Pretty.
Pink.
And actually tastes like strawberries!!
This vegan strawberry cake is absolutely BURSTING with strawberry flavor. Made with fresh strawberries and freeze-dried strawberries, this vegan strawberry cake recipe is the PERFECT CAKE for when you want something that makes you feel like spring or like love is in the air!
This delicious dessert is exactly what you want to bust out for Valentine’s Day, a special birthday party, or Mother’s Day. I’ve scoured the internet and even talked to people (like in the olden times) to collect all the information out there on how to achieve a super moist strawberry cake that retains maximum strawberry flavor. And I truly think this is the BEST vegan strawberry cake you’ll ever have.
So, without further ado, let’s get into it!
Disclaimer: Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links for products I use and love. If you make a purchase after clicking one of those links, I may earn a small affiliate commission, perhaps enough to buy some extra gochujang or gochugaru 🙂
pink strawberry cake versus strawberry shortcake.
Pink strawberry cake recipes should not be confused with plain, old regular strawberry cake recipes. The latter refers to any cake with strawberries in it. In Europe and even in the United States, “strawberry cake” can refer to strawberry shortcake, for example, a confection of vegan vanilla cake, sandwiched with clouds of fluffy whipped cream and fresh strawberries.
Pink strawberry cake, on the other hand, refers to a specific kind of strawberry cake that grew popular in the 1950s and 60s, when retailers began to include strawberry flavor in their boxed cakes. They were also known for their pretty pink color.
Interestingly enough, if you review the ingredients lists for these “strawberry” box cakes, some of them don’t actually include any strawberry. One of them lists “strawberry juice solids” (whatever that is) as the third to last ingredient. In other words, despite calling themselves “strawberry cakes,” and despite producing a beautiful cake with a perfectly pink crumb, these commercialized confections don’t have much actual strawberry in them!
Since the strawberry box cake craze of the 50s and 60s, ambitious at-home bakers determined to make strawberry cakes “from scratch” came up with another iteration of this pink dessert: the strawberry jello cake. In lieu of adding real strawberries, the recipe calls for multiple packets of strawberry jello powder. Sadly, most strawberry jello packets contain gelatin, a vegan no-no.
Why You’ll Love This Vegan Strawberry Cake.
This vegan strawberry cake will include real fresh strawberries and freeze-dried strawberries in the cake batter itself, to create a moist cake that’s full of real strawberry flavor. This vegan strawberry cake recipe will also incorporate fresh strawberries in the filling, as well as freeze-dried strawberries in the vegan buttercream that isn’t too sweet (you know me!). In short, this vegan strawberry cake will be:
- Moist
- Flavorful
- Strawberry-y
Because this is a vegan strawberry cake recipe, we will not be using jello powder (though, I do want to try a version using vegan jello powder, just out of curiosity).
Is this vegan strawberry cake an “easy” recipe? Look, I have lots of easy recipes (check out my 3-Ingredient Bagels!), but this one, my friends, is not one of them. I wish I could call this an “easy vegan strawberry cake,” but I’d be lying. Unless you’re a professional cake maker, no vegan cake recipe that calls for multiple layers and vegan frosting and freeze dried strawberries is going to be “easy.” I’m not gonna pull one over on ya for SEO purposes! BUT, I will guide you through this STEP-BY-STEP so that you can do this with me! I promise!!
Key Ingredients and Notes on Substitutions for vegan Strawberry cake.
Fresh Strawberries.
Here is where I would normally say something snarky like “you can’t have vegan strawberry cake without strawberries,” but, as we discussed above, apparently I’d be wrong! But this vegan strawberry cake will have actual strawberries in them! Specifically, fresh strawberries will be used in both the batter and the filling, to wit:
First, we will use an entire pound of strawberries to create a strawberry reduction. What is a strawberry reduction? It’s not a fresh strawberry puree. Fresh pureed strawberries will have too much liquid and make our cake too gummy or unstable. A strawberry reduction is more like a strawberry paste–it’s thick and will inject a ton of fresh strawberry flavor into our vegan strawberry cake, without a lot of moisture.
