Strawberry Jello Cake Recipe
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The strawberry jello filling sandwiched between the Russian biskvit cake layers is quite memorable and as my sister put it, “this is the stuff my dreams are made of;” that pretty much sums it up!
You can easily make this Strawberry Jello Cake your own by changing up the flavor of the jello and top with different berries. Laura K., one of my friends from church graciously shared this recipe with me. She brought it to a church potluck and it was deeee-licious! I was so surprised how easy the strawberry filling was to make.
Unfortunately for me, I made the first cake on Thursday and went on to eat way too much of it. I made a second Strawberry Jello Cake on Saturday (of the same week) for a family dinner; it was devoured. And out of the corner of my eye; I caught a stand-off for the last slice; my pregnant sister won of course. Anyway, not a crumb left behind.
Laura makes this cake in a 13×9 glass pyrex dish so you can see the jello layers through it; probably a more practical way to make this cake; Thank you Laura for this amazing recipe. My entire family loved it!
Russian Biskvit Cake Ingredients:
6 eggs (cold or room temp)
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour (sifting not required) *measured correctly
Whipped Cream Frosting Ingredients:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup powdered sugar
Filling/Decor:
8 oz Cool Whip, thawed
6 oz package of strawberry jello
1 lbs Fresh strawberries
1/2 cup blueberries, or whatever fruit you have on hand.
How To Make Strawberry Jello Cake:
Start with the Jello Filling since it takes some time to set:
1. In a large mixing bowl, make jello according to the instructions on the package, but use 1/2 of the cold water. I.e. for a 6 oz package of jello, add 2 cups boiling water and 1 cup cold water. Let Jello sit at room temperature until it is soft set and jiggles a little (while you work on the rest of the cake), then beat in thawed 8oz cool whip (see step 7 for the cake layers).
How To Make the Cake Layers:
If you’ve never made a European Sponge Cake, watch this video for the basic version and see just how simple it is!
Preheat oven to 350˚F.
1. Line two 8″ or 9″ round cake pans (ideally one should be a springform pan) with parchment paper. (Note: If all you have is a spring form pan, you can bake the batter in the springform and then cut in half when it cools, but you will have better, fluffier results if you divide it between two cake pans; I tested it both ways).
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer with the whisk attachment, beat together 6 eggs and 1 cup sugar on high speed for 12 minutes or until 3 times in volume and thickened.
3. Sprinkle flour over the top and use a spatula to gently fold in 1 cup all-purpose flour until all lumps are gone (the flour tends to congregate on the bottom so make sure you stir from the bottom up and scrape around he edges of the bowl).
4. Divide your batter in half between the 2 lined baking pans and bake at 350˚F for 16-20 min or until top is golden brown and toothpick comes out clean. Remove baked cake from the pan being careful not to squish the top (use a plastic knife or a thin spatula to release the edges from the pan) and let it cool to room temperature on a wire rack. Wash the springform pan.
5. Once your cake has cooled, place the skinnier layer back into the bottom of your springform pan.
6. Slice your strawberries in half (or thirds if they are very large) and place them facing tightly against the walls of the springform pan.
7. At this point, you’ll want to beat 8oz cool whip into your jello which should be starting to thicken. Pour your jello cream over the bottom cake and strawberries being careful not to knock down the strawberries. Smooth over the top.
8. Place the top biskvit layer over the top and Refrigerate for 2 hours or until jello is set then remove from fridge to decorate.
To Decorate the Cake:
- Beat together the cold heavy cream and powdered sugar until whipped and spreadable. I transferred it to a pastry bag and piped roses using a Wilton 2D tip. Start in the center and work your way out in circles; staying close to the surface of the cake. It’s really pretty easy to do, but practice a couple on a plate before you turn your cake into a Picasso ;).
- Pile fruit in the center in whatever design you like; they look good just piled up too. Put back in the fridge a couple more hours or overnight to allow the jello to fully set before serving or the cake will be too dainty and will fall apart easier when sliced. Also, you take it out of the springform mold, fold some plastic wrap and wrap it around the jello part of this cake to keep it in place while it firms up fully.
