There is almost nothing better than a homemade strawberry cake recipe made from scratch with fresh strawberries. I still had tons of fresh organic strawberries left over from this week’s trip to the farmers’ market, and we haven’t had dessert in the apartment for days. I also haven’t used my new cake stand yet, given to us as a wedding gift by my best friend. I found this really cool rose cake tutorial by I Am Baker, and although I am usually terrible at cake decorating I thought I would give it a try. I used my vanilla cake frosting recipe, which turned out to be perfect because it hardened just enough to keep the roses in place without becoming too hard. When my husband walked into the kitchen just when I had finished, I’ll never forget the look on his face. He goes, “What is THAT?!” I wasn’t sure whether or not to take that as a compliment or not, but moments later he told me I did a great job on it 🙂 It isn’t perfect, but not bad for my first try at a rose cake. Plus, it was just for me and Fabi and half of it was gone within minutes after I finished. You can double this strawberry cake recipe to make a larger cake (this one only makes one 8×8 circle cake pan, which you can split and frost the middle). It can also be used to make cupcakes.
- ½ lb ripe strawberries (about 12), hulled
- 1 cup & 2 tbsp all-purpose flour, sifted
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup milk
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
- Puree hulled strawberries in a blender or food processor, and add to a small saucepan with ¼ cup water and cornstarch (already stirred together) and simmer on low heat.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Grease one 8 inch cake pan with butter and shake flour around until all is dusted lightly with flour.
- In standalone mixer bowl, cream butter and sugar.
- Add flour, baking powder and salt and mix on medium until combined into a crumbly mixture.
- Add eggs and vanilla and beat at medium speed for about 1 minute or until full and evenly combined.
- Add milk and ½ cup strawberry puree and mix on low until just combined.
- Pour batter into cake pan and place in the oven.
- Bake for about 25 minutes. Toothpick in the center should come out clean.
- Remove from oven and cool 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire cooling rack. Allow cake to cool for 1-2 hours before frosting.
- Slice cake in half and frost top layer of the middle and add puree on top.
- Apply a thin layer of frosting on cake just to hide color, then put the rest of the frosting into a cake decorating bag with Wilton 2D tip (large open star).
- Start in the middle and circle around 1-2 times for each rose.
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Absolutely gorgeous! Fit for a wedding cake top! I don’t know if I’m ambitious enough to attempt this but I’d sure order one from you!!!
Aw thanks Sandy. I am sure yours would turn out beautiful!
OMG, that cake looks amazing!!!!!! That’s a pretty awesome cake stand too 😉
Thanks Shannan!! 😉
That cake is absolutely lovely. So so pretty.
Thanks Kayle!
Oh my gosh what a gorgeous cake! I bet it tastes fantastic!!
Your rosettes on this beautiful cake are perfect 😀
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Mmmm! Wow, it looks wonderful. This would be perfect for a shower or birthday party – or just to eat for any occasion. So pretty.
Just about to make fresh strawberry cupcakes
Oh my, what a lovely cake! I bet it tastes fantastic. I was looking for a nice summery cake to try out and I think I have found the one!
Really pretty! I just can’t decorate a cake to save my life. Of course the fact that I rarely bake them – and thus never get the practice – probably has something to do with that. 😉 Gorgeous looking cake, great recipe – thanks.
You have done it again… you WOW me with your artistry with food.
holy crud! I’m so amazed at your frosting roses!! wow Kristi that cake looks amazing!!
Thanks, Erin!! 🙂
I love this strawberry cake recipe – I will never need to search for one again. It came out soo good. I am not the best baker, but this one was a hit. I was surprised at how easy the roses were too, it was almost as beautiful as yours!
I am obsessed with this cake, it’s absolutely stunning! Oh how I wish mine was that beautiful.
So glad I found a completely “from scratch” recipe, thanks! And love the frosting job.
I think that the corn starch goes in the berry puree, but not sure. It doesn’t say where or when to add it.
