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The Best Homemade Fresh Strawberry Layer Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

A close-up, sunlit slice of layered strawberry cake featuring pink sponge, white cream filling, and strawberry pieces.
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Make this moist, homemade strawberry layer cake from scratch. It features fresh strawberries throughout the cake layers and is topped with a rich, tangy cream cheese frosting, making it perfect for any celebration.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup fresh strawberry puree (from about 1 pound fresh strawberries)
  • 1 cup chopped fresh strawberries, tossed lightly in flour
  • For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
  • 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 tablespoons fresh strawberry puree
  • Fresh strawberries for garnish

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans. Line the bottoms with parchment paper.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt.
  3. In a separate bowl, cream together the softened butter until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
  4. In a small bowl, mix the buttermilk and vanilla extract.
  5. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, alternating with the buttermilk mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined. Do not overmix.
  6. Gently fold in the 1 cup of strawberry puree and the flour-tossed chopped strawberries.
  7. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
  8. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes before inverting them onto a wire rack to cool completely.
  9. Prepare the frosting: Beat the softened cream cheese and butter together until smooth. Gradually add the sifted powdered sugar, mixing until combined. Beat in the vanilla extract and 2 tablespoons of strawberry puree until the frosting is light and creamy.
  10. Once the cakes are completely cool, place one layer on a serving plate. Spread a generous layer of cream cheese frosting over the top. Place the second layer on top and frost the top and sides of the entire cake.
  11. Garnish with fresh strawberries before serving.

Notes

  • To make the strawberry puree, blend fresh, hulled strawberries until smooth, then strain through a fine-mesh sieve to remove seeds for a smoother cake batter.
  • Tossing the chopped strawberries in a small amount of flour before adding them to the batter helps prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the cake layers during baking.
  • For an extra moist strawberry cake, you can substitute 1/4 cup of the buttermilk with fresh strawberry juice extracted during the puree process.

Nutrition

Find it online: https://hearthbite.com/strawberry-cake-best-homemade-fresh-layer-cake/