Second, we will be using another half pound of strawberries to sandwich between the layers of our vegan strawberry cake, right in the middle of the cake. Many strawberry cake recipes do not call for fresh strawberries in between the cake layers, but I made it both ways (with and without) and I’m tellin’ ya–if you want strawberry flavor in your cake, this component is absolutely critical.
Substitutions: Can you use frozen strawberries? Yes. If it’s not strawberry season, fresh strawberries might be hard to come by. You can absolutely use frozen strawberries for this recipe.
Freeze Dried Strawberries.
On my first attempt at vegan strawberry cake, I utilized only fresh strawberries. While the cake was delicious and moist, you could not taste any strawberry. It was just a nice cake with vegan strawberry frosting. I decided to up the ante in my second iteration and add (not replace) with freeze-dried strawberries to the batter. And the difference was pretty incredible. The freeze-dried strawberries will be ground to create a “strawberry powder” that will go directly into your batter, as well as your frosting.
Substitutions: If you can’t find freeze dried strawberries, you can substitute with freeze-dried raspberries. Obviously, this will have an impact on the flavor, but the tartness will still give this cake a very berry vibe!
Strawberry Jam.
For the fresh strawberry filling, I mix the cut up strawberries with a tablespoon of strawberry jam. Not only will this take your strawberry flavor to the billionth degree, it will also make the filling sticky, so that it doesn’t fall all over the place when you’re frosting your cake! Another nice benefit? The sugar in the jam will prevent your strawberries from turning brown!
All Purpose Flour.
I debated whether or not I should use cake flour for this vegan strawberry cake recipe, but all the non-vegan strawberry cake recipes called for regular all purpose flour. After making it for the first time, I concluded (probably like everyone else) that cake flour is simply too delicate for this recipe. There’s a lot of moisture in this cake and all purpose flour provides the sturdiness necessary to prevent the cake from falling apart!
We will also be using a little flour in the frosting. The frosting??? Yup, the frosting. As I alluded to up front, I don’t like overly-sweet frostings. In order to guard against that, I used an ermine frosting–a frosting that’s made out of a milky roux.
Substitutions: Sub in your favorite all-purpose gluten-free flour blend to make this cake gluten-free!
Lemon.
Did you know that lemon zest helps to draw out the flavor of strawberries? In order to maximize the “strawberriness” of our vegan strawberry cake, we’ll be using both lemon juice and lemon zest in our cake batter!
Substitutions: If you can’t get your hands on a lemon, an orange will do!
Sugar.
Organic cane sugar is going to help lock in the moisture for our vegan strawberry cake while also providing sweetness. Sugar will also enhance the flavor of strawberries. Organic cane sugar will be used in the ermine strawberry frosting.
I wouldn’t try to substitute these ingredients. Replacing sugar with maple syrup or a liquid sweetener will render the cake batter far too wet. Using coconut sugar or date sugar will result in a very dense crumb, making it difficult to achieve a fluffy texture.
Vegan Buttermilk.
“My grocery store doesn’t sell vegan buttermilk!!”
I know. Mine doesn’t either. Which is why we always make it from scratch! Vegan buttermilk is simply the mixture of your favorite dairy-free milk (like oat milk or soy milk) and some kind of acid. In this case, we are going to be using lemon juice! Whisk those two together and set it aside and voila! Vegan buttermilk!
Vegan buttermilk will give your vegan strawberry cake crumb the perfect tenderness, so that each strawberry-filled bite will melt in your mouth.
Aqaufaba.
The traditional strawberry cake recipe calls for egg whites only. Accordingly, this vegan strawberry cake recipe will require aquafaba only (as opposed to adding silken tofu as the “yolk”)! What is aquafaba? It is the liquid in a can of chickpeas.
Substitutions: you don’t have a can of chickpeas lying around, you can use the gelatinous liquid that is produced when you mix water with flax seeds (sometimes referred to as “flax eggs”). If you don’t have flax eggs, you can also just replace with soy milk or oat milk or your preferred non-dairy milk.
