Fresh Strawberry Cake With Cream Cheese Icing

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Fresh Strawberry Cake is my Mama’s favorite and a guaranteed showstopper. I mean look at this y’all. I’ve served this at baby showers, bridal showers, brunches and made for birthdays as well. My favorite place to serve it, though, is at my own dinner table.

When Are Strawberries In Season?

I’ve had strawberries on the brain lately. The national strawberry season can be January all the way through to November so it is usually easy to find them at stores. Prices may vary depending on the time of year you want them.   In deeper parts of the South they are usually ready for harvesting April and May.

When I get them I tend to eat them all on the way home, then throw the container in the trash on my way in the house. The trick is always to hide the evidence! So it’s a big restraint for me to have enough left to make fresh Strawberry Cake! Check out some of my other delicious cake recipes like Triple Chocolate Cake (a.k.a Chocoholic Cake)Red Velvet Bundt CakeChocolate Velvet Cake With Cream Cheese Icing and Coca Cola Cake ~Oh So Good!~.

I mean Y’all, look at that beauty.  It tastes even better than it looks!

The ingredients you will need for the cake are:

  • White cake mix
  • Strawberry gelatin mix
  • Cooking oil
  • Milk
  • Fresh strawberries
  • Three eggs

Helpful Kitchen Tools

  • Wash your strawberries and cut the tops off, slice them up a bit.

Mashing Strawberries for Fresh Strawberry Cake

  • Put them in a big old plastic bag and crush them a bit. You can use a rolling pin if you want to be civilized but somedays call for a few fun karate chops!

*The amount of strawberries needs to be one cup after they are crushed, not before.

Mashed Strawberries for Fresh Strawberry Cake

You can use any method of crushing that you like but I find a plastic bag and a can of somethin‘ works just great.

Mixing up Fresh Strawberry Cake

  • In a large mixing bowl, place cake mix, milk, oil, eggs, and gelatin.

Fresh Strawberry Cake Batter

  • Mix that up with an electric mixer until you have a smooth, creamy, pink batter, about two minutes.

Fresh Strawberry Cake Batter

  • Add in your crushed strawberries, juice and all.
  • Mix that up again.

Batter for Fresh Strawberry Cake in Cake Pans

  • Now grease and flour two round cake pans.
  • Divide your batter evenly among the cake pans
  • Bake these at 350 for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  • Remove from oven and allow to sit in the pans for ten minutes before turning out to cool completely.

Making Cream Cheese Icing For Fresh Strawberry Cake

Now let’s make us some cream cheese icing.

Ingredients needed for cream cheese icing

Important note: If you want to decorate your cake as I have done in these photos, you will need to double this recipe.

Another note: Your cream cheese and butter really need to be room temperature so set them out earlier in the day before starting this.

  • Place your butter, cream cheese, and powdered sugar in a bowl. Mix ’em up til they’re nice and creamy smooth, scraping down sides as needed.

Fresh Strawberry Cake

  • Ice your cake however you like.

Fresh Strawberry Cake

Look how pretty this fresh strawberry cake is!

Fresh Strawberry Cake

And this cake is just as delicious as it is pretty!

Fresh Strawberry Cake

Now cut it quick! The youngun’s are a waitin’!

Store this cake in the refrigerator. It’s even better served cold!

 

fresh strawberry cake

Fresh Strawberry Cake With Cream Cheese Icing

Fresh Strawberry Cake is my mother’s favorite and a guaranteed showstopper. I mean look at this y'all. I’ve served this at baby showers, bridal showers, brunches and made for birthdays as well. My favorite place to serve it, though, is at my own dinner table.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: strawberry
Servings: 4
Calories: 393kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 Package Plain White Cake Mix
  • 1 Cup Chopped strawberries with juice
  • 3/4 Cup Milk
  • 1 Package Strawberry Gelatin 3 ounce
  • 3/4 Cup Vegetable Oil
  • 3 Eggs

Icing

  • 8 ounce Cream Cheese room temp
  • 4 Tablespoons butter room temp
  • 3 Cups confectioner's sugar

Instructions

  • Grease and flour two 8 inch round baking pans or one 9x13 inch pan.
  • Wash and cut the tops of strawberries. Coarsely chop them. Gently mash strawberries by placing them in a large plastic bag and rolling over it with a rolling pin or large can.You need to measure out one cup once they are mashed.
  • Place cake mix, milk, gelatin mix, vegetable oil, and eggs in large mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy, about two minutes or so. Add in strawberries and juice, mix again until well combined. Pour into baking pans.
  • Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. If using two round pans, allow to sit for ten minutes before turning out of pans to cool completely. If baking in 9x13 pan, simply allow to cool in pan.
  • Combine all icing ingredients and mix with electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Ice cooled cake.
  • Store cake in refrigerator.
  • Ice cake. Store in the refrigerator.

