EASY STRAWBERRY CAKE

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Easy Strawberry Cake with cream cheese frosting tastes and looks like a bakery cake, but is easier than from scratch! It’s full of strawberries in the cake and the icing.

This cake is ‘easy’ because it starts with a cake mix, but don’t worry unless you tell no one will ever know, it tastes homemade. Yep, moist strawberry cake recipe from box. It’s light, tender, moist, and bursting with strawberry flavor.

Easy Strawberry Cake

EASY STRAWBERRY CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

This is my recipe box. Yes, it’s quite large and it’s not the only recipe box I have. This is the box of my family ‘favorites’; I also have a box of recipes that I want to try. And a binder of pretty entertaining and party recipes and tips. And, I have cookbooks.

So many recipes, so little time! One-third of these recipes are for desserts! I know it’s my passion.

As well, this Strawberry Cake recipe has been one of my favorite desserts for many years. It’s the cake I always wanted my Mom to make for my birthday (or anytime I could persuade her to make it!)

Strawberry Cake recipe tips & suggestions

  • First, this strawberry cake starts with a boxed cake mix. However, because it has fresh strawberries it tastes homemade.
  • You can use fresh or frozen strawberries.
  • For the 1 cup of strawberries, you can mash with a potato masher, hand chop, or chop in a food processor. They add just the right amount of flavor and moisture.
  • As well, you’ll add a 3-ounce box of strawberry gelatin (Jello is the most-known brand) to the batter. If you have a strawberry flavored boxed cake mix, you can skip this step. However, adding strawberry gelatin to a white cake mix is a huge strawberry flavor boost.
  • This cake calls for vegetable oil. It adds moisture and makes the texture amazing. (I haven’t tried reducing the oil amount.)
  • You can make this into either 2 or 3 layers. It also works well in a 9x13x3-inch baking pan as well as cupcakes.
  • For a 9x13x3-inch cake, you may want to reduce the amount of frosting. (I don’t, but I love frosting!)
Easy Strawberry Cake

Cooking times for pan size

I prefer these brands for cake pans: Fat Daddio’s, Wilton, USA Pan Store, and Cuisinart. Various brands are listed below depending on what was in stock at the time I linked them.

If you want to accurately test a cake for doneness, I recommend using a cake thermometer. A cake is done when it reaches 210°F in the center. Use caution to not touch the bottom of the baking pan.

Easy Strawberry Cake

I prefer it made in three 8-inch layers and iced.

But, if it’s easier in a 9×13-inch pan, by all means, you do not have to stack it.

I made it for the teachers at my son’s school and baked it in an aluminum 9×13. It was much easier to transport and I didn’t have to go back and collect a cake pan.

ingredients in bowl

The beauty of this recipe? Dump all ingredients in the bowl and mix!

ingredients in bowl

I like using the whisk attachment for cakes. I think it incorporates more air into the batter.

Mix it all together and pour it into the pan. Bake, then frost. I frosted it with Cream Cheese Frosting.

WHILE YOU’RE HERE, CHECK OUT THESE RECIPES.

June 10, 2018. I updated the recipe for the cake and the frosting. This frosting has the same flavor and ingredients, I made it thicker. The changes are correct in the recipe as written.

Easy Strawberry Cake

Easy Strawberry Cake

Easy Strawberry Cake tastes and looks like a bakery cake, but is easier than from-scratch! It’s full of fresh strawberries in the cake and the icing. This cake is ‘easy’ because it starts with a cake mix, but don’t worry unless you tell noone will ever know!
Author: Paula
4.88 from 434 votes
Print Rate
Save To Your Recipe Box
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 16 slices

Ingredients

Cake

Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting

Instructions

PLEASE READ POST ABOVE FOR MORE INFO

    For the Cake

    • Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly spray pan(s) with non-stick spray or Wilton cake release.
    • Add cake mix, eggs, milk, and vegetable oil to a mixing bowl. Use a hand mixer or stand mixer and mix well. Mix in the 1 cup of mashed strawberries and the (dry) strawberry gelatin.
    • Mix 3 minutes, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl a couple of times.
    • Divide the batter evenly among layer pans or pour into a 9×13-inch baking pan. Cool the cake layers for 10 minutes in the pan before removing them to a wire rack. Wait until the cake is completely cool before frosting.

