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This strawberry layer cake is the first dessert of the year; oh and it’s a good one! Tonya (one of the ladies in our church), made this cake for her son’s birthday. While chomping down my second slice; I asked her for the recipe. It was delicious and I’m sharing this goodness with you.
Also, I’ve finally tried the alternate way of making the biskvit cake layers and they turned out perfect (I believe this to be the a more “fool-proof” recipe. Oh and the strawberry/chocolate decorations were ridiculously easy (plenty of oohs and ahhs over the 3D chocolate); see the tutorial here.
Oh oh and one more thing; the beauty of this strawberry layer cake is that you can really easily cut everything in half (6 eggs, 1 cup sugar, 1 cup flour….blah blah) to make a smaller cake and it will turn out just as dang good.
Strawberry Layer Cake Ingredients:
12 large eggs, room temp, divided
2 cups granulated sugar, divided
2 cups all-purpose flour, divided *measured correctly
Frosting Ingredients:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
16 oz cream cheese, softened at room temp
3/4 cup granulated sugar
Filling/Decor:
2 lbs Fresh strawberries (1 1/2 lbs to blend and put inside the cake and 1/2 lb to decorate)
Chocolate chips to melt and decorate the top; optional
Baking strawberry layer 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. Grease and line only the bottom of a 9×13″ cake pan with parchment paper (line 2 pans if you have 2). I have found that it’s best not to line or grease the sides of the pan or the cake becomes somewhat miss-shaped.
You will bake your cake layers separately so for each biskvit layer:
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, whisk together 6 eggs and 1 cup sugar on high speed for 10 minutes and it will be 3-4 times in volume
3. Sift in 1 cup all-purpose flour and use a spatula to gently fold it in just until well incorporated and no more clumps of flour remain. Scrape from the bottom of the bowl to make sure there aren’t any trapped pockets of flour, but don’t overwork the batter or it will deflate.
4. Transfer your batter to the lined baking pan and bake at 350˚F for 17-20 min or until top is golden and toothpick comes out clean.
(While the first layer is baking, start working on your second cake layer repeating steps 1-3 above). Remove baked cake from the pan by running a thin edged spatula around the sides to loosen it, then let it cool to room temperature before removing the parchment paper.
Strawberry Filling:
Cut strawberries into halves or quarters and place them in the bowl of a food processor; pulse 15 times or until the consistency of a chunky applesauce; set aside
Frosting:
Beat together cream cheese and 3/4 cup sugar until smooth (1 min). Add 1 cup heavy whipping cream and beat on high speed until fluffy (3 minutes)
Assembly:
1. Cut each cooled cake layer in half. Place the first layer on your serving dish (this cake is too big and heavy to transfer so put it on the dish you’re serving it on).
2. Spread the first layer with 1/3 of the strawberry puree. Spread just a thin layer of frosting (just a thin layer or you won’t have enough to frost the sides in the end) on the second half and place it over the first layer so the strawberries and cream are hugging. Repeat with the next layers.
So the order from the bottom up is: cake; strawberry; cream; cake; strawberry; cream;cake; strawberries; cream; cake; cream (frost the top and sides with remaining frosting)
Decorate the top with fresh strawberries and chocolate (see chocolate decorating tutorial here
Strawberry Layer Cake Recipe
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- 12 large eggs, room temp, divided
- 2 cups granulated sugar, divided
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, divided
Frosting:
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 16 oz cream cheese, softened at room temp
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
Filling/Decor:
- 2 lbs Fresh strawberries, 1 1/2 lbs to blend and put inside the cake and 1/2 lb to decorate the top
- Chocolate chips to melt and decorate the top; optional
Instructions
Baking the Cake Layers: Preheat oven to 350˚F.
- Grease and line only the bottom of a 9x13" cake pan with parchment paper (line 2 pans if you have 2). I have found that it's best not to line or grease the sides of the pan or the cake becomes somewhat miss-shaped.
- You will bake your cake layers separately so for each biskvit layer: in the bowl of an electric mixer, whisk together 6 eggs and 1 cup sugar on high speed for 10 min. it will be 3-4 times in volume.