Notes:
The second time I made this cake, I lined the walls of the spring form mold with plastic wrap for easier release, but even without plastic wrap, it cut away from the springform pan pretty easily. Also, the second time I didn’t put strawberries along the walls and jut made a plain jello layer with strawberry slices on top of the jello; the big strawberries make it hard to slice, but they are pretty; it’s a trade-off).
You’ll love this cake. It’s the good stuff.
Strawberry Jello Cake Recipe
Ingredients
Biskvit Cake Ingredients:
- 6 eggs, cold or room temp
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, sifting not required
Frosting Ingredients:
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
Filling/Decor:
- 8 oz Cool Whip, thawed
- 6 oz package of strawberry jello
- 1 lbs Fresh strawberries
- 1/2 cup blueberries
Instructions
To Make the Cake and Jello Filling:
- In a large mixing bowl, make jello according to the instructions on the package, but use 1/2 of the cold water. I.e. for a 6 oz package of jello, add 2 cups boiling water and 1 cup cold water. Let Jello sit at room temperature until it is soft set and jiggles a little (while you work on the rest of the cake), then beat in thawed 8oz cool whip (see step for the cake layers).
- Line two 8" or 9" round cake pans (ideally one should be a springform pan) with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer with the whisk attachment, beat together 6 eggs and 1 cup sugar on high speed for 12 minutes or until 3 times in volume and thickened.
- Sprinkle flour over the top and use a spatula to gently fold in 1 cup all-purpose flour until all lumps are gone.
- Divide your batter in half between the 2 lined baking pans and bake at 350˚F for 16-20 min or until top is golden brown and toothpick comes out clean. Remove baked cake from the pan being careful not to squish the top and let it cool to room temperature on a wire rack. Wash the springform pan.
How to Assemble the Cake:
- Once your cake has cooled, place the skinnier layer back into the bottom of your springform pan.
- Slice your strawberries in half (or thirds if they are very large) and place them facing tightly against the walls of the springform pan.
- At this point, you'll want to beat 8oz cool whip into your jello which should be starting to thicken. Pour your jello cream over the bottom cake and strawberries being careful not to knock down the strawberries. Smooth over the top.
- Place the second cake layer over the top of the jello and refrigerate for 2 hours or until jello is set then remove from fridge to decorate.
To Decorate the Cake:
- To decorate, beat together the cold heavy cream and powdered sugar until whipped and spreadable. I transferred it to a pastry bag and piped roses using a Wilton 2D tip. Start in the center and work your way out in circles; staying close to the surface of the cake.
- Pile fruit in the center in whatever design you like; they look good just piled up too. Put back in the fridge a couple more hours or overnight to allow the jello to fully set before serving or the cake will be too dainty and will fall apart easier when sliced. Also, you take it out of the spring form mold, fold some plastic wrap and wrap it around the jello part of this cake to keep it in place while it firms up fully.
Natasha Kravchuk
Hi! I'm Natasha Kravchuk. Here you'll find delicious, trusted recipes with easy step-by-step photos and videos. 
Hi Natasha
I love your recipes!
When making this strawberry jello cake can I use whipping cream in place of Cool whip? I never use Cool Whip.
Hello Phyl, I haven’t tried that substitution in this recipe so I’m not sure how it will work – I think it could work but without testing it, I can’t really recommend it. I do have a mousse recipe with real cream but there are other changes needed to make that one work properly.
I think it’s time for you to make a video for this cake 🙂 too many of us would like to see how the mixture of jello and cool whip works. Thank you in advance!
Thanks for the suggestion, Dara!
Update: I made this cake for my daughter’s gender reveal party! The pink filling was wrapped with the baby blue ribbon to fit the theme. 🙂
Everyone, and I mean everyone loved the cake.
That is wonderful, Dara! Would love to see a picture if you have one. You can tag me on Facebook or Instagram, @NatashasKitchen. 🙂
I live in England and wondered what i could use as an alternative for Cool Whip as we don’t have it here.
I haven’t tried it with whipped cream, but I would like to test it. I’ll update this recipe with that alternative if it works out. Do you have whipped topping available?
In Australia we have dream whip ,not cool whip is that the same thing? It beats up like whipping cream but is more stable.
