Fresh Strawberry Cake
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Jam-packed with fresh strawberries, this strawberry cake is one of the simplest, most delicious cakes you’ll ever make.
This strawberry cake recipe was sent to me by Karen Tannenbaum, a longtime reader, avid baker, and all-around lovely lady. In her email to me, Karen described a dinner she made that ended with this dessert as “just like a night in heaven.” I was sold. Within a few days, I had the cake in the oven and, sure enough, it was the one of the simplest, prettiest, most delicious cakes I’d ever made. The beauty of the cake is that it’s made with very few ingredients, and you can whip up the batter in under 15 minutes. What’s more, it’s a great way to use up extra strawberries or salvage berries that are less than perfect, and it keeps well for days. The recipe was originally published in Martha Stewart Living in June 2005, though it has been modified just a bit.
If you have an abundance of strawberries on hand, or find them on sale during the season, try my strawberry shortcake and strawberry muffins as well. You’ll be glad you did.
What You’ll Need To Make Strawberry Cake
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by combining the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl.
Whisk to combine and set aside.
Beat the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy.
Add the egg and vanilla.
Beat to combine.
Add some of the flour.
Mix to combine, then add some of the milk.
Alternately add the remaining flour and milk, beating until smooth. The batter will be quite thick.
Transfer the batter to a buttered 9-inch deep dish pie pan (or 9-inch round cake pan) and smooth with a spatula.
Arrange the strawberry halves on top of the batter.
The sprinkle with the remaining sugar. (Don’t be tempted to omit the sugar here; it balances the tartness of the berries and forms a deliciously crisp crust on top the cake.)
Bake at 350°F for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 325° and bake for about an hour more.
Cool the strawberry cake on a rack. Serve warm or room temperature, either plain or topped with sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
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Fresh Strawberry Cake
Jam-packed with fresh strawberries, this strawberry cake is one of the simplest, most delicious cakes you’ll ever make.
Ingredients
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, plus more for greasing the pan
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, divided
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup milk (low fat is fine)
- About ¾ pound strawberries, hulled and halved
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and butter a 9-inch deep dish pie pan (or 9-inch round cake pan).
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and 1 cup of the sugar until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla and beat on low speed until well combined. Gradually add the flour mixture, alternating with the milk, and beat on low speed until smooth. (Note: the batter will be thick.)
- Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and smooth with a spatula. Arrange the strawberries on top, cut side down, so that they completely cover the batter (the recipe calls for approximately ¾ pound of strawberries; use more or less if necessary). Sprinkle the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar over the strawberries.
- Bake for ten minutes, then reduce the heat to 325°F and bake until the cake is lightly golden and a tester comes out clean, about an hour. Let the cake cool in the pan on a rack. Serve with sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, if desired.
- Cake can be stored at room temperature for several days, loosely covered.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The cake can be frozen for up to 3 months. After it is completely cooled, cover it tightly with aluminum foil or freezer wrap. Thaw overnight on the countertop before serving.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (10 servings)
- Calories: 241
- Fat: 8 g
- Saturated fat: 5 g
- Carbohydrates: 40 g
- Sugar: 25 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Sodium: 185 mg
- Cholesterol: 38 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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I made this twice and it was easy and good enough. Maybe it was the way I mixed the batter, but the cake part didn’t cook evenly so some parts were done and some parts needed more time. It looks fabulous.
Really user friendly recipe that results in an awesome cake. Didn’t have any trouble with the strawberries falling through the batter.
I decided to bake this yesterday and I was wondering how it would turn out at high altitude. Well, it was wonderful! I would send a picture if I knew how! It’s definitely five stars and a cake I can make your after year. Thanks a lot for the wonderful recipe!
Hi Elizabeth, I would love a photo! You can always email me directly at jennifer@onceuponachef.com. Glad you enjoyed it 🙂
I just made this beautiful cake. It was so easy to put together, and I’m waiting for it to come out of the oven. My only question is about high altitude baking. I live at 7,000 ft so I’m just going to wait and see. I added a little extra flour and let it Go! I’ll let you know when I get the results! It was really a nice, easy recipe for beginners to make.
This is really delicious! I would definitely recommend trying to squeeze in a full pound of strawberries; while the cake is delicious, the strawberries (if you have good ones) make it sublime. I used a 9″ springform with parchment lightly buttered both sides. 2 Tblsp. brown turbinado sugar on top. Bake time after turning down to 325 was about 50 minutes.