    For Cream Cheese Frosting:

    • Beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Sift sugar and add one cup at a time to the cream cheese mixture. Add heavy whipping cream and strawberries and incorporate completely.
    • For a more professional cake, remove the domes from the tops of the cake layers with a cake leveler or large serrated knife.
    • Place one layer of cake on a serving plate. Spread about 1 cup of the frosting on top in an even layer. Repeat with the next layer of cake and frosting, then top the cake with the final layer of cake (if you have 3 layers).
    • Frost the outside of the cake. An offset spatula makes it really easy to get an even layer.

    Video

    YouTube video

    Notes

    Cooking times for pan size
    • For 9×13 pan bake 28 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
    • two 9-inches round or 9×9 inch square 28 to 31 minutes
    • two 8-inch round or 8×8-inch square 30 to 33 minutes
    • three 8-inch round 28 to 30 minutes
    Easy Strawberry Cake original version. Make it like this and ignore the top recipe. OR make the top recipe and ignore this part.
    I revised the original recipe ingredients for the smaller size cake mix. It seemed to confuse everyone. However, I’m now including that change below since I have a lot of people asking for that information. This is the wording that I changed. As well, I used 1 cup oil in the original recipe but I prefer 3/4 cup oil instead.
    “Please note also the original Easy Strawberry Cake recipe used an 18.25-ounce cake mix. For a long time, you could still get the 18.25 size cake mix, but I have been unable to find it recently. Here are two options for adjustments to the 15.25-ounce, 16.5, or 16.25-ounce cake mix to make it work. Everything else remains the same after these additions.
    You can purchase two cake mixes. Use one complete 15.25 package plus measure 3 ounces out of the second cake mix. Likewise, if you have 16.50 or 16.35-ounce box of cake mix, make up the difference with another box of cake mix. Store the remaining for next time.
    Use one 15.25 ounce cake mix PLUS add 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon baking powder.”

    Nutrition

    Calories: 574kcal | Carbohydrates: 94g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 116mg | Sodium: 489mg | Potassium: 115mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 75g | Vitamin A: 645IU | Vitamin C: 9mg | Calcium: 140mg | Iron: 1mg

    Nutritional information given is an automatic calculation and can vary based on the exact products you use and changes you make to the recipe. If these numbers are important to you, I recommend calculating them yourself.

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    677 Comments

    1. 5 stars
      I love this cake recipe! so easy and so delicious!!
      do you think it would work the same if I replaced all strawberry ingredients with raspberries instead?

    2. 5 stars
      The kitchen and I are not really friends but I’ve been wanting to try and make a strawberry cake from scratch and decided that’s too advance for me!
      So I started looking for other recipes that were easy yet had a made from scratch taste and came across this one… and my family and I loved it!!!
      This recipe is simple, delicious and so easy to follow, there’s no way I could have messed this up. The frosting was delicious as well, this was my fist time using frosting that did not come in a store bought jar. LOL
      Will definitely be trying this again 🙂

      1. I love this!!! Most of my recipes are easy and great for ‘new’ cooks. I’m so happy you enjoyed it. This cake is my birthday cake every year so it’s very special to me.

    3. 5 stars
      I have been using this recipe for a few years now. It is perfect!! It is simple enough for a non-chef who just cooks to feed the family. But turns out like a special dessert that took lots of time and energy. It has become our Birthday Cake of choice for everyone. Which in my house is HUGE!
      Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!!

    4. 5 stars
      I really want to make this recipe for my mom’s birthday next weekend. My question is, is there a way to make it totally from scratch instead of using the box mix?

    5. 5 stars
      My kids love this recipe and I make it every year for their birthday by request.

      This recipe has changed recently and I was wondering if I could get the old one? There was a version where if you had the 15oz box mix you had additions of flour and other ingredients. This new one didn’t turn out as well for me, I might just need to adjust my bake time but Id like to try the old one again and see what I’m doing wrong.

      Thanks!

      1. Yes, it’s in the comments. But I changed the ratios in the recipe card so you don’t have to make those changes to the cake.

    6. My son’s birthday is in 3 weeks. He wants a strawberry cake so I’m going to try this.

    7. 5 stars
      Best and easiest strawberry cake. I puréed my strawberries and made it in the 9×13 pan for work and it was devoured and raved over for days. So I made it again for my family on Mother’s Day same reviews. You are right about the frosting that you can use much less than for a layered cake. Thank you for taking the fuss out of this delicious recipe.

    8. I have just made this cake. Cake seems fine but the icing is a total disaster. It is so runny! I followed your instructions. What could I have possibly done wrong? Admittedly I live in the UK now but I was raised in the US so I am familiar with, and have, all the American measuring utensils.

      1. A lot depends on the strawberries. You can always add more sugar – or less strawberries if they’re really juicy.

    4.88 from 434 votes (340 ratings without comment)

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