup until you have 1 to 1 ¼ cups of juice. Set leftover pulp aside for jam filling.
- Reduce Strawberry Juice: Pour the strawberry juice into a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until reduced to ⅓ cup, about 10 minutes. Add ⅔ cup milk and whisk together. Add food coloring if using. Set aside.
- Mix Wet Ingredients: In a large bowl, beat together oil, softened butter, sugar, and vanilla extract with an electric mixer until fully combined.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together cake flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Combine Wet and Dry Mixtures: On low mixer speed, alternate adding the flour mixture and the strawberry/milk mixture to the butter mixture, starting and ending with flour. Mix until just combined after each addition.
- Beat Egg Whites: In a clean, dry bowl, beat egg whites on high speed with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form.
- Fold in Egg Whites: Gently fold the egg whites into the cake batter using a spatula until completely combined.
- Bake Cake: Divide batter evenly into prepared pans. Bake at 350F for 28 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
- Cool Cakes: Let cakes cool in pans for 10 minutes. Run a knife around edges and invert onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Prepare Jam Filling: Combine reserved strawberry pulp, ⅓ cup sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, and salt in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly until boiling and thickened, about 5–10 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate to cool fully.
- Make Frosting Base: In a large bowl, beat together cream cheese, ½ cup powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and salt until smooth and creamy.
- Whip Cream: In a chilled bowl, beat heavy cream and remaining 1 cup powdered sugar until stiff peaks form.
- Combine Frosting: On low speed, stir the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture until fully combined.
- Assemble Cake: Place one cake layer on a serving tray. Use a piping bag to pipe a dam around the edge. Fill with jam filling. Top with second layer of cake. Frost the entire cake evenly.
- Chill and Serve: Refrigerate cake until ready to serve. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Notes
- You may substitute cake flour with 2 ⅔ cups (330 g) all-purpose flour.
- Use leftover egg yolks in recipes like pound cake, chocolate pie, or creme brulee.
- For decorative red swirls on frosting, paint stripes of icing inside the piping bag with a food-safe paintbrush before filling it with frosting.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 400 kcal
- Sugar: 35 g
- Sodium: 150 mg
- Fat: 20 g
- Saturated Fat: 10 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 8 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 45 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Cholesterol: 70 mg