- Sift in 1 cup all-purpose flour and use a spatula to gently fold it in just until well incorporated and no more clumps of flour remain. Scrape from the bottom of the bowl to make sure there aren't any trapped pockets of flour, but don't overwork the batter or it will deflate.
- Transfer to lined baking pan and bake until top is golden and toothpick comes out clean 17-20 min.
- (While the first layer is baking, start making your second cake layer repeating steps 1-3 above)
- Remove baked cake from the pan by running a thin edged spatula around the sides to loosen it, then let it cool to room temperature before removing the parchment paper.
Strawberry Filling:
- Cut strawberries into halves or quarters and place them in the bowl of a food processor; pulse 15 times or until the consistency of a chunky applesauce; set aside.
Frosting:
- Beat together cream cheese and 3/4 cup sugar until smooth (1 min). Add 1 cup heavy whipping cream and beat on high speed until fluffy (2-3 minutes).
Assembly:
- Cut each cooled cake layer in half. Place the first layer on your serving dish (this cake is too big and heavy to transfer so put it on the dish you're serving it on)
- Spread the first layer with 1/3 of the strawberry puree. Spread a very thin layer of frosting on the second half and place it over the first layer so the strawberries and cream are hugging. Repeat with the next layers. So the order from the bottom up is: cake; strawberry; cream; cake; strawberry; cream;cake; strawberries; cream; cake; cream (frost the top and sides with remaining frosting).
- Decorate the top with fresh strawberries and chocolate (see chocolate decorating tutorial below)
Hi i was just wondering you do not use any baking powder at all ?
This cake relies on the volume of the eggs to rise and does not require baking powder. It’s a typical European sponge cake 🙂
This cake doesn’t call for oil, butter, water or milk? I am going to make this for my daughters 5th birthday party this weekend. I am going to make the cake chocolate though…seriously, who doesn’t love chocolate and strawberries?! Do you think adding in the cocoa powder would be okay without altering any of the other ingredients?
When adding cocoa powder, for every tablespoon of cocoa that you add, remove 1 tablespoon of flour. It’s a good idea to either whisk or sift the Cocoa with the flour before blending it in. that is correct – this cake does not call for oil butter water or milk. It gets its volume from the eggs. It’s pretty much the same ingredients that are used to make ladyfingers. This is a European spongecake.
Can’t wait to try it. I have a question. if I make it in 2 9″ pans, can i bake them together and what will be the cooking time?
I was planning to make 2/3rd of the recipe. Will that be ok or should I just make half? I do want a 4 layer cake 🙂
2/3 of the recipe is fine. Bake them together and the baking time and temp should be the same.
I don’t have a stand mixer, will a hand mixer do and give the same result?
Yes, it’s just harder with a hand mixer because you have to stand over it for awhile, but it will still work.
Absolutely amazing! Made it yesterday and it was perfectly moist and soft today. Whole family really enjoyed it, I got so many compliments for making it:) thank you Natasha *hugs*
That’s wonderful! Thanks so much for sharing that with me 🙂
Yes it’s true,,recipes that we have already tried and the result is amazing, I love being able to try this cake recipe, thanks Natashaskitchen your
Amanda, I’m so glad you are enjoying the recipes 🙂
I can’t figure out how to share my pic of the cake I made. Thank you so much for the recipe. My son says it’s the best cake I’ve ever made for him, and I have made him a cake every single year for his birthday. This was his 27th :).
Thank you!!!
There wasn’t a scrap left. His 9 month old daughter thought it was the bomb too!!
I’m so happy to hear that. What an awesome review! Thank you Rhonda 🙂
Can I use regular whipping cream instead of heavy one? I bought the wrong one….:(
I haven’t tried it with regular whipping cream so I’m not sure if the frosting will be too loose or not. That would be my only concern with using the regular cream.
