Strawberry Cake

Whether you enjoy our strawberry cake as a sweet breakfast or seasonal dessert, it's sure to hit the spot. Light, tender, and studded with a whole pound of ripe strawberries, it's an easy way to enjoy the springtime berry. The cake is also infused with vanilla, a fragrant ingredient that pairs beautifully with berries.

If you don’t have enough strawberries, feel free to add in other berries you love, such as blackberries or raspberries. You could even toss in juicy stone fruits, like plums or nectarines. When it’s time to enjoy the cake, serve it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or homemade whipped cream (or perhaps a bit of both). This strawberry recipe is also delightful with a cup of coffee or tea in the morning or as an afternoon snack.

How to Clean and Hull Strawberries

Like all other berries, it's best to wait to wash strawberries until you're ready to use them, as rinsing them too early can cause them to spoil.

Give them a good rinse under cold water, or try one of these other methods if you prefer a deeper clean. Next, lay them out on a clean kitchen towel or a few paper towels for a few minutes to let them dry off a bit so no excess moisture ends up in your cake.

Hulling Strawberries

Once your berries are cleaned, you'll need to hull them, that's removing the stem and leaves. While special tools exist for this task, it's easy to do with either a paring knife or a straw:

With a paring knife: Use the tip of the knife to cut around the stem, then pop out the hull. (It should leave a cone-shaped indent in the fruit.) You can also slice straight across the top of each berry to cut off the stem, but this can remove more of the fruit than is necessary.

With a straw: If you have a drinking straw handy, you push straight through the berry—beginning at the bottom—until the hull comes out. Since this method doesn't include any sharp tools, it can be a fun task to do with kids.

Equipment Needed for Making This Strawberry Cake

Our simple cake comes together quickly and easily, but you'll want to make sure you have the right equipment on hand, including:

Pie plate: You'll need a 10-inch glass or metal pie plate for this recipe. You can also use a 9-inch round cake pan or springform pan.

Mixing bowls: Two bowls are required for this recipe: A medium bowl for the dry ingredients and a larger mixing bowl to build the batter in.

Electric mixer: For the most tender crumb, we strongly suggest using either a handheld mixer or a stand mixer. An electric mixer will make quick work of creaming the butter and sugar, which helps to incorporate air into the batter. If you don't have an electric mixer, you can beat the butter and sugar by hand until it's well combined before working in the remaining ingredients; the cake might not be as light and tender, but it'll still be very delicious.

Sifter or fine-mesh strainer: Sifting the dry ingredients helps to remove any clumps and also aerates the flour, which contributes lightness. Use a sifter if you have one, or simply run the dry ingredients through a fine-mesh strainer.

Wire rack: Like most baking recipes, this one calls for cooling the cake—still in the pie plate—on a wire rack. It'll allow air to circulate around the pan, which will help the cake to cool more evenly and efficiently (which means you'll be able to eat it sooner).