Hi Eva, I’m not sure what the ingredients of dream whip are, I recommend a Google search to compare ingredients. If it’s similar it may work!
Hey. I’m making this cake right now and am missing where you whip together the heavy whipping cream with the powdered sugar. I know it’s only 2 ingredients and seems pretty simple but for beginners, I think it should be included. Just a suggestion.
Hi Lexxy, thank you so much. That was a great suggestion and I’m sorry I missed that.
Hi, Natasha, I’m unable to bake the cake so I’m wondering if I can use a bought sponge cake. I realize that they don’t sell round sponge cakes around here. I’m thinking of using two bar sponge cakes, putting them together and cutting a circle. I’d cut the extra pieces bite-sized and put on top then add toppings. The no-sugar sponge cake will seriously cut down on sugar and I’d use Splenda in the frosting. (I’m creating a website of altered recipes using Splenda instead of sugar). Diabetics like me want dessert but not full of added sugar
Hi Lauren, I haven’t tested that but I think it could work. If you experiment, let me know how you liked the recipe
Natasha i am in process of making this cake now. Im a bit scared or worried. So i made the jello with 8oz cool whip, mixed it, and followed ur instructions, but my jello mix with cool whip came out watery. Is that normal?
its in fridge now seems like its getting hard or stiffer. But i am still worried it won’t come out like urs on the pic so thick in size. Please advise
Lana
Hi Lana, it might be watery if you combine the two before the jello is partially set but the finished product should still be ok.
If you made this in 13×9 do you bake the biskvit in two layers? Or just one and slice into two?
HI Anya, here is the raspberry version of this cake that I made in a 13×9 pan. I hope that helps!
Hi, I don’t really like cool whip because it’s full of hydrogenated fat which makes it very unhealthy. Could I substiute with heavy whipping cream?
Hi Natasha, I don’t have Cool Whip right now, can I just make 8 ounces of whipped cream and add that into the jello mixture? Thanks
Hi Liza, I haven’t tried that substitution in this recipe so I’m not sure how it will work – I think it could work but without testing it, I can’t really recommend it. I do have a mousse recipe with real cream but there are other changes needed to make that one work properly.
Where do you put the other half cup of sugar if its divided?
Hi Anna, great question! That was a typo. It is not divided but the entire 1 cup is used in the cake as in step 2. So sorry for the confusion!!! :-O My mistake!
Hey Nastasha :)) This cake is amazing! It always works out when i make it but my frosting for the top is not thick enough so i cannot decorate it with pretty flowers or whatever. Can you tell me what i did wrong? Thank you :))
Some tips for making the frosting is your to pipe: You want to make sure your bowl and whisk’s are very cold (I freeze mine 10 min before beating my cream). Also keep cream refrigerated until needed. Plus make sure to buy heavy whipping cream which has a higher fat content and beat it until it’s stiff, but not too much or it will be buttery. Hope that helps!
Dear Natasha.
Thank you for this wonderful blog and this recipe in particular!
I made this cake once for my husband’s office people and everyone loved it! Pretty easy to make for a beginner like myself. Now I would like to make it for my son’s Baptism celebration. How many days in advance can I make it? For example, if I need it for Sunday, is it OK to make it on Friday? I just worry that strawberries around the cake will start going bad. What do you think?
Thank you beforehand.
Hi Olia, I’m so happy you like the cake! I would recommend it the day before for that reason alone. I agree that after 2 days, your fruit might start looking a little limp. If you were to leave the fresh fruit out of the center and just decorate and add fruit the same day as the event, it would work fine.
Hi! I have a quick questioned to use this cake since it’s simply and amazing delicious!!!’ I was wondering though if it would be a problem if I covered it with fondant! would it ruin the jello or anything?! please get back to me ASAP!! Thank you!
Hi Ana, to be honest, I don’t really have any experience with fondant but I think it could work to cover it. As long as you aren’t pushing down on the cake, it shouldn’t hurt the jello at all. It will stay firm if refrigerated.
