Fresh strawberries are the star of the show (and of the summer) in this petite fresh strawberry cake. The size may be small, but it will pack lots of flavor with a cream cheese icing and plenty of fresh strawberries throughout.
I love to celebrate fresh berries. They are just so pretty and delicious and in a world of often brown foods, it’s so much fun to have a colorful palette! Like these strawberry shortcakes or these berries and cream cupcakes, strawberries are definitely the star here.
What Makes this Cake Special?
- Plenty of fresh strawberries are reduced for extra concentrated flavor in the cake and the icing.
- An oil-based cake means not only do the strawberries shine, but no mixer is required for a quick and easy cake.
- The petite size is great for small gatherings and is just the sweetest little strawberry cake you’ll ever see.
- Skip any fancy decorations, a few whole berries on top is all that is needed.
Ingredients
The ingredients for the cake are fairly basic, but maybe a little different than your standard cake ingredients. Let’s talk through some of the highlight ingredients:
- Cake flour. I prefer this over all-purpose in most cakes for a very light and soft cake.
- Neutral oil. This means an oil without a strong flavor like canola or vegetable oil. I usually use a combination of butter and oil in my cakes for both flavor and moist texture, but I didn’t want to compete with the strawberries as much.
- Egg whites. Instead of whole eggs, this recipe uses egg whites for a tender cake. It also allows the pink color to shine through.
- Greek yogurt. I use a full-fat Greek yogurt to enrich some of the fat without too strong of a flavor. You could substitute sour cream, but milk will not be rich enough.
- Fresh strawberries. You could also use frozen and thawed berries, through it may take more time to reduce the juices. But for summer I really love to get the great summer berries.
Making Strawberry Cake
There’s one key element to making this strawberry cake, and that is making a strawberry reduction. Strawberries are naturally very wet and wet doesn’t work that well in a cake or icing. So reducing the berry juice down not only concentrates the flavor, but it thickens the juice so it blends beautifully into the cake batter.
Just remove the leaves then puree or mash. Let them reduce on the stove for a while. A little sugar and lemon enhances the flavor and helps to thicken the mixture.
Don’t rush this, it will take a good 35-45 minutes, with regular stirring, for the mixture to reduce down. And don’t forget to stir, or you will have burnt strawberry sauce!
Let the reduced mixture cool to room temperature before making the cake batter. Spreading it into a shallow pan in the fridge will speed it up.
Strawberry Cake Batter
Once the strawberry reduction is ready, the rest of the recipe is gravy. Because this is an oil-based cake, we only need two bowls, a whisk and a spatula – no fancy mixer is required.
Whisk together one bowl of the dry ingredients and one bowl of the wet ingredients. Did you know sugar is considered a wet ingredient because it turns to a liquid when it’s heated.
Don’t be concerned if the mixture looks a little clumpy, the strawberry puree will do that. I found this cake baked very level and didn’t need cake strips to prevent a dome, but you can always add them if desired. Cake strips will insulate the sides to prevent them from setting while the middle continues to rise.
Stacking and Icing
I have a post full with tips, tricks and videos about making level layer cakes. Because this is a cream cheese icing, it’s not as stiff and sturdy as a buttercream icing.
This means you won’t get those crisp edges or perfect rosettes. And that is totally OK, this is a sweet little rustic cake. A small palette knife or butter knife is all you need for a nice bit of swirl on the sides.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, let thaw completely and reduce the same way. You should still reduce down to a little less than 1 cup.
The cake layers can be made in advance and wrapped and frozen. The strawberry puree reduction can be made up to a week in advance and stored in the fridge.
Cream cheese icing is naturally softer than buttercream. To get a very smooth icing, softened butter and cream cheese is key, but it may need to be rechilled before icing if the ingredients are too soft. If it is still too soft, you can add more confectioners’ sugar if needed.
Petite Fresh Strawberry Cake
Equipment
- 2 6" cake tins
Ingredients
Strawberry Puree Reduction
- 454 g fresh strawberries
- 50 g granulated sugar
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- pinch salt
Strawberry Cake
- 150 g cake flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup canola or vegetable oil
- 150 g granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 egg whites room temperature
- ½ cup full-fat plain greek yogurt room temperature
- Pink or red food coloring optional
Strawberry Icing
- 226 g cream cheese softened
- 85 g unsalted butter softened
- 227 g confectioners' sugar sifted
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Pink or red food coloring optional
Instructions
- Strawberry puree. Remove leaves and hull berries. Blend in a food processor, blender, immersion blender or with potato masher until fairly smooth.454 g fresh strawberries
- In a heavy-bottomed pot, combine strawberries, sugar, lemon juice and salt over medium heat. Stir regularly, ensuring to scrape the bottom of the pan and corners, until mixture reduces by roughly half. You should end up with about 250g (1 cup). If you have a lot of froth on top as you are reducing, you can skim off with a small spoon, this is normal but can be acidic.50 g granulated sugar, juice of 1/2 lemon, pinch salt
- Cool to room temperature. The quickest method is to pour into a wide, shallow dish and chill in the fridge for about 45 minutes.
- Strawberry cake. When puree is ready, preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour 2-6" baking tins and line with parchment paper round.
- In a large bowl whisk together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.150 g cake flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon salt
- In a second bowl, whisk together oil, sugar, vanilla, egg whites, yogurt and 100g (1/3 cup) of the strawberry puree. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir to combine thoroughly with a spatula. Add a drop of food coloring if desired to deepen the color. Stop when the mixture is just combined to avoid a tough cake. Batter will be a little clumpy.1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil, 150 g granulated sugar, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, 2 egg whites, 1/2 cup full-fat plain greek yogurt, Pink or red food coloring
- Divide cake batter between the two prepared pans. Tap on the counter a few times to remove any air bubbles. Bake for 25-27 minutes until toothpick comes out clean and cake springs back when touched.
- Once cool enough to handle tins, turn cakes out onto cooling rack to cool completely.
- Strawberry icing. While cake cools, make icing. Whip together cream cheese and butter until smooth and lightened with hand-mixer or stand-mixer, about 2 minutes. Add confectioners' sugar and salt, whip until smooth. Add 75g (1/4 cup) of the strawberry puree. Another drop of food coloring can be added if desired. Store in the fridge until cake is completely cool.226 g cream cheese, 85 g unsalted butter, 227 g confectioners' sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, Pink or red food coloring
- Assembly. Place one cake layer on preferred stand. Spread several generous scoops of icing evenly on top. Repeat with second cake layer. Spread remaining icing around edges of cake.
Notes
- Strawberry puree can be made in advance. Store in the fridge for up to 7 days and bring to room temperature with the rest of the ingredients.
- Cake layers can be made in advance, wrapped in plastic and stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. Defrost layers in the fridge before icing.
- Store leftover cake in airtight container in fridge for up to 3 days.
- Frozen strawberries can be substituted, reduce to the same amount.
Disclaimer: We test all recipes using the metric weights shown, we cannot guarantee outcomes when switching to US measurements.
