This post was originally published in June of 2018. I’ve updated it to include step-by-step photos but the recipe remains the same.
Did you know that Americans consume about 3 1/2 pounds of strawberries per person per year? Guys, I think I bring up that average all by myself.
Because I cannot get enough strawberries—or any berry, really. And I love that good strawberries are available pretty much all year (at least in Phoenix).
So you know I needed to give strawberries their very own cake. And trust me when I tell you that this strawberry layer cake is DELICIOUS! Also trust me when I tell you you need to make yourself one very soon.
Sweet and packing a very strawberry-y punch, you’ll fall hard for this cake at bite one. (And you’ll want to eat the strawberry cream cheese frosting with a spoon. It’s that good.)
Why you’ll love this strawberry layer cake:
- It’s super easy because it starts with a cake mix
- You don’t need a stand mixer to make it!
- It freezes really well (on the off chance you have leftovers. . .)
How to make strawberry layer cake
The cake layers are super sweet and made with fresh berries baked right in. BAKED RIGHT IN!
Start by crushing some fresh berries with a rolling pin; put them in a zip-top bag and just take out your frustrations on that fruit!
You don’t need to puree them, just mush them up a bit so they look like the pic above.
- Combine cake mix and a few other ingredients in a large bowl
- Beat to combine
- Add egg whites and vanilla and beat
- Then add the crushed berries, juices and all
- Beat until the berries are incorporated
- Divide batter between 8-inch cake pans and bake about 30 minutes
Remember that your cake layers need to cool completely before you frost them! If you try to frost them while they’re hot your frosting will melt.
How to make strawberry cream cheese frosting
Because of the strawberry layer cake’s sweetness, the frosting is a cream cheese frosting. The added tang from the cream cheese helps balance the sweet nicely.
- Puree strawberries in a food processor and transfer them to a small pan
- Cook the berries until they’ve reduced by about half, then stir in lemon juice
Because cooking berries can take away from their fresh flavor, I like to add lemon juice to brighten the flavors back up; I don’t recommend leaving it out.
Cool your puree to room temperature before proceeding with the frosting (or your frosting will melt!).
- Combine room temperature butter and cream cheese in a bowl and beat until smooth
- Beat in powdered sugar, milk, and salt
- Add the cooled puree and beat to combine
Then it’s just a matter of frosting your cooled cake layers, slicing the cake, and devouring!
How to store strawberry layer cake
Should you happen to have uneaten cake you can store it, covered, in the fridge for about 2 days. (Unlike some cakes, this one must be stored in the refrigerator because of the cream cheese in the frosting.)
If you can’t eat all the leftovers in two days, this cake freezes well.
Slice the cake, set the slices on a baking sheet, then pop the baking sheet in the freezer for about half an hour to set the frosting. Once the frosting has hardened, tightly wrap each slice individually with a few layers of plastic wrap and/or freezer paper. You can store it this way for a couple of months.
Can I use frozen strawberries in this cake?
Unfortunately no—I don’t recommend using frozen berries in the cake layers. You can use frozen berries in the frosting though. Obviously frozen berries will take a little longer to reduce so keep that in mind.
You really can’t go wrong with a fresh strawberry layer cake can you? Let’s all make one this weekend and bring that 3 1/2-pound average up to 4!
More strawberry recipes (in case you’re hungry)
Strawberry Shortcake Layer Cake
Mini Strawberry Cheesecakes
Strawberry Lemonade Cake
Strawberry Rhubarb Cheesecake
Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes
If you make this strawberry layer cake be sure to let me know what you think by leaving a comment and rating below. And post a pic on Insta too—tag @theitsybitsykitchen so I can see your beautiful creations!
- 3/4 cup chopped fresh strawberries
- 1 15.25-ounce box white cake mix*
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 3/4 cup whole milk
- 1 3-ounce box strawberry gelatin
- 4 large egg whites
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup sliced fresh strawberries
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- 8 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
- 4 to 5 cups powdered sugar
- 1 to 2 tablespoons milk or cream
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray 2 (8-inch) round cake pans with cooking spray. Line the bottoms of the pans with parchment, spray the parchment, and set pans aside.
- Place berries in a large zip-top plastic bag and use a rolling pin to mash them. Set aside.
- Combine the cake mix, vegetable oil, milk, and gelatin in a mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Beat in the egg whites 1 at a time, then beat in the vanilla. Beat in the strawberries and their juices until combined.
- Divide batter evenly between the prepared pans and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean. Set pans on a wire rack to cool completely before filling and frosting.
- Puree the berries in a blender or food processor. Pour into a small saucepan and add the lemon juice. Place pan over medium heat and bring mixture to a boil, stirring frequently. Turn heat to low and simmer, stirring often, until puree reduces by about half (8 to 10 minutes). You'll have about 1/3 cup of puree. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
Once puree is cool, place the cream cheese and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. (You can also use a hand mixer and a large mixing bowl.)
Beat until very smooth, then add 4 cups powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon milk, and salt and mix to combine. Beat in the puree until combined. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, then turn mixer to medium and beat until very smooth. Add additional powdered sugar if frosting is too thin and additional milk if frosting is too thick.
Set one cooled cake layer on a cake stand or cardboard cake circle. Spread or pipe a layer of frosting on top. Top with a second cake layer, then frost and decorate the cake as desired. Slice and serve.
Recipe Video
- Be sure to let your strawberry puree cool to room temperature before using it in the frosting. If you use it while it's still hot your frosting will melt.