I am wanting to make this cake BUT there is no leavening in the batter ie baking powder or soda. I think this is so that the cake won’t be so high that it can’t be cau in half and stacked on top of each other. Also, possibly the 10 minute whipping of the eggs and sugar??? But to be on the safe side, would you please tell me why there is no leavening in the cake, or salt either. or vanilla.. It appears to be a very bland tasting white cake…
This is the way that the traditional European sponge cake is made. It really has just those ingredients. You can add a little splash of vanilla if you like; I have before. Whipping the eggs and sugar for that long is important since you are relying on the volume of the beaten eggs for the cake to rise.
Looks so light and yummy! How long before serving can I make it? How much time Does it need to soak up the goodness?
Olya, you can make it a day ahead or serve it right away. It will taste great either way :). I hope you’ll love it.
I made this cake for my son’s birthday. It was a big hit! My husband told me this is the best cake I ever made. He asked me to make the same cake for his birthday. Thanks for such a good recipe.
I’m so happy you all enjoyed it. Happy Happy Happy Birthday to your son! 🙂
I ran into this page looking for a good, easy cake to make. Unfortunately, it did not go the way that I thought it would. The cake batter was horrible. When I cooked the batter it turned out like custard. I used the correct ingredients, but maybe not having an electric mixer made a big difference. I would have liked to know what the consistency of the eggs were once they were beaten. Were they more runny? Fluffy? Stiff? For those without an electric mixer, that would have helped a lot in determining if the eggs were the right consistency. Other than that, the filling, buttercream, and chocolate decorations were great! However, it was disappointing to see a beautiful cake go to waste, because the cake batter didn’t go right. Maybe I’ll give this another shot, but with the use of an electric mixer. For right now… I don’t think I am going into the kitchen again.
Oh I’m so sad to hear that. You definitely want to use an electric mixer for this recipe. I can’t imagine how hard it would be to get the eggs to whip without one. Here is a video that I created for the same cake base that I used as a tiramisu. http://youtu.be/26bTgepaEv0 I hope that is helpful!
looks delicious!! i was wondering though, could you cover it in fondant? would it carry the weight without collapsing?
I don’t think it would collapse. My only concern is that the frosting for this cake is pretty loose and I’m not sure it will hold the fondant on the cake.
I made this for my dad’s birthday, HE LOVED IT!! It was delicious! I will be making it again when my in laws visit 🙂 Thanks for this recipe!
I’m so happy you loved it :-). Thank you so much for sharing that with me!
No picture, but I made this for my friend’s birthday and she said it was the best cake she’s ever eaten. It got raves from everyone at the table. I was looking for something strawberry shortcake-ish and not too sweet. This fit the bill perfectly. I had trouble with the cake, my eggs didn’t need anywhere near 12 minutes on high to triple in size. I think that the texture was off because of that. But evidently that only mattered to me! 😀 I did make 1 1/2 times the frosting and everyone loved the texture and that it wasn’t sickly sweet. So glad I found this recipe.
I have found that the cake rises better and is fluffier if you beat the eggs longer. I’m so glad you enjoyed the cake! Thanks for writing in 🙂
Natasha, I’ve enjoyed your videos, too! Since it’s been a very long time since I made sponge cakes – and have never made this style, I was afraid I’d over whip the batter. (it sort of reminded me of marshmallow when I tasted it!) If I can’t over whip the batter, I’ll definitely whip it for 12 minutes next time and see if I get a better rise on my cake. 🙂 I noticed you have different biskvit recipes for different cakes, which is your favorite/go to recipe? Thanks for responding! My girlfriend just sent me a picture of her eating some leftover cake with the caption YUMM! She froze it. 🙂
My favorite way to make the sponge cake is by beating the egg whites and yolks together. I used to separate them and it didn’t really change anything in the cake; just added an extra step. Don’t worry, you can’t overbeat the mixture. 🙂
THANK YOU!! 😀 Going to serve this at a dinner party I’m having in a few weeks.
No butter used?? Can we use butter?? Also i hav a tin of strawberry filling. Can i use that?
What kind of strawberry filling? Is it like a pie filling? I think that would work well. Where would you use the butter? This cake doesn’t require butter and becomes moist from the frosting. It might be too dry if you incorporate butter into the frosting if that is what you are asking.
