Description
A delightful Fresh Strawberry Cake featuring a moist strawberry-infused cake layered with luscious strawberry buttercream. This recipe includes a homemade strawberry reduction made from fresh or frozen strawberries, enhancing natural sweetness and vibrant flavor. Perfect for spring and summer celebrations, this strawberry cake combines fresh fruit essence with a tender crumb and creamy frosting, creating an irresistible dessert.
Ingredients
Scale
Strawberry Reduction
- 32 ounces fresh or frozen strawberries, thawed if frozen
- 4 ounces sugar (optional)
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 pinch salt
Cake
- 8 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature
- 10 ounces granulated sugar
- 6 ounces egg whites, room temperature
- 4 ounces milk, room temperature (whole milk preferred)
- 6 ounces strawberry reduction, room temperature
- 2 ounces vegetable or canola oil
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- Zest from one lemon
- 1 ½ teaspoons strawberry emulsion or extract (e.g., LorAnn oils bakery emulsion)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon pink food coloring (e.g., Americolor electric pink gel)
- 14 ounces all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
Strawberry Buttercream
- 4 ounces pasteurized egg whites
- 16 ounces powdered sugar
- 16 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 ounces strawberry reduction, room temperature
Instructions
- Make Strawberry Reduction: Place thawed or fresh strawberries in a blender and purée until smooth. Transfer purée, sugar (if using), lemon zest, and lemon juice into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the mixture reduces to a thick, tomato sauce-like consistency (about 40–60 minutes) and yields 2 cups. Cool completely before using in cake and frosting. Store leftovers in the fridge up to 1 week or freeze up to 6 months.
- Prepare Oven and Pans: Preheat the oven to 350ºF (176ºC) and position the oven rack in the middle. Grease two 8-inch cake pans using pan release or your preferred method to prevent sticking.
- Mix Wet Ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, oil, strawberry reduction, strawberry emulsion, vanilla extract, lemon zest, lemon juice, and pink food coloring until well combined.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until evenly mixed.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the room temperature butter at medium speed until smooth and shiny, about 30 seconds. Gradually add granulated sugar and beat until fluffy and almost white, approximately 3–5 minutes.
- Add Egg Whites: Add the egg whites one at a time to the creamed butter mixture, beating for 15 seconds between each addition. Scrape down the sides as needed; the mixture should be cohesive and not curdled.
- Combine Wet and Dry Ingredients: On low speed, alternate adding one-third of the dry ingredients, immediately followed by one-third of the milk mixture. Repeat this two more times, mixing just until ingredients are almost incorporated after each addition. Avoid overmixing. Scrape bowl to ensure the batter looks smooth and uniform, similar to ice cream consistency.
- Bake the Cakes: Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake at 350ºF (176ºC) for 30–35 minutes or until centers are firm and a toothpick inserted comes out clean or with a few crumbs.
- Cool Cakes: Place pans on a wire rack and cool cakes for 10 minutes. Then invert cakes onto racks and allow them to cool completely. Wrap cooled cakes in plastic wrap and refrigerate or freeze before assembly for easier handling.
- Prepare Strawberry Buttercream: In a stand mixer bowl, combine pasteurized egg whites and powdered sugar. Attach the whisk and mix on low to combine, then whip on high for 5 minutes until thick and glossy. Gradually add softened butter in chunks, whipping on high for 8–10 minutes until white, light, and fluffy; the mixture may look curdled initially, but keep whipping. Add strawberry reduction, vanilla, and salt, whipping until fully incorporated. For an extra smooth texture, switch to the paddle attachment and mix on low for 15–20 minutes to remove excess air bubbles.
- Assemble Cake: If desired, spread a thin layer of strawberry reduction between cake layers to add moisture and flavor. Fill and frost the cakes with the strawberry buttercream evenly. Decorate as desired and chill briefly before slicing to ensure the neatest presentation.
Notes
- The strawberry reduction can be made ahead and stored refrigerated up to 1 week or frozen up to 6 months for convenience.
- Using room temperature ingredients (butter, egg whites, milk) ensures better incorporation and texture in the cake batter.
- Do not overmix the batter after combining wet and dry ingredients to avoid a dense cake.
- Refrigerating or freezing the cake layers before assembly makes them easier to handle and frost neatly.
- The buttercream may look curdled at first; continue whipping to achieve a smooth, fluffy consistency.
- Adjust sugar amount in the strawberry reduction according to the sweetness of your strawberries and personal preference.
- Using pasteurized egg whites in the buttercream ensures food safety.
