A tender vanilla cake filled with layers of whipped cream frosting and juicy strawberries. The classic flavors of strawberry shortcake in a layer cake.
What tastes like a strawberry shortcake, looks like a beautiful layer cake, and is sure to impress anyone and everyone you serve it to?
Answer: STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE CAKE!
If you’ve been around these parts for a while you know that I absolutely love baking with strawberries (I kinda like drinking ’em, too). During spring and summer, there are always strawberries in our kitchen. They are my favorite fruit to bake with, and they go well in so many recipes. Try these, too:
I’ve had a Strawberry Shortcake Cake on my summer “to-bake” list for years. My goal was to come up with a cake that had all the flavors of strawberry shortcake stacked high in a gorgeous layer cake.
My main criteria were that the recipe needed to be fairly easy, completely from scratch, and it needed to taste AMAZING (duh). I fully expected to have to play around with this recipe multiple times until I got it right, but, somehow this came out perfect – just the way I wanted it – on the first try.
Strawberry Shortcake Cake
- Vanilla Cake: I made three layers of a fluffy vanilla cake. The cake layers are light, yet sturdy enough to hold our filling and topping. If you’d prefer a two layer cake, you can bake the cake in two pans, rather than three. Your layers will be slightly thicker than mine.
- Stabilized Whipped Cream Frosting: Strawberry shortcake has to have whipped cream (and not the kind in a can or that questionable whipped topping in a tub). This is the real deal – freshly whipped cream, lightly sweetened with powdered sugar, and flavored with a touch of vanilla. In order to keep our whipped cream firm, I also add cream cheese to it. This stabilizes the cream and helps it hold its shape. You will have enough frosting to frost the sides of your layer cake, if you desire. I like the rustic look of leaving the sides exposed.
- Strawberries: Find the best strawberries you can and toss them with some strawberry jam (this makes them glossy and sweet). Strawberries go in between our cake layers, as well as on top of the cake. You can decorate the top of the cake however you like: I used a combination of diced strawberries and whole strawberries. I used thinly sliced strawberries for layering in between the cake (see below).
What I love about this cake is its versatility. It’s pretty enough to be served at a dinner party, yet casual enough to be part of a summer BBQ. If you know someone with a summer birthday, this cake would be extra pretty studded with candles and served to your loved ones. However/whenever you choose to make it – just make it! Grab those beautiful summer strawberries before they are gone.
- More STRAWBERRY RECIPES:
- Strawberry Cupcakes
- Warm Strawberry Crumb Cake
- Strawberry Cream Cheese Pie
- Strawberry Orange Margaritas
- Strawberry Jam
- Strawberry Crisp
**RECIPE UPDATED AUGUST 2020 – After receiving mixed reviews on the cake itself I have changed the cake portion of this recipe. Originally I used a “hot milk sponge cake”, which is a bit fussy. I have updated the recipe with a more traditional (almost foolproof) vanilla cake. If you’d prefer the previous recipe you can access that here.
Recipe
Strawberry Shortcake Cake
Ingredients
Cake:
- 2½ cups all purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1¾ cups granulated sugar
- ½ cup vegetable or canola oil
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 large egg whites, room temperature
- 2½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract , optional, but highly recommended
- ⅔ cup sour cream
- ¾ cup milk , preferably whole or 2%, room temperature
Filling:
- 3 cups sliced or diced fresh strawberries , divided
- 2 tablespoons strawberry jam
- additional whole strawberries , for garnish, optional
Frosting:
- 8 ounces cream cheese , softened to cool room temp
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2¼ cups heavy whipping cream , really cold, straight from the fridge
Instructions
Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, and salt until combined. Set aside.
- Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (preferred) or a hand mixer, beat sugar, oil, eggs, egg whites, and extracts until combined. Add the sour cream and beat until combined. Add half of the flour mixture, beating until just combined. While still beating, slowly add milk, then the remaining flour mixture. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Be careful not to overmix it.
- Line three 8-inch cake pans** with parchment paper and grease the pans. Evenly divide the batter between the three pans. Tap/gently drop the pans on the countertop a couple times to remove any air bubbles.
- Bake for 18-22 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. If necessary, rotate the pans once during bake time to ensure even browning. Place the pans on a rack to cool completely.
Filling:
- Combine the strawberries and jam and set aside (these will be used for the filling and topping). Note: I slice the strawberries for the filling (about 2½ cups), and I diced the strawberries for the top of the cake (about ½ cup). You can slice or dice, your choice. You'll need about 3 cups total.