Hi,natasha my jello was in room temperature for 2 hours and it was not like jello it was watery and then I Put with jello when It was done standing for 2 hours I put whip cream that it’s in us ingredients, I see yr turn out like cream mine didn’t what should I do? Please answer me as soon possible
Did you have the same sized tub of cool whip and did you make sure to use a 6 oz container of jello and not the 3 oz? Sorry I couldn’t reply sooner. We are at camp so our wifi access is limited.
Thank u so much for ur help, my family loved that cake!
I’m so happy to hear that!! That’s awesome 🙂
Hi natasha, I have a question about this cake, I saw u have two piece of the cake then after I go down on the picture I saw u cut it I don’t get it, do I use it two of the cakes or I need only one cake? I need u r help please answer as soon as possible?
You need to divide the batter into two layers and make two cake layers. You could bake it as one cake and cut it in half if you wanted to. Hope that helps. Sorry for the late reply. We are at camp with limited wifi access.
I just made this and it looks wonderful! I can’t wait until it’s set. For people asking, 8 oz of Cool Whip is the same as 1 L. And, 6 oz of Jello is the family-size pack (or 2 of the small packages). I only had 1 small strawberry jello, so I used a raspberry jello package too.
Have you ever come across the Karpatka cake? Websites say it’s Polish from the Carpathian mountains. But the Carpati run between Poland and Ukraine, so I’m sure the Ukrainians make something similar. It’s also very much like french eclairs. Considering a Ukrainian princess became Queen Anna of France in the 11th Century, it’s not surprising that their is some French influence in Ukrainian culture.
I spent some times looking up Karpatka cake after you asked about it. It sure sounds good and I’ll be on the lookout for a good recipe. I’ll be sure to share it if I find a great one. Let me know if you come across something first 😉 I imagine an eclair cake tastes amazing! 🙂
Hi there. Is there any translation for Cool Whip for someone living in NZ? Hoping there might be something I can use. Thanks.
I haven’t really tried making this with anything else. I really want to try with whipped cream but some of the proportions would have to change or it wouldn’t firm up enough. I just haven’t tested it with anything else.
Hi Natasha!
Would this recipe work with beaten heavy whipped cream instead of the cool whip?
Hi Alla, I haven’t tested it with that substitution although I’ve had very good intentions about trying it, I just haven’t gotten a chance. If you do test it, let me know how it goes. You might let your jello mixture thicken up a little more before adding the whipped cream so it doesn’t melt the whipped cream too much.
I made this cake for Lunar New Year and it turned out beautiful! The cake was so light, fluffy, and amazingly delicious. And it was all eaten up! There was not a crumb left on the plate. I love the simplicity of the recipe for the biskvit. This and the kiwi strawberry cake are my favorite thus far. Thank you again for another fabulous recipe!
You’re welcome! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Hi Natasha I was wondering if you have a recipe for chocolate sponge cake recipe,oh and I love all your recipes.
The only chocolate sponge cake that I currently have posted is this: https://natashaskitchen.com/2013/03/07/chocolate-cherry-roll-with-rum-cream-a-video-recipe/. Also, there’s a chocolate sponge made and broken up into this cake: https://natashaskitchen.com/2011/01/06/russian-cherry-layer-cake/
How do you get the cake out of the mold?
I use a very thin edged spatula to work the cake out of the mold. Did you use parchment paper?
I haven’t made it yet I was just curious how u get the jello part out. Do you use the form that clicks open? It doesn’t fall apart? I wanna make this but I was curious first how it works!
I use a springform mold which makes it way easier!!! I don’t think it would work without the springform mold (where the sides click open). It holds together alot better if you don’t put the strawberries around the edges, but it still stays together pretty well. Use a thin edged spatula or a knife to remove the cake from the walls.
I was so close to finishing this cake, but got interrupted by my water braking. will definitely try baking this cake soon.
Oh my goodness! God bless you and your babe!
Hi Natasha,
All your recipes are super!
I was wondering if there is a difference between using parchment paper and bakers spray? I have always been using the spray, and now looking through all of your recipes wondering if using parchement paper gives you better results?
Thanks for sharing all of your full proof recipes!
