Strawberry Cake

A great strawberry cake should taste like fresh strawberries. Bright, juicy, sweet, and unmistakably ripe.

However, many strawberry cake recipes and boxed mixes rely on artificial strawberry flavor and intense red or pink dyes to create that signature flavor and color. No thank you!

This version takes a different approach.

Made with our Amoretti® Water Soluble Wild Strawberry Extract, this moist, tender cake gets a concentrated strawberry flavor that tastes fresh, bright, and ripe. The extract is used in both the cake and cream cheese frosting, with a generous scoop of crushed freeze dried strawberries for extra depth, tang, and decoration, giving every bite that fresh-from-the-patch strawberry flavor.

While the cake itself stays naturally light in color, the frosting gets a subtle strawberry-inspired finish with a splash of our Amoretti® Natural Ruby Red and Natural Purple Food Colors. Together, they create a soft, rosy hue without relying on the intense artificial dyes typically used to make strawberry cakes so vividly pink.

A Strawberry Cake That Actually Tastes Like Strawberries? 

The key to this recipe is getting plenty of strawberry flavor into the cake without adding a large amount of fruit/fruit puree. Fresh strawberries can add moisture and flavor, but that can easily become muted once they're baked. Our Water Soluble Wild Strawberry Extract provides a concentrated boost of bright strawberry flavor that holds its own throughout the cake.

The result is a cake that's moist and tender with a fresh, ripe strawberry flavor, not the candy-like strawberry taste you might associate with traditional strawberry cake mixes.

Bright Strawberry Flavor in Every Layer

The strawberry flavor doesn't stop at the cake. A little extra splash of our Wild Strawberry Extract is mixed into the cream cheese frosting, creating a tangy, creamy topping that complements the sweetness of the cake.

For color, we use our Natural Ruby Red and Purple Food Colors to give the frosting its soft strawberry-inspired shade, coupled with an extra scoop (or two!) of some freeze dried strawberries for that iconic, fresh strawberry look and flavor.

The combination creates a beautiful pink-red color while keeping the overall look more natural and understated than the neon hues often found in traditional strawberry cakes.

Why You'll Love This Strawberry Cake

• Bright, ripe strawberry flavor
• Moist, tender crumb that stays soft and flavorful
• Strawberry-infused cream cheese frosting for even more fresh fruit flavor
• Dye-free cake: no intense artificial food coloring often used in strawberry cakes
• A fresh, fruit-forward alternative to artificially flavored strawberry cake mixes

The Best Strawberry Cake

Ingredients

Strawberry Cake

• 3 and 2/3 cups cake flour 
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/3 cup freeze-dried strawberries, crushed 
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs and 2 egg whites, room temperature
• 1 tablespoon Amoretti® Vanilla Bean Paste
• 2 teaspoons Amoretti® Wild Strawberry Water Soluble Extract
• 1 and 1/2 cups buttermilk, room temperature

Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 16 oz cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 tablespoon Amoretti® Vanilla Bean Paste
• 1 teaspoon Amoretti® Wild Strawberry Water Soluble Extract
  
• 1/4 cup freeze-dried strawberry powder
• 5 cups powdered sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

Prep:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease three 9-inch cake pans, line the bottom with a round of parchment paper, then grease the paper.

Making the Cake:

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the cake flour, freeze dried strawberries, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Set the mixture aside.
2. Add the butter and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, or use large bowl with a handheld mixer. Beat on high for about 3 minutes or until light, smooth, and creamy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
3. Add the eggs, egg whites, vanilla paste, and wild strawberry extract, then continue mixing on high for 2 minutes. The mixture may look slightly curdled at this stage, which is normal. Scrape the bowl again, then reduce the mixer speed to low and gradually add the dry ingredients. Pour in the buttermilk and mix just until everything is incorporated. The finished batter will be slightly thick.
4. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans. For the most even layers, you can weigh the batter in each pan before baking. Bake for 23–26 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer the pans to a wire rack and let the cakes cool completely before removing them from the pans. Make sure the layers are fully cooled before frosting and assembling the cake.

Making the Frosting:

1. In a large bowl using a handheld mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and cream cheese on medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add powdered sugar, freeze-dried strawberry powder, milk, vanilla paste, wild strawberry extract, and salt with the mixer running on low. Increase to high speed and beat for 2 minutes. 
2. Using a large serrated knife, slice a thin layer off the tops of the cakes to create a flat surface. Place 1 cake layer on your cake stand and cover the top with about 1 cup of frosting. Top with 2nd cake layer and evenly cover the top with about 1 cup of frosting. Top with the third cake layer. Spread about 1 and 1/2 to 2 cups of frosting all over the top and sides with an offset spatula. For a smooth edge, use a bench scraper and hold it nearly flush to the cake to smooth, not spread. 
3. [OPTIONAL] With the remaining frosting, transfer to a piping bag with a piping tip of your choosing and dollop small, medium, or large bits of frosting over the top of the cake. See our images above for inspiration.
4. Refrigerate cake for at least 1 hour, or freeze for 30 minutes, before slicing. This will help the cake hold it's shape. Serve and enjoy!
5. Cover leftover cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

*this recipe was adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction: Best Vanilla Cake.