Vegetable Oil.
In order to keep the cake as moist as possible, this vegan strawberry cake recipe does call for vegetable oil. You can substitute with any neutral oil (grapeseed oil, canola oil, avocado oil, safflower oil, sunflower seed oil, etc.). You can also use extra virgin olive oil if you don’t mind the flavor. Finally, if you want to keep this recipe oil free, you can use applesauce. However, it can make the cake a bit gummy.
Vegan Butter.
Vegan butter will help with setting both the vegan strawberry cake and the frosting. Vegan butter is, after all, solid at even room temperature. This will also ensure that your frosting doesn’t get too soft. If you don’t have vegan butter, you can substitute with coconut oil (again, if you don’t mind the hints of coconut in your frosting and cake).
Pink Food Coloring.
If you want a pink vegan strawberry cake, you’re going to have to use a little food coloring. And here’s the news you don’t want to hear–it’s not one of those all-natural things. The problem with strawberries, beet juice, raspberry juice, and other sources of all-natural food coloring is that when mixed with baking powder and/or baking soda under heat, the PH balance turns your lovely pink batter brown.
The first time I baked this vegan strawberry cake, I fell for the “all-natural” food coloring and was absolutely crestfallen when my perfectly pink cake turned out looking like chocolate cake. I used Wilton’s food coloring for my second attempt, resulting in a very vibrant, pink crumb. If you don’t mind a brown cake (in lieu of a pink one), you can use whatever food coloring you like (or simply ditch it).
The good news is that the frosting doesn’t need to be subjected to heat and therefore, you don’t need any food coloring at all! The freeze-dried strawberries will give you a lovely, pale pink!
Strawberry Extract.
Look, I wanted to take NO CHANCES with my vegan strawberry cake and therefore used everything I had available to me. My local grocery stores sell strawberry extract so I added just a couple drops to my batter. Many strawberry cake recipes do not require strawberry extract so if you can’t find some or simply won’t be bothered, you can ditch it!
Step-by-Step Instructions for Making This vegan Strawberry cake recipe.
This is a cake. So buckle up, there will be a few moving parts to this vegan strawberry cake. I would recommend reviewing this recipe a couple times before you dig in!
Step 1.
Make the strawberry reduction: Trim and hull 1 pound of fresh strawberries. Place them in either a food processor or upright blender and blend until you have a strawberry puree. Place the puree into a small sauce pot over medium-low heat. Cook until the contents have been reduced by half, stirring frequently to avoid burning or sticking, for approximately 20 to 25 minutes. Place your strawberry reduction in a shallow bowl. Let it cool in the refrigerator before using (at least one hour). Let it come back to room temperature before using.
Step 2.
Assemble all your ingredients (butter, milk, aquafaba) in advance so they are at room temperature when you use them.
Preheat your oven to 350° F. Line two 6-inch round baking pans with parchment paper. Grease the sides with vegan butter or cooking spray.
Prepare your strawberry powder: Add 2 1/2 ounces of freeze-dried strawberries into your food processor. Grind until you receive a fine powder. Place the powder through a sieve or sifter to remove any large bits.
Step 3.
In a small cup, mix together your non-dairy milk with lemon juice and set aside (this is your vegan buttermilk). In a large mixing bowl, sift and whisk together the flour, sea salt, baking powder, baking soda, and 1/4 cup of strawberry powder.
Step 4.
In a large mixing bowl (or to the bowl of your stand mixer), add your sugar and lemon zest. Using your hands, massage the lemon zest into the sugar, helping to release the lemon oils. Then, add your butter. Using a hand mixer (or the whisk attachment), mix the butter into the sugar until creamy (about 2 minutes).
Add your aquafaba and mix until frothy (about 30 seconds). Finally, add your strawberry reduction, vegan buttermilk, vegetable oil, strawberry extract, a little vanilla extract, and a couple drops of pink coloring and mix until fully incorporated (about 4 to 5 minutes).
Step 5.
