This cake is reminiscent of an old-fashioned strawberry cake. I used strawberry preserves to boost the berry flavor and layer the filling with sliced strawberries to give you fresh strawberry taste in every bite. Whirls of airy seven-minute frosting make this cake a showstopper. Garnish with whole berries for a beautiful finish. It’s a homestyle cake for all occasions.
Use Jam for Extra Strawberry Flavor
I wanted a cake with super-duper strawberry flavor. When developing this recipe, I tried every imaginable combination. Plain pureed strawberries didn’t come through. Cooking that puree down by half before adding it to the batter helped, but not enough to warrant the extra steps. In the end, I went with store-bought strawberry preserves. You get all the strawberry flavor you want without having to do the extra work. Strawberry jam would work too, but I like the little blobs of strawberry you get with the preserves.
To Make the Cake Extra Pink
How do you get the cake pink? The preserves alone won’t do it—the cake layers bake up a pale pinkish tan. For that birthday party pink hue, you need to add 1/8 teaspoon of red gel food coloring to get an ultra-pink cake. It’s a little cheat that really boosts the cake’s appeal. You can skip it, but I say go big or go home.
Extra Strawberry Goodness
I use a marshmallow-like Seven-Minute Frosting both between the layers and to frost the outside of the cake. I fold in strawberry preserves (with a splash of water to loosen) the filling along with sliced fresh strawberries, so you get hits of fresh berries in every bite. The better the strawberries, the better this cake will be. We’ve all encountered pale, crunchy strawberries before. It’s best to make this cake when strawberries are in season, late spring to early summer, so you can get juicy, ripe strawberries.
Frosting a Cake with Seven-Minute Frosting
Our Seven-Minute Frosting is like a light, spreadable meringue—glossy and very sweet. It’s a quick and easy recipe, but you need to frost the cake immediately after making it before it sets up and you need to serve the cake within 4 hours of frosting it. When it comes to frosting a cake with seven-minute frosting: it’s one coat and you’re done. If you prefer to frost the cake a day ahead, I recommend Cream Cheese Frosting or Easy Vanilla Buttercream Frosting. To frost a cake with seven-minute frosting follow these tips and tricks:
Use a lot of frosting!Plop a pile of frosting on top of the cake and work it down to the sides with a large metal spatula.Try to pass over the cake only one time with the spatula so you don’t pull crumbs into the frosting.Once the cake is fully enrobed, go back and make some pretty whirls of frosting. Aim for billowy clouds that aren’t totally smooth—charming imperfection is the goal.
How to Store Fresh Strawberry Layer Cake
Serve the cake the day you assemble it. Plastic wrap will stick to its surface, so keep it uncovered—this cake is not ideal for transporting. If it’s hot in your kitchen, refrigerate the cake after decorating it. Otherwise, keep it at cool room temperature. Leftovers will keep at room temperature, loosely covered with foil or plastic wrap, up to three days (if it’s quite hot in your house, you can refrigerate the cake). The cake will look somewhat of a wreck, with deflated, tacky frosting, and some of the frosting may stick to the plastic or foil, but will still taste delightful.
Make Ahead
You can bake the cake a day in advance, remove the rounds from the pan and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Keep the layers in the fridge to make them easier to cut; you can also keep them stored at room temperature, if it’s more convenient. Or, freeze the rounds for up to 3 months, following the instructions in our helpful guide to freezing cake.
More Lavish Layer Cake Recipes
Chocolate Layer Cake Vanilla Buttermilk Layer Cake Triple-Layer White Cake with Orange Curd Filling Black Forest Cake Red, White, and Blue Layer Cake
1 1/4 cups (433 grams) strawberry preserves or jam, divided 2/3 cup buttermilk 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 5 drops liquid or 1/8 teaspoon gel red food coloring (optional) 2 cups (270 grams) all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon table salt 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened 1 3/4 cups (380 grams) sugar 3 large eggs, at room temperature
For the filling and garnish
1 pound strawberries, divided 1 recipe Seven-Minute Frosting
Add the remaining flour mixture, beat until incorporated, and then add the remaining strawberry-buttermilk mixture, beating until smooth. The batter should be stiff, but not dense. Pile 2/3 of the reserved plain seven-minute frosting on top of the cake and use a large metal spatula to push the excess frosting down the sides of the cake. To avoid pulling up crumbs, push the spatula rather than pulling it. Use the remaining frosting to frost any unfrosted patches on the sides. Once the cake is fully enrobed, make whirls and swirls with the spatula or the back of a spoon. Don’t worry about it looking perfect.