This recipe has a fairly substantial amount of baking powder, which can leave a metallic taste. So I’d recommend purchasing a “no aluminum added” baking powder (for all your baking).
Have made this cake every year for the last 4-5 years. It turned out best after the first year when I splurged and purchased a Red Emile Henry pie dish just like Jenn’s. Found if I don’t have enough strawberries to cover, filling in with blueberries and/or blackberries works. Its just two of us so I easily freeze half to enjoy later
This looks fantastic! I made strawberry rhubarb squares a few weeks ago for a very large family cookout and bought too many strawberries (but really, is it possible to have too many strawberries?) I hulled and froze them and though my smoothies are so good, I’d like to try a sweet to help use them up.
Would you recommend thawing them first to drain more of the liquid? Or just proceed to use them frozen?
Thank you!
Hi Tammy, you can add the strawberries without thawing them. Hope you enjoy!
I made this cake recently and it’s so easy and delicious! I cut back on the sugar to 1/2 cup but still mildly sweet! My husband loved it! Will make again!
Hi Jenn, Could you tell me whether the recipe temperatures are for a conventional oven or fan assisted? I’m just wondering if I need to reduce the given temperatures a bit for my fan assisted oven (I’m in the UK – most recipes here use conventional oven temperatures but that may not be the case in the US!). Many thanks
Hi Jo, all my recipes are developed using a conventional oven. Hope that helps and that you enjoy the cake!
Jen, your recipes never disappoint – this was super quick and easy to throw together and the taste is simply fantastic! We just found our new favorite summer dessert 😊
The is the easiest, quickest, best strawberry cake I have ever made. Thank you for a wonderful summer recipe. It is delicious whether served warm or at room temperature.
Not great for inexperienced cook how much is a tablespoon of butter and what size cup is used with this??
Hi Karen, based on your email address, I see you like in the UK. I have metric/weight measurements that you will find easier to use. To view them, scroll down to the recipe, and immediately under the recipe title on the right side, you’ll see a little toggle. If you move it from “cup measures” to metric, you’ll see measurements that will work for you. Hope that helps!
Delicious! Has this recipe been made in cupcake form? If so, how long in the oven and at the same temperature?
Hi Monica, I have a muffin recipe that’s very similar to this one — I’d suggest using that. Hope you enjoy!
This cake is so flavorful and delicate crumb! The first time I made it was in a glass deep dish pie plate and i didn’t plate it. This time, however, I used my Nordicware aluminum cake pan and it stuck so bad! It came out in crumbs. What did I do wrong?? Help
Hi Virginia, Sorry to hear you had a problem with this sticking to the cake pan! Did you treat it with butter or baking spray first? If you’d like to remove the cake from the pan to serve it, you may want to use a springform pan next time.
Cake was delicious. My strawberries were small so they stayed on top. Only baked for 45 minutes. A bit dry so next time I will include strawberries in the batter as well.
I love strawberry cake in general as well as many recipes on this site (the baked ziti is delicious!), but I’m sorry to say that I wouldn’t recommend this cake or make it again – I got a very strong sugar/sweet after taste from the 2 tbsp of sugar sprinkled on top and the cake itself tasted bland and a bit lacking when you didn’t get a bite with strawberry. Overall I felt the roasted strawberries were the yummy part but not what went with them/the rest of the cake.
Excellent strawberry cake! Thrilled with how easy it is to make, and the result is beautiful. This will replace my strawberry shortcake recipes that can be dry and biscuity. Made it twice in a week since it is fresh strawberry season with fresh whipped cream. Reminds me of some French fruit cake recipes. Second time around I packed more strawberries into the batter.
The absolute best strawberry cake recipe I’ve ever had.
Hi Jenn,
I would like to make this on Thursday for a Friday dinner. I have a 9.5″ glass Pyrex deep pie dish. Would that work with the temp and time you have in the recipe? I also have a 9″ springform pan…would that work better at the temp and times given?
Thanks so much! I love all of the receipes I’ve made so far!
Hi Rose, a 9.5-inch pie dish will work with no modifications. Hope you enjoy!
Just made this the other day and it was delightful! Would it still turn out okay if I mixed blueberries into the batter and then did the traditional strawberries on top?