- Uneaten cake can be stored, covered, in the fridge for up to 2 days or in the freezer (tightly wrapped) for up to 2 months.
Adapted from Big Taste of Little Rock
Kristi Reynolds says
OMG This was a hit! My BF loved this cake. I made him a 5 inch mini cake Andrea used another fav meringue icing recipe then used the rest of the batter for cupcakes. Awesome!
Question: can I use the same use recipe for vanilla cake but use vanilla putting?
Kelsie says
I’m so glad you liked it, Kristi! As long as you use instant vanilla pudding that should work just fine; I use instant pudding in a lot of cake mix cakes because it makes them really moist. You don’t want to use cook and serve pudding.
Pam says
Can you use frozen strawberries?
Kelsie says
Hi Pam! I don’t recommend using frozen berries
FARAH says
Hey do you think I can make my own batter and mix in the strawberry gelatin I don’t want to
Use boxed cake mix how can I make my own ?
Kelsie says
I think if you have a favorite vanilla cake you could probably add strawberry jello to that, but honestly I would just look for a recipe for strawberry cake from scratch. I’m sorry I can’t be of more help but there really isn’t a good substitute for the cake mix in this recipe!
Lisa says
Would it be ok to use 1% instead of whole milk?
Kelsie says
Hi Lisa! That should be fine!
Heather says
Can you use yellow cake mix instead of white?
Kelsie says
Hi Heather! You absolutely can, the color will just be different–more orange-y.
casey says
it was very delicious but icing was extremely runny. had to use about 6 cups of powdered sugar. and even after that the icing was seeping out in between the two cake layers, and seeped down sides of the cake. my family still loved it though and it did taste delicious. any tips on how i can fix the problem i had? maybe i did something wrong?
Kelsie says
Hi Casey! I’m glad you enjoyed the cake but I’m sorry you had issues with the frosting!
First, I’ll just say that cream cheese frosting never gets very stiff (like an American buttercream would) but clearly it shouldn’t seep down the sides of the cake. My first thought is that maybe your cake layers hadn’t cooled down completely? Warm cake could definitely cause your frosting to soften too much.
But it sounds like the problem came before you even attempted to frost it so I’m wondering if maybe your berry puree was still warm when you added it. That could cause the butter to melt, which would make the frosting runny.
Also, because it’s summer, butter softens pretty quickly. I live in Phoenix and any time I make frosting in the summer it’s a nightmare even though I have AC running on full blast. I suggest next time adding the amount of powdered sugar in the frosting, then refrigerating the frosting for 20 minutes or so. If it thickens up enough to frost your cake nicely then I think you’ve found your culprit.
Another trick any time you frost a cake and have trouble with the frosting staying in place is just to put the whole thing, cake stand and all, into the fridge for a few minutes. That should let your frosting set up enough that it will stay where it belongs. Hope this helps!
Emma @ Bake Then Eat says
So pretty, what a great summer show stopper this cake would make!
Kelsie says
Thank you, Emma!
Paige says
Can make this as a square cake instead of a round layer?
Kelsie says
You can absolutely use two square baking pans or one 13- by 9-inch baking dish; you’ll just need to adjust the baking time. Here’s a guide that should help you figure out the approximate time you’ll need to use; I’d suggest taking about 10 minutes off the suggested time and start checking your cake at that point to avoid over-baking. Cake Baking Times
Jo Thrasher • Jo Eats says
This color is BRILLIANT! Also summer = strawberries in my mind so I can’t WAIT to make this.
Kelsie says
Thank you so much, Jo!
Kelly @ Kelly Lynns Sweets and Treats says
Love the updated post with the step by step photos!! This cake is SO DANG PRETTY TOO!!! Love it Kelsie!!
Kelsie says
Thank you, Kelly!
Leanne | Crumb Top Baking says
I know I commented last year, but I just had to comment again. I love the colour of this cake! Perfect for strawberry season. And I totally eat way more than 3.5 pounds a year!
Kelsie says
Oh 3.5 pounds is like a per month number for me 😂 Thanks, Leanne!
Sonja says
Ive made this cake before but this weekend the middle of the cake keeps falling in. Im not sure what im doing wrong. Ive lowered the amount of strawberries and it still falls. What can I do to fix this?
Kelsie says
That’s so strange! I’m sorry you’re having issues this time. There are a lot of reasons cakes can fall. Since you’ve made it before with success, my first question would be whether anything has changed. Did you get a new oven? Incorrect oven temp could definitely be the culprit. Or are you using a different size cake pan? That can also cause problems. Are you cooling the cake layers differently? For example, putting them in the fridge while they’re still warm. And (this is probably a silly question because I’m sure you are) but are you checking to be sure the layers are done before you pull them out? Under-baked cakes typically fall. Other possible reasons are over-mixing your batter (again, that’s probably not it since you made this before) or opening the oven door before the batter has set.
Haylie / Our Balanced Bowl says
Fresh strawberries are the reason that I love Spring so much! They are like eating straight up candy they’re so sweet! This strawberry cake looks amazing!!! I think I could probably eat it all by myself lol!
Kelsie says
Thank you, Haylie!
Mary Ann | The Beach House Kitchen says
Totally gorgeous Kelsie! I can’t get enough strawberries during the summer! It’s like eating candy. This would be so perfect for one of our summer parties!
Dawn - Girl Heart Food says
I don’t know what I love more – the flavour or the pretty colour! Either way, I’m going to have to give this one a go. Lovely update, Kelsie! So so perfect for the coming months too 🙂 Pinned! Have an awesome weekend ahead!