Hi — my granddaughter begged me to make “a strawberry cake.” What is to be done with the cornstarch? I assume it’s to thicken the strawberry puree but didn’t see any specific instruction. Thank you.
Yes it is for the puree, I will change this now. Thank you!
Hi, may I know if you got add any cornstarch inside this recipe because I cant seem to find the step where you add cornstrach inside ?
Sorry about that! You are correct, it is in the puree 🙂
Hi! I was hoping to make this cake for my birthday tomorrow, and I was just wondering what I could substitute for the corstarch!?
Hi! I was hoping to make this cake for my birthday tomorrow, and I was just wondering what I could substitute for the corstarch!?
The cornstarch gives the puree a gel-like texture and holds it together. Without it, the strawberries will just be a lot more liquid. You can substitute it with tapioca, flour, or potato starch. You most likely have flour on hand, so that should work fine. Let me know!
Made this cake and it came out amazing 🙂 ty for sharing
I made a test run of this cake for an upcoming wedding i’m doing. The father was a huge box cake mix fan (especially strawberry) and believed I should just use the boxes. After tasting this he was completely convinced otherwise. The fresh strawberry flavor was wonderful. He did wish it was a little less dense so i’ll see what I can do next time….Any suggestions for lightening it up a little?
Hi Samantha! I am thrilled it turned out well for you! Maybe try cake flour instead of all-purpose – it will make the cake lighter 🙂
Lovely looking and sounding cake. Can’t wait to try it. What decorating tube number did you use for the rosettes? Thanks.
HOLY MOLY, that is one beautiful cake!
How long do I simmer the strawberries, water and cornstarch on low heat? If time is not the determining factor, how do I know when to remove it from the heat?
Hi Joseph! Great question – once it starts to boil, lower the heat and stir until you get a nice, thick consistency…this may take around 5 minutes or so.
Just made this for my husband for Father’s Day. He loved it! This cake is soft and light and not too sweet. I doubled it to make a four layer cake. Next time I will reduce my strawberries more since I think they were too runny. And use a stiffer icing like you did. I used a light whipped cream cheese icing and it made the cake unstable. Whoops! Still super delish though! A new favorite!
So glad you enjoyed it!
How would I convert this recipe to for a 13x 9 sheet pan. I will be decorating without th roses…Thinking of making this today for my daughters 1st birthday!
Another few questions…how about making in a 9 or 10″ round pan and instead of slicing & making 2 cakes to layer? Can frozen strawberries be used and water adjusted? (the fresh organic strawberries I just bought are not too sweet)… Have really enjoyed your other recipes especially Vanilla cupcakes! Thanks!
Thanks Carrie! I haven’t tried making it in a larger pan without splitting, but that sounds completely fine to me! Also haven’t tried with frozen strawberries so I am not sure how it will turn out.
This cake is phenomenal, honestly. I made this cake last year for my friends birthday and literally blew her, and everyone else’s who had it, mind on how delicious it was. It is such a beautiful cake and I am so grateful to find this recipe again because it has been requested by the same lovely person for her birthday. I have ONE suggestion… for the frosting, make a strawberry cream cheese frosting. It’s amazing and is a perfect complement for this cake. xoxo
This is the best, most authentic strawberry cake out there. Please, if you’re looking for a delicious strawberry cake for any occasion, this is the recipe you need. I pair it with a strawberry cream cheese frosting and it is utterly wonderful. Cheers and happy baking!
I just made this for my daughters’ birthday party and quadrupled the recipe. I used frozen strawberries, and reduced a Costco-sized bag of them (I threw out the bag before I remembered to check the weight) by 3/4, and I left out the water and cornstarch. It took about 4 hours simmering the berries on med-low. I only used about 1/3 of the strawberry reduction for the cake, though, because I’m going to use the rest for the frosting. I haven’t frosted it yet, but broke off a corner to sample and it’s really good. This is my new favorite strawberry cake recipe, thank you!