Hi Margaret, so glad you enjoyed it! I wouldn’t recommend adding blueberries to the mix as the juices will make the cake too moist. Sorry!
We love it, a very good recipe, a small cake which is good for two people who love leftovers for the next day.
I made this cake to take to the office after the 4th. It got rave reviews. I would probably cook for only an hour next time, or less, but it was still very good. I sprinkled a little cinnamon on top with the sugar prior to baking and it worked great. Will make again!
Hi! How have I only just seen this recipe?! This is the nicest and most delicious cake EVER!
I’m wondering would it work with raspberries????
Glad you discovered and enjoyed it! I haven’t tried it, but think it will work with raspberries. I’d love to hear how it turns out if you try it!
Made this recipe and I brushed the top with strawberry lavender jelly and a sprinkle of turbindao sugar before baking. It turned out and is delicious!!
P.S. I make your blueberry muffins recipe all the time and they are awesome!
I loved how easy this was to make. Never had a problem with the berries sinking.
Only thing for me is I found an hour a bit long. I did 57 minutes at 350 and I think I would go closer to 50 min next time. It’s a great recipe that you could put with any fruit on top I would think!
This cake is delicious and so easy! It has become my husband’s favorite and most requested cake! I do sometimes add a ring of blueberries between each ring of strawberries, especially on July 4th to make the cake patriotic!
I also used this batter to make a cinnamon coffee cake which turned out delish as well!
I would love to know how you make your cinnamon coffee cake.. Recipe for topping ? Many thanks… and yes, Jen’s strawberry cake and other recipes are fantastic !!!
I have prepared many of the recipes on Jenn’s website and never once was I disappointed. I followed the recipe and the cake was delicious. I was wondering if i could use a spring pan instead of a 9 inch round cake pan.I think the presentation would be prettier. Thank you for wonderful recipes and professional guidance.
So glad you like the recipes (including this one)! Yes, it’s fine to prepare this in a springform pan.
Made recently and my guests ate it for dessert….and for breakfast! A hit! Wondering if this would work with peaches and blueberries? Anyone try this with other fruit?
Hi Amy, Glad it was a hit! Yes, both blueberries and peaches will work here. Please LMK how it turns out if you try it!
Can buttermilk be used in place of whole or low fat milk? This is a delicious cake, I once made it with fresh peaches, also tasty!
Hi Deborah, I’d stick with regular milk here (And so glad you like the cake!)
I’ll do that then! Thanks for your quick reply!
So delicious and buttery…. I appreciate how lovely the strawberries look arranged around the cake.
Very happy how this turned out! Some said they had issues with the strawberries sinking. I cut mine in thin slices and didn’t have any issues. The batter is quite thick so think next time I’ll slice them a bit thicker.
Definitely will make again!
I seldom bake, but I had so many strawberries! I made this delicious cake in a 9″ square baking dish. I followed the recipe except I used more strawberries to cover the entire cake. I might even add more next time! Easy, quick, delicious taste of summer!
I had a bunch of fresh-picked strawberries to use up. I made the Fresh Strawberry Cake last night. I appreciate your step by step directions and the photos. I baked mine in an 8.5×8.5 square pyrex dish. I checked for doneness with a wooden skewer and did remove it from the oven after 1 hour and five minutes. I did have some crumbs on the skewer but I could see that the sides were a nice golden brown color. I thought that there would be some carryover baking as the dish cooled. I enjoyed the recipe very much and will make it again. I used salted butter but cut back on the additional salt that the recipe required. It is delicious. I’ll be making this recipe again. Thanks so much for your very detailed directions…!!!
WOW!!! I’ve been cooking and baking for many many years and I’ve never felt the need to leave a review until now! The cake turned out delicious and bakery-quality in terms of taste and presentation. Will be making again!
I have made this cake several times and it is always delicious. I follow the directions exactly. Topped with vanilla ice cream and whipped cream – so yummy!!!
I made this cake last week and it was DELICIOUS! Easy and such a lovely summer dessert.
Question. I need a bigger cake and was thinking about doubling the recipe and cooking in a springform pan. Will this work? Temperature? Baking time?
Thank you for this goodness!
So glad you enjoyed it! You could double this and use a 9 or 10-inch springform pan. I’d keep the oven temp the same; bake time may be a little longer, so keep a close eye on it.
Thank you! Making it for July 4th!