Frosting:
- Place the cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract in a large mixing bowl. Using a stand mixer with a whisk attachment (preferred) or hand mixer, beat the mixture on medium speed until smooth. While the mixer is still whipping, slowly pour the heavy cream down the side of the bowl. Stop and scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl periodically. Increase the speed to high and continue whipping until the cream can hold a stiff peak. It is important that the cream stays cold so that it will thicken properly. If you're using a hand mixer hold the bowl near the top and don't hold the bowl against your body.
Assembly:
- Place one layer of cake on a platter. Top with one-third of the frosting, then top with about 1¼ cups of strawberries. Place another layer of cake on top and repeat. For the third/top of layer of cake, top with remaining whipped cream frosting, then place the remaining strawberries in the center. Decorate the outside with whole strawberries, if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Information is an estimate based on third-party calculations and may vary based on products used and serving sizes.
Jessica
Incredible sweet not complex flavoring at all. Just bland and sweet. Would not make again.
Allison
Hi, Jessica. Sorry you didn’t enjoy it. That’s not a complaint I’ve heard before. The strawberries are key to this recipe and seeing as how it is November perhaps your strawberries didn’t add much flavor since they’re not in season. Thanks for stopping by.
Cindy
just completed this for my granddaughters 13 birthday…. Looks amazing and i am sure it tastes as good as it looks!
Allison
Enjoy!
Linda
Making this for my grand son’s 18th birthday next week. We do not have good strawberries here in VA in mid December so I only have frozen 🙁 Any thoughts? I do worry his cake will be soggy any not sure how to add strawberries into layers. Any ideas most appreciated! I’ve signed up for your emails and eager to try this strawberry cake and your other recipes. Many thanks in advance..
Allison
Hi, Linda. I’d probably leave the strawberries off the cake and spoon the strawberries over each slice when serving. You might want to add extra sugar or strawberry jam since frozen strawberries tend to be less sweet.
Michelle
Can I make the frosting a few days ahead of time?
Allison
I would not recommend it, the frosting could deflate a bit. You can try this Vanilla Buttercream if you need something that you can make in advance.
Amy
Do you know what adjustments would be needed for high altitudes?
Allison
I don’t any experience with that. You can try this guide: https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/learn/resources/high-altitude-baking
Shannon Berg
I made this for my daughter’s birthday. It looks beautiful and the cheesecake whipped cream is delicious!
Allison
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Mia
I made this delicious cake for my own birthday in November and now asking my son what he would like for his birthday the answer was instantaneous, this one!
Probably the best layered cake I have made – thank you for sharing 🥰
Allison
You’re welcome! I’m so glad you enjoyed it. 🙂
Andrene
This recipe was so tasty. Even my pickiest daughter loved this cake. The only thing I did differently was to drain the liquid left over after I let the strawberry and jam mixture sit in the fridge to prevent a soggy cake.
Allison
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Lindsey
First of all, the frosting is a revelation for me – I don’t like straight cream cheese frostings (or cheesecake, I just don’t like cheesy desserts) – but the whipping cream lightens it up just right. I will be using this frosting recipe next time I make red velvet cake and have instructed my sister and mother to do so as well! Made this cake (made two, actually) for my daughter’s 7th birthday party. I always make our birthday cakes but haven’t settled on a particular recipe until now – this was my best one yet. I did make the frosting two days in advance, so it had gotten a little less stiff – it’s so easy to make that next time I will likely just do it shortly before. I just used frozen strawberries – let them defrost and whizzed some of them briefly with strawberry jam for the middle, and just sliced up a few more to decorate. Lots of strawberry flavor. Thank you for the recipe!
Allison
You’re welcome! Thanks for the kind review. 🙂
Kylie
Love this recipe, and I’ve made it several times! I was wondering if I could make the frosting more firm by adding extra sugar? I’m making this for a friend and it will be sitting in the fridge for a day. Also worried about it falling around in the car! Thanks!!
Allison
You can try that. You could also add a bit more cream cheese. You’d have to play around with it. Enjoy!
Sophia
This cake was delicious! I made it for my grandmas 92nd birthday and even after messing up the cake recipe it still came out amazing!
I will definitely be making this cake again
Allison
I’m glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for taking the time to comment. 🙂
Lisa
Hi! Do you think the cake base could be baked as cupcakes? Any recommendations??
Made it as a cake last year and it was delicious!
Allison
Hi, Lisa! I have a cupcake version: Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes. Enjoy!