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.
Tried this recipe?Leave a comment and rating below!
Erin says
I followed every step of this recipe precisely and it looked good until I went to frost and everything was chilled overnight but my frosting turned to liquid and just made a big melty soggy mess. I’m so mad what a waste of time, I should have used gelatin, the cream cheese and powdered sugar just wasn’t enough to stabilize the whipped cream frosting.
Allison says
Hi, Erin. The whipped cream likely deflated overnight. If you whip it again it should thicken. I have made this cake a dozen times, and although this frosting is on the softer side, it is always firm enough to hold its shape. If you’re using a stand mixer with the whisk attachment it should thicken. Sorry you had trouble.
Mare says
How does this cake freeze?
Allison says
I do not recommend freezing it.
Emilie Beaupre says
Hi! This looks amazing! Is there any way I can prepare everything the day before and assemble it the day of serving? Just don’t want to bake the cake the same day as the bday party hihi
Allison says
Hi, Emilie. I just added make ahead instructions to the notes area of the recipe. Here it is:
This cake is best the day it is made. If you have to make it ahead, you can prepare the following one day in advance. Note: do not assemble until the day you are serving.
Bake and cool the cake layers and wrap in wax paper and plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator. Prepare the whipped cream frosting and store it in the refrigerator. The frosting may deflate as it sits for an extended time so you might need to re-whip it before assembling. Hold off on tossing the strawberries with jam until you are assembling the cake. Store assembled cake in the refrigerator and bring to cool room temperature before serving.
Valerie says
This cake is delicious. The flavor of the cake itself was one of the best cakes I have ever made. I was thoroughly impressed. The whipped cream came out really good but next time I will use less sugar because I feel like it was a little sweeter than my liking. I also didn’t use the jelly/jam for the strawberries because I don’t think it’s necessary. The strawberries were already sweet and I prefer a fresh taste. If I use less sugar in the whipped cream next time, I think I’ll give the jam a try. Nonetheless, this cake was perfect and well worth the time I put into it!
Allison says
Thanks for sharing your experience. Happy baking! 🙂
Marie says
I want to know if I can use all egg whites as I have someone that is allergic to eggs
Allison says
I’ve only made the recipe as written. You’d have to play around with it.
Ruby says
Could I bake the batter in one ten inch pan and then cut it in half? Would it bake differently?
Allison says
It might be too much batter for one pan. You’d have to play around with it.
Rebecca B Anderson says
can you use 8 x 8 square pans?
Allison says
I haven’t tried it. I do have a sheet cake version if you’d prefer that: Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake.
Autumn says
Delicious. I changed it up a bit to fit my families likes. Added a little regular sugar in the powder sugar. Then turned the actual cake portion into a tres leche cake because the breading wasn’t as moist as I wished. Probably over cooked it by three or four minutes. 🙁 but it turned out fantastic 🫶🏼
Joy says
I have a question about the egg whites in the recipe. Are you supposed to beat them prior to putting into the cake mixture. I know some recipes ask that you beat them till frothy prior to adding to cake mixture.
Allison says
Hi, Joy. No, that is not necessary. Enjoy!
Michele says
Great cake. Made this for Mother’s Day. For my Mother and sister in law. It was beautiful.
Allison says
I’m so glad! Thanks for the kind review. 🙂
Claudia Bishop says
Hi! I made this cake for my birthday, with a couple creative liberties, and it was a hit!!! I want to reuse the frosting recipe, but was wondering if I could flavor it differently? I want to make a cake for my friend’s graduation, and her favorite fruit is peach! Would I just substitute the vanilla extract for a peach extract? Can I add chopped peaches for more flavor? I would love your advice!
Allison says
Hi, Claudia. I’ve never heard of peach extract, so I’m not too sure about that. I would not add chopped peaches into the frosting, I think the moisture will thin out the frosting. You can make this recipe and just swap the strawberries for sliced peaches.
Maria says
The cake and strawberries turned out great. However I could not get the frosting to whip. I couldn’t even get soft peaks. It went straight from soupy liquid to lumpy, separating into butter. I tried everything to save it, adding extra heavy cream and starting over, chilling everything including the bowl and mixer for hours. I normally do not post comments but I’m really baffled how this went so wrong. I have made whipped cream before with success, but have never added cream cheese to stabilize. I now have almost 4 cups of something on its way to butter. I think it would make more sense to make whipped cream first, then fold in the softened cream cheese? Would love some advice. I would caution anyone who is not very experienced with making their own whipped cream to have a tub of thawed cool whip on hand just in case.
Allison says
Hi, Maria. Sorry to hear that. It sounds like you know what you are doing, and you tried the things I would suggest. Are you positive that you were using heavy whipping cream?