Add your dry ingredients to your bowl of wet ingredients. Using a spatula, incorporate the dry ingredients in large circular motions around your bowl, until all the dry ingredients have been incorporated. Do not overmix. Divide your batter equally into your prepared baking pans and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean (around 38 to 40 minutes). Allow the cake to cool completely. (You can even wrap it in plastic wrap and place it in the fridge overnight–doing so will make frosting much easier).
Step 6.
Make your strawberry frosting: To a medium sauce pot over low heat, add your flour and sugar. Stir the contents with a rubber spatula so that the sugar and flour get slightly toasted (about 2 minutes). Whisk in non-dairy milk and continue to whisk over low heat until it turns into a thick paste (about 2 minutes). Pour the contents out into a shallow bowl and cover with plastic wrap so that the plastic wrap is touching the top of your roux (otherwise, it will develop an unpleasant “skin”). Place it in the refrigerator (or freezer if you want to use it as soon as possible) so that it cools down before you combine it with the butter.
Once your roux has cooled, place it, together with butter and remaining strawberry powder, in a large mixing bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer. Mix together until you have a smooth, pink frosting.
Step 7.
Make your strawberry filling: Mix your strawberries together with strawberry jam and set aside.
Step 8.
Assemble your cake: Once your cake has completely cooled, use a spoon or a piping bag to add enough frosting on top of the bottom layer so that it is entirely covered. Add your strawberry filling to the center, leaving some space around the margin (otherwise the strawberries will fall out when you add the second layer). Pipe or spoon more frosting over the top of the filling and spread using the back of your spoon or offset spatula. Then, gently place the second layer on top. Add frosting to the top and using your spoon or an offset spatula, smooth out the top and frost the sides.
Frequently Asked Questions.
Can you use freeze-dried strawberries for strawberry cake?
Yes! When ground up into a fine powder, freeze-dried strawberries can be used in both the batter and the frosting of a strawberry cake.
Can you use frozen strawberries instead of fresh strawberries for strawberry cake?
Yes! You can use frozen strawberries in place of fresh strawberries when making strawberry cake.
Can you make this vegan strawberry cake gluten-free?
Yes! Simply replace the flour with your favorite gluten-free all purpose flour blend (I prefer Bob’s Red Mill’s all purpose gluten-free flour) to make this vegan strawberry cake gluten-free.
Do I need to use food coloring for my strawberry cake?
If you want to have a vibrant pink color for your strawberry cake, it is recommended that you use an artificial food coloring. Strawberries, by themselves, will turn your cake grayish-brown when baked. The same will result from using all-natural food coloring.
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Recipe Card.
Stunning Pink Vegan Strawberry Cake.
For a beautiful pink cake made with ACTUAL strawberries!
For Strawberry Reduction.
- 1 lb fresh strawberries, trimmed and hulled
For Strawberry Powder.
- 3 ounces freeze-dried strawberries
For Strawberry Cake.
- 1/2 cup (4 ounces) non-dairy milk
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 3 1/4 cup (400 grams) all purpose flour
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 cup strawberry powder
- 1 1/2 cups (300 grams) organic cane sugar
- 1 lemon (zest)
- 1 cup (226 grams) unsalted vegan butter
- 3/4 cup (6 ounces) aquafaba
- 1/2 cup strawberry reduction
- 3/8 cup (3 ounces) vegetable oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp strawberry extract
- 1/2 tsp pink food coloring
For Strawberry Filling.
- 1/2 lb strawberries, trimmed, hulled, and cut into small pieces
- 1 tbsp strawberry jam or preserves
For Strawberry Ermine Frosting.
- 1/2 cup (42 grams) all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup (150 grams) organic cane sugar
- 1 cup (8 ounces) non-dairy milk
- 1/4 cup strawberry powder
- 1 1/4 cup (272 grams) unsalted vegan butter
-
Make the strawberry reduction: Trim and hull 1 pound of fresh strawberries. Place them in either a food processor or upright blender and blend until you have a strawberry puree. Place the puree into a small sauce pot over medium-low heat. Cook until the contents have been reduced by half, stirring frequently to avoid burning or sticking, for approximately 20 to 25 minutes. Place your strawberry reduction in a shallow bowl. Let it cool in the refrigerator before using (at least one hour). Let it come back to room temperature before using.