Hello Natasha
I found your recipe through Google search after a failed attempt of making a recipe from another website. I’m so glad I found your recipe. It is easy to make and tastes soooooo good! Made this cake for my twin sons 4th birthday, and it got 10/10 from my husband and my mother in low. My mother in law doesn’t like dessert that much and usually eats a bite or 2 max, she ate the whole slice :).
Thank you for sharing this amazing cake recipe, and I’m going to try more recipes from your blog for sure.
Welcome to the site Nayrouz and thank you for such a great review. I hope you’ll find many more favorites here :).
I’ll definitely will :). Happy new year and many many thanks to you.
Hi again!
I need to make 4 layers of a 6 inch pan and 4 more of an 8 inch pan. So I’m wondering what my bake time will be for each individual 6 inch pan? And the same for the 8 inc pan. I guess I will just whip up the batter and pour in the pans until I need to make a new batch, I just need to know bake time and temps?? 🙂
Hi Morgan, you don’t want this batter to sit on the counter while the others bake or it may start to deflate a little bit; that’s why I beat it in two batches. It’s best to make it and bake it right away. Do you only have one of each pan? You could do the 6 eggs at a time and divide between the 6-inch and 8-inch pans and the bake time and temp should be the same.
Ok so I’m actually in the middle of making this. Only instead I used your recipe to make a 2 tier strawberry shortcake birthday cake. The recipe was perfect split in half in a 9in springform. And then, cut that in half to make 2-6in round cakes. I thought I messed up and baked 1 extra cake but it was ok, lol so I took one layer and added it to the bottom cake for an extra layer..and made a half layer just to taste it lol.. And it is sooooo good! I can’t wait till tomorrow for everyone to taste. The biskvit is amazing… So now I just covered the cake layer with the remaining frosting (I dbld the recipe, btw) absolutely delicious..now I’mgoing to cover in fondant decorate, and get some sleep lol thank you so much for this recipe. You saved my party, it’s my first time making a tiered cake ever. And this recipe was the most appealing of all I found. I’m so happy I chose it, thank you thankyou a million times.
It sounds like an incredible cake the way you describe it. I’d sure love to see it! If you post a pic somewhere, do tag me so I can see it. Thanks so much for sharing how you made it and for the great review! I hope everyone absolutely loves it at the party! Do you make your own fondant?
Hi. I just absolutely LOVE this cake recipe. I was asked to bake a cake for a a baby shower and they want a tiered cake. My question is how should I convert this to a 6inch and 8 inch pan?
How long should I bake them for? ANy tips would be great!!
How many of each layer? If it’s just one 6-inch and one 8-inch, I’d cut the recipe in half and divide it between the two baking dishes, filling each one half-way then baking for the same amount of time. Also, another tip; line the bottom of the pans with parchment, but don’t grease the sides of the pan; the cake will bake and look more even when it’s out of the oven. It may be a little tough to use this frosting for a tiered cake since it’s more on the loose side, but do-able.
Hey Natasha,
I just wanted to say thank you for the recipe!! Its delicious! I already made it twice & planning to make it 3rd time!! 🙂 Its pretty simple & looks & tastes amazing!! I really love your site!! I tried out several of your recipes.. Mostly everything turned out from first time.. :p Of course with your great step by step instructions with pix you almost can’t go wrong…You’re the best!!!! God bless you!
Thank you so much Tonya! I’m so happy to hear you are enjoying my blog :). It’s so encouraging for me 🙂
hi Natasha, I would like to bake this cake for my daughters birthday but am wondering if the frosting and cake will withstand fondant? I am using a marshmallow fondant and I will have another chocolate fudge cake at the bottom. I am just worried that if the cake is too soft, will the fondant break? Also since you are adding so much egg, does the cake smell eggy?
Pls advice. Thank you!
This frosting is probably too soft to hold up fondant. It doesn’t smell eggy if made correctly. Also, it helps not to have windows open when letting the cake cool after the oven. For some reason (and maybe it’s just my sensitive nose), an outdoor draft can make it smell a little “eggy”.