I think it depends on the recipe. Biskvit tends to stick pretty well since there is no oil used in the batter so I used the parchment instead. It just depends on the recipe 🙂
hey natasha, if cake is dry, use liquid jello when it cools a little to drizzle cake layers before you add cool whip to it. It adds swirls in the cake part and taste moist. Or like you added sprite/sweet club soda on the birds milk cake.
That’s a great idea Laura, thank you very much :).
I wonder if substituting a pink layer of birds milk for the jello would be good…
yes ofcourse it would be good, but it won’t have that sour sweetness of strawberries 🙂
im a little confused about the frosting? should the ingredients be beaten together and then thicken? Mines a little too watery. Thanks
Hi Alina, If you are referring to the pink center portion, you may have just beat the cool whip in too early. If that is the cake, let it sit for a little while and it should thicken. If you put it in the fridge it will thicken quickly, but be careful that it doesn’t set in there or it will be hard to spread.
When it says 8 oz Cool Whip, does that mean the container of 8 oz or like 8oz as a cup? I was just wondering because for many recipes it says that and I dont know it its a cup or the whole container.
Cool Whip comes in 8 oz containers so you would use entire container of cool whip.
Hey girl approx. how long do u wait for jello to set. its been ! 1/2 hours:( lol
What part are you on? Is the cake fully made and you are waiting? It’s at least 3 hours and best if overnight to let it fully set.
hey girl it doesn’t look to bad I think the mixture soaked into the bottom layer hehe. next time ill fully wait 4 jello to set
Just wait until it’s getting thicker, not fully set. Maybe try to have a colder coolwhip (not frozen, just thawed in the fridge) and it should firm up faster.
is the jello and whip cream suppose to be wet? mine is really watery
It’s supposed to start thickening up to about a yogurt consistency. Was your jello getting a little jiggly when you mixed in the cool whip? As long as you followed the water amounts for the jello in the instructions, it should thicken up in the fridge and should be ready to go for tomorrow! Let me know how it goes.
Makes sence thanks soo much darling!
hey girl im a little confused, with the jello part. so I add 2 cups boiling water and 1/2 cup cold instead 1 cup? Making this rite now n a bit confused
Add 1 cup of cold water. Usually you add 2 cups of cold water, so I wrote to use 1/2 of the cold water.
Will all the fruit get soggy if i make it a day ahead?
No it won’t it’s best to make it a day ahead. It’s best to decorate the top with fresh fruit the day of your dinner, but it will be ok if you do it the night before.
Hey Natasha! I’ve just made this cake recipe for my birthday party, and it was awesome. I t just got very delicious. Thank you very much Natasha
Awesome!! Happy Birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Jahaziel (cool name by the way!), happy birthday to you!! 🙂
Thanks natasha! By the way, Alina’s tip about pinneaple juice really works, I think it turned the cake doubly delicious…. I love your web.
Grettings from México. 😀
You are welcome Jahaziel :).
can I make this day ahead?
Definitely, that’s what I did. Its best when made a day ahead, gives some time for jello to settle in.
Hey Natasha,
Cake looks amazing, but for some reason I’m having issues with the cool whip and jello mixture. Its not getting thick and/ or creamy.. What am i doing wrong? How long should be beating it for?? thanks.
Did you make sure to wait for the jello to start thickening up a bit at room temp before adding the cool whip?
I guess I didn’t wait long enough, I was short on time and wanted to get this cake ready for a couple of guests. This recipe wasn’t presented in a cake form, lol.. I used ramekin bowls instead, I placed a layer of the cake inside and pour the “liquid” jello mix on top. The jello mix set in the refrigerator and everything turned out cute and still amazing. 🙂
Great thinking under pressure Tanya. I’m glad that it still worked out :).
mmmm this cake looks divine!
It tastes even better :D.
I’ve been checking up on your website daily and have been making pretty much everything you post one day or another:) everything always turns out delicious and everyone loves it! Especially this cake!:) (I made it yesterday, we ate it today:))
Thank you so much for your sweet comment, and I’m glad you like the cake :).
What a beautiful cake, reminds me of my childhood. Will definitely pin it to my board!
