Strawberry Vanilla Cake

This Strawberry Vanilla Cake has two layers of fluffy, flavorful vanilla cake paired with strawberry cream cheese frosting! This cake is gorgeous thanks to the color from the freeze-dried strawberries, and it's a total crowd-pleaser!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 35

Cook Time 35

Total Time 1 10

Servings slices

Calories 727kcal

Author Amee

Equipment

Ingredients

Vanilla Cake

2 ¾ cups cake flour (see note)
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 ¼ cups unsalted butter, softened
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
2 egg whites, at room temperature (see note)
2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste (see note)
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature

Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting

1 cup freeze-dried strawberries (see note)
8 ounces cream cheese (I used full fat)
½ cup unsalted butter, softened
pinch salt
3 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or use strawberry extract)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

For Cake

Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease two 8-inch round cake pans and set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine the dry ingredients and set aside.
2 ¾ cups cake flour, 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon salt
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the butter and sugar. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, at least three minutes. Scrape down the beater and sides of the bowl as needed.
1 ½ cups granulated sugar, 1 ¼ cups unsalted butter, softened
Add the whole eggs one at a time, allowing the first egg to incorporate before adding the second. Add the egg whites and vanilla bean paste (see note) and beat to combine.
2 eggs, at room temperature, 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste, 2 egg whites, at room temperature
Alternate adding the dry ingredients with the buttermilk: with the mixer running on low, gradually add half the dry ingredients, followed by gradually adding the buttermilk, then the remaining dry ingredients. Mix just until incorporated, taking care not to overmix.
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
Divide the batter evenly among the prepared pans (a kitchen scale helps with this; see note). Bake until golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, or with a few moist crumbs attached, 35-40 minutes.
Check the cakes as they bake to check for overbrowning. If the cakes are starting to get too dark on top, just tent the pans with aluminum foil. Allow the cakes to cool at least ten minutes in the pans before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
If you'd like to make the cakes in advance, you can bake them the day before, wrap them well, and leave them on your counter to frost the next day. Storing the unfrosted cakes in the refrigerator may dry them out. For longer-term storage, make sure that the cakes are completely cool, wrap tightly, and you can freeze them for up to three months. Just thaw in the refrigerator overnight, then frost.

For Frosting

In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the freeze-dried strawberries (see note) as finely as possible. Set aside.
1 cup freeze-dried strawberries
In the bowl of a stand mixer combine the room temperature cream cheese and butter. Beat until smooth and creamy.
8 ounces cream cheese, ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
Add the salt, then with the mixer running on low, gradually add the powdered sugar and mix until incorporated.
pinch salt, 3 cups powdered sugar, sifted
Add the freeze-dried strawberry powder and vanilla extract (or strawberry extract) and mix until thoroughly combined. If the frosting is too thick, you can add a tablespoon or two of milk to thin it out. If too thin, add a bit more powdered sugar until you reach the desired consistency. Keep in mind that temperature plays a role in the consistency of the frosting as well.
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
If not using the frosting immediately, place it in an airtight container and it will keep in the refrigerator for up to a week. You'll have to take the frosting out of the fridge to warm up for it to be a spreadable/pipeable consistency. If necessary, the frosting can be re-whipped to a smooth consistency.
Make sure the cake is completely cool before you frost it. Top with fresh strawberries, if desired.
The frosted cake will keep for up to five days in the refrigerator. I press plastic wrap up against the cut edges of the cake to help it from getting dry. The frosting is quite firm when cold, so take the cake out of the fridge about an hour before you want to serve it.
Enjoy!

Notes

Note on cake flour - Provides structure and moisture for the cake. In a pinch you can substitute with all-purpose flour, your cake just won't be quite as fluffy or tender.

Note on leftover egg yolks - If you're looking for a recipe to use the two leftover egg yolks, check out my Caramel Cookies or Strawberry Jam Cookies! My 15+ Recipes Using Egg Yolks post also has lots of good ideas.

Note on vanilla bean paste - This is the primary flavoring for the cake, so if you don't want to use paste, use an equal measure of your best quality vanilla extract.

Note on buttermilk - If you don't have buttermilk, you can make a quick substitution with milk (I find 2% milkfat or greater works best) and white vinegar or lemon juice. For this recipe, pour 1 teaspoon white vinegar OR lemon juice into a liquid measuring cup, then add enough milk to come up to the 1 cup line. Let sit for 5 minutes, then it's ready for use!

Note on cake pans - This recipe is written for an 8-inch two-layer cake. I suggest using pans that are light in color to avoid overbaking the cakes (as darker pans bake the cake faster).

Note on kitchen scale - You can just eyeball it, but a scale will help to ensure you have the same amount of batter in each pan so they bake evenly and are equal height.

Note on freeze-dried strawberries - You'll need one 0.7 ounce bag (about 20 grams) of freeze-dried strawberries for this recipe. Make sure that you're using *freeze-dried* berries, as they're free of moisture and will process into a powder. Regular "dried" strawberries will not!

Nutrition