I’m in the UK so switched over to metric. I followed the recipe exactly but my batter was “sloppier” than your pictures.
I feel that there’s too much milk in the recipe so will cut it down. Once baked most of the strawberries sank because the batter wasn’t stiff enough.
I can see now that other people have had a problem with the strawberries sinking. I shall add the milk a little at a time till I get a consistency like yours.
It tasted nice enough anyway, just didn’t look as pretty as yours.
Why is my whole cake still liquid after baking an hour and 15mins?
That sounds very strange! The cake is pretty predictable – is there a chance you made a measuring error? Also, You may want to check your oven temperature to see if it’s accurate. Here’s some guidance on how to do that.
It was so easy to make And Very delicious. Great with or without Kool Whip
Hi, would you change the cooking time if doubling the recipe in a 9×13 pan?
Hi Natalie, the cook time should be about the same if not just a touch longer. Enjoy!
OMG THIS STRAWBERRY CAKE WAS THE ABSOLUTE BEST EVER !!!! Thank you ❤️❤️ ❤️
OMG! This totally is totally delicious and was easy to do. I used Splenda instead of sugar as my husband is diabetic, and its about to become a summer staple!
The strawberry cake is easy to make and very tasty but most of my strawberries sank to the bottom ?? The sponge was very light but the cake had a bit of a soggy bottom!!! Any advice as I would like to make the cake again. I am from the UK so had to turn the cups and tablespoon measurement (for the butter) into grams but I think I did it correctly from a chart. Thank you.
Hi Liz, Sorry to hear the strawberries all sunk to the bottom! Did you use really large strawberries? If so, try cutting them smaller next time. Also, you mentioned needing to convert the recipe to grams. The great majority of my recipes (including this one) include conversions to metric/weight measurements. To view them, scroll down to the recipe, and immediately under the recipe title on the right side, you’ll see a little toggle. If you move it from “cup measures” to metric, you’ll see measurements that will work for you. Hope that helps!
My strawberries ended up on the bottom of the pan. The cake is delicious but no as pretty.
Any ideas why the fresh strawberries sank?
Hi Marsha, Sorry to hear the strawberries sunk. They were likely a little too big. Next time, cut them into slightly smaller pieces.
This is definitely a divine cake
We will make it for many special occasions. We did top it with more strawberries which we love. Didn’t Last long.
Thank you
Bet n Kat
Oh, wow, simple, sweet and scrumptious. Definitely adding this recipe to our repertoire. Thank you Jenn!
Excellent recipe, beautiful result! I can’t wait to see what other recipes of yours I can try!
But…
I’m am American living in the UK so use both cups and metrics. Are your metric measures calculated (as in via a converter) or measured out in cups and then weighed in grams? I ask because on my digital scales the butter, flour and sugar metrics are out. Not by a lot but enough that it might make a difference for people without a trusty set of American measuring cups. For example, 6 Tablespoons of butter is actually 90g, not 85 (or it’s 3 ounces if that matters to anyone). One cup of sugar is 188g plus 2 Tablespoons is 30g, which is 218g in total (not 225g). 1 1/2 cups of flour is 192g (sorry, I can’t remember what the recipe said for this one).
Thanks for your hard work, I hope this is helpful.
Hi Lisa, So glad you liked the cake! I have a metric conversion tool on the blog that I’ve created based on weighing all those ingredients as I’ve cooked. I would recommend sticking to the ones that I have on the blog as that’s how I’ve tested and prepared all the recipes. Hope that clarifies!
What an amazing cake! I made it with my 3year old and he loved making it. Won’t eat I cause it has pink bits in 🤷🏻♀️ just means there’s more for us 😂 tastes amazing!
I usually love Jen‘s recipes, but this one was just pretty average. It was simple to make, and it did look pretty. It just seems to be a bit too thick on the cake/biscuit part and could’ve used another layer of strawberries or something. I likely won’t make it again.
Jenn, I LOVE this recipe. Found it a few years ago and it’s now my go to for cake. I froze several gallons of fresh strawberries last year. Do I need to thaw them to use in the cake? Could I put them in frozen? Thanks in advance for responding!
So glad you like it! You can add the berries without thawing them.
Hello. Can 1/2 & 1/2 be substituted for the milk? Thank you.
Sure, Francis, that will work. Enjoy!
Deliciously perfect!