Thanks for the pin 🙂
Natasha, I made this cake yesterday and although it tastes and looks really good, for some reason my top layer of biskvit doesn’t ‘stick’ to the rest of the cake, so when I go to cut it the top kind of slides. Am I missing something? I waited overnight for the jello layer to set before I put the top on, was I supposed to put it on sooner?
Galina, thank you for bringing this to my attention. I updated the recipe and print friendly version in step 8 to put the top layer on before refrigerating for two hours; this way the top layer adheres to the jello. I had better results with the top layer sticking to the jello that way. Sorry I missed that! Thanks again!
Natasha, this cake looks fantastic. I give it 5 star. Thank you for posting it!
Thank you Alina; that’s sweet of you 🙂
This looks absolutely amazing and dreamy!!! Can’t wait to try it. About the coolwhip, my sister lives in Germany and they don’t have it there either. Everytime i bake and a recipe calls for coolwhip, I just beat heavy cream, sugar and a special stiffening powder together and it gave the same effect. 🙂
Oooh thank you so much for sharing!
Oh my, how do I make this low calorie, no sugar and 0 fat?!:) Looks divine!!! Should I make it for my mom when she comes to visit me this week?! I have Truwhip in my freezer…
You’d have to have a completely different cake since this has alot of eggs in it. If you want it sugar free; use sugar free jello.
Natasha, I live in Belarus. We do not have cool whip. What is it.? Can I replace it with sourcream and gelatine or ???
I haven’t tried it with whipped cream, but I would like to test it. I’ll update this recipe with that alternative if it works out. Do you have whipped topping available? Also google for cool whip substitute and see if you have alternatives that could work instead.
This cake was delightful in everyway! Loved it
Thank you Sveta, it was delicious :).
This looks amazing! I love your recipes!
One question – what is Cool Whip? I don’t think we have this in Australia. Is there something than can be used instead?
Thanks!
I haven’t tried it with whipped cream, but I would like to test it. I’ll update this recipe with that alternative if it works out. Do you have whipped topping available?
I’m so excited!!! I can’t wait to make it tonight!
Let me know how it turns out :).
I have tried this cake before just with pineapple. To me it seems like the beskvit part it too try in comparison to jello. Didn’t taste try? I would want to try this version.
Syrup can be added to moisten the beskvit layers, but it did not seem dry to me and no one in the family commented on that either.
Looks delicious and great tip choice! I’m a frosting fanatic, do you think I can somehow add more without “overdoing” it?
Thanks!
Tina
Frosting tastes pretty light so I’m sure you can add some more :).
i love how organized your recipes are, and the print recipes
at the end. makes it so nice to collect. thanks and good job!
Thank you Liliya :).
Quick question: so for a 6 oz. jello package, you used 2 cups boiling + 1 cup cold water = total 3 cups water? Not 2 cups boiling water + 2 cups cold water, right? How long does the jello need to stand before adding cool whip? 30 minutes, 1 hour, etc? Thanks in advance!! 🙂
Jello needs to stand for at least 1 hour, you will see when it starts to thicken.
Wonder if I could make the biskvit cake in half and just end up with 1 cake layer – but in replacement add a jello layer on top with chopped strawberries…. Yum?! So it would be cake, jello filling, jello topping. I will try it, take a picture and let you know how that tastes 🙂
Yes, that will work, I would like to see the picture :).
looks amazing! can’t wait to try it!
Quick question: will you add “Pin It” button to your site in the future? I love to pin your recipes & it would make it easier for everyone to share your recipes on Pinterest =) thank you for all your hard work, lots of my Georgia friends use your site!
Thank you Alena :). There is pinterest button on the bottom of every post.
Yum I Can’t wait to try this
I’m itching to make it for the 3rd time…in a week :).
Beautiful refreshing cake. Can wait for strawberry season 😉
Thank you Inessa :). I miss my mom’s garden.
Yum. We make something similar, but with apricot jello and and we pour a little pineapple juice over the biskvit and let it soak in to make it more moist. Can’t wait to try your version.
Oh yum! That does sound good! Do you incorporate apricots into the cake?
No, just the apricot jello. We usually decorate with pineapple slices and sliced strawberries that we cut to fit in the hole of the pineapple slice.
Sounds pretty and delicious!