Notes

Important note: If you want to decorate your cake as I have done in these photos, you will need to double this recipe.
*Some people add 1/2 cup crushed, drained strawberries to this icing as well. I leave them out to make the cake a bit prettier and easier to ice but feel free to add them in for more great strawberry flavor! Just mix them in after your icing is smooth and creamy and all other ingredients have been added.
Another note: Your cream cheese and butter really need to be room temperature so set them out earlier in the day before starting this.
If you don't want to you can make this into a sheet cake as well.  This recipe would be good for a 9 x 13 sheet pan. 

Nutrition

Calories: 393kcal
Tried this recipe?Mention @southernplate or tag #southernplate!

The versatility of strawberries…

There are so many strawberry dishes that I love. My personal favorite is my Mama’s strawberry pie, My husband’s favorite is Strawberry punchbowl cake, and my son favors good old fashioned strawberry shortcake. 

“The distance between who I am and who I want to be is separated by my actions.”

~Brian Solis

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323 Comments

  1. I’ve been on the road for a bit and then settling back into home-life now that I’m back in the states and let me tell you, reading this post just made it all come together!! Seriously, this post made my day. I was laughing at all of your little jokes and I LOVE your attitude towards following those stuffy, old baking instructions. lol

    I literally am going to make some of this cake tonight!!! I have never attempted something of this caliber before so it’s going to be interesting!! hehe Wish me luck!

    Also, Christy, I loved the video! You make me, and hopefully everyone else, feel like I’m truly a part of SP life and like we’re all some big, happy (and likely crazy if many more are like me hehe) family. I wish you luck on your book tour and KNOW you will enjoy NYC. It’s a big place though so don’t be upset if you don’t get to see it all. I was there for two weeks and didn’t even scratch the surface of all there is to see and do.

    Thanks again for your wonderful posts and all the work you do for us. And since you said you’re a hugger…. *hugs you and the rest of the family reeeeaaaaalllly tight*

  2. Try this one. My son made his first one at age 3. Mix 1 pk Strawberry Jell-O with 1 cup thawed frozen or smashed fresh strawberries. Grease a 9×13 baking dish; place one cup miniature marshmallows in bottom evenly. Prepare a box of strawberry cake mix (or your cake) and spread evenly on top of marshmallows. Top with strawberry jello mix. Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes. The strawberries will sink to the bottom and it is great hot… kind of like an upside down cake.The kids liked eating it right away and it is still their favorite as he turns 35 this year! Love you and just putting it all in at once… works for me.

  3. This was always one of my dad’s favorite recipes. We made it in a sheet cake pan and would drop it on the counter several times.~I mean we held it about 5 inches in the air and dropped it 2 or 3 times.~ Those air bubbles just flew away.
    I say a notice in the paper a couple of weeks ago, Barbara Streisand will also be at the Book Expo. Can’t remember whether I’ve told you that or not. See VERY IMPORTANT people are going to be there. This includes our VERY SPECIAL FRIEND, CHRISTY JORDAN!!! Make sure they know your first name is Christy, because there is another author whose name is Jordan Christy. I can’t wait to see New York through your eyes.

  4. Christy, The strawberry cake sounds and looks divine. I can hardly wait to try it for the next Moss birthday dinner. Even more appealing, though, are your heartfelt comments in the video. You’re special, dearie. Just keep your feet on the ground and your heart in Alabama. We’re all pulling for you and praying for you!

  5. Christy,
    Strawberries and Cream Cheese… oh my goodness I am in heaven. It is so pretty I might have skip the sheet cake and make layers just so I can look at it.
    The girls are coming over on Saturday and now I know what I will be serving them.
    I am so happy you share all these wonderful recipes.
    Thank you

  6. This is the recipe I use except I substitute applesauce for the oil. I made one a couple of weeks ago for the first time in many years. First time I had made it for my hubby and he thought he had died and gone to heaven. Keep it in fridge and it gets better each day! I must admit my icing was not quite as nice looking as yours. I added fresh crushed strawberries to it too and never could get it to thicken up as much as I would have liked…but it sure tasted good.

  7. YUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMm.

    Your mom’s strawberry pie looks a lot like my mom’s. She also does a peach and a raspberry version that are to die for.

    Now I need to go to the store and get strawberries!
    Can’t wait for the local berries to be ready, but it’s still too cold and wet here!

    *smooches*

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