-
Assemble all your ingredients (butter, milk, aquafaba) in advance so they are at room temperature when you use them.Preheat your oven to 350° F. Line two 6-inch round baking pans with parchment paper. Grease the sides with vegan butter or cooking spray.Prepare your strawberry powder: Add freeze-dried strawberries into your food processor. Grind until you achieve a fine powder. Place the powder through a sieve or sifter to remove any large bits.
-
In a small cup, mix together your non-dairy milk with lemon juice and set aside (this is your vegan buttermilk). In a large mixing bowl, sift and whisk together the flour, sea salt, baking powder, baking soda, and 1/4 cup of strawberry powder.
-
In a large mixing bowl (or to the bowl of your stand mixer), add your sugar and lemon zest. Using your hands, massage the lemon zest into the sugar, helping to release the lemon oils. Then, add your butter. Using a hand mixer (or the whisk attachment), mix the butter into the sugar until creamy (about 2 minutes). Add your aquafaba and mix until frothy (about 30 seconds). Finally, add your strawberry reduction, vegan buttermilk, vegetable oil, strawberry extract, a little vanilla extract, and a couple drops of pink coloring and mix until fully incorporated (about 4 to 5 minutes).
-
Add your dry ingredients to your bowl of wet ingredients. Using the hand mixer, incorporate the dry ingredients, until all the dry ingredients have been incorporated. Do not overmix. Divide your batter equally into your prepared baking pans and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean (around 38 to 40 minutes). Allow the cake to cool completely. (You can even wrap it in plastic wrap and place it in the fridge overnight–doing so will make frosting much easier).
-
Make your strawberry frosting: To a medium sauce pot over low heat, add your flour and sugar. Stir the contents with a rubber spatula so that the sugar and flour get slightly toasted (about 2 minutes). Whisk in non-dairy milk and continue to whisk over low heat until it turns into a thick paste (about 2 minutes). Pour the contents out into a shallow bowl and cover with plastic wrap so that the plastic wrap is touching the top of your roux (otherwise, it will develop an unpleasant “skin”). Place it in the refrigerator (or freezer if you want to use it as soon as possible) so that it cools down before you combine it with the butter.Once your roux has cooled, place it, together with butter and remaining strawberry powder, in a large mixing bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer. Mix together until you have a smooth, pink frosting.
-
Make your strawberry filling: Mix your strawberries together with strawberry jam and set aside.
-
Assemble your cake: Once your cake has completely cooled, use a spoon or a piping bag to add enough frosting on top of the bottom layer so that it is entirely covered. Add your strawberry filling to the center, leaving some space around the margin (otherwise the strawberries will fall out when you add the second layer). Pipe or spoon more frosting over the top of the filling and spread using the back of your spoon or offset spatula. Then, gently place the second layer on top. Add frosting to the top and using your spoon or an offset spatula, smooth out the top and frost the sides.
- Do not use salted vegan butter for this recipe. Your cake and frosting will turn out overly salty.
- All of your perishable ingredients (butter, milk, aquafaba) should be brought to room temperature before using.
- Use a scale to accurately divide your batter into two cake pans, so that you don’t have lopsided cakes!
- Stick your cakes in the fridge to cool (using plastic wrap) before frosting. This will help with stabilizing your crumb before you add the frosting.
- Place your cake in the refrigerator or even freezer before serving (though make sure to thaw a bit if using the freezer). I’ve found that doing so truly enhances the “strawberriness” of the cakes!
Calories: 301kcalCarbohydrates: 59gProtein: 4gFat: 6gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0.03gSodium: 267mgPotassium: 147mgFiber: 2gSugar: 34gVitamin A: 52IUVitamin C: 58mgCalcium: 89mgIron: 2mg
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