Strawberry Sheet Cake

Who doesn’t love fresh strawberry cake?! This Strawberry Sheet Cake recipe is the sweet treat that you’ve been craving. One bite will have you digging right back in to get more and more of that fresh strawberry flavor! This is one of the most moist cakes ever!

• Save

Strawberry Sheet Cake

There are so many cake recipes out there that use a strawberry cake mix for this recipe – but there’s honestly NOTHING like your first bite of this fresh strawberry sheet cake – and when you’re an adult, there’s nothing stopping you from eating the entire cake pan at once!

I’ll even go as far as stating that this is the best strawberry cake recipe – ever. Don’t believe me? Make this delicious cake right away, and then tell me what you think! I’ve even had such a strong craving that I made this for myself for Mother’s Day one year. (don’t judge – I wanted it right then and there!)

Try some of my other dessert recipes:

Love a good cake? Me, too! Here are some other sweet treats that are perfect for your sweet tooth: Ice Box Eclair Cake, Strawberry Mug Cake, Caramel Apple Dump Cake

WHY YOU’LL LOVE THIS RECIPE

• It’s perfect for large gatherings or a simple sweet treat at home. Seriously, it’s the perfect cake.
• This strawberry Texas sheet cake can be made into a smaller version if you’d like. (I always make a large sheet pan but you do you!)
• You’ll love the real strawberry flavor with every single bite. (and that fluffy texture is so good!)

Moist Strawberry Cake Ingredients

• Save

• Strawberries
• Granulated sugar
• Lemon juice
• Flour
• Baking powder
• Baking soda
• Salted butter
• Vegetable oil
• Vanilla
• Eggs
• Sour cream
• Powdered sugar

*see recipe card for detailed measurements

KITCHEN SUPPLIES YOU’LL NEED

• Wooden spoon
• 9X13 inch pan
• Parchment paper

How to Make Strawberry Sheet Cake from Scratch

Step 1: Start by making the strawberry puree. Take the stems off all the fresh strawberries and put them into a pot. Next, add the lemon juice and the sugar and heat at medium heat. You’ll want to stir quite often to avoid letting it boil. As it starts to boil, turn the heat down to medium low. Make sure that you’re still stirring often so that the strawberries will break down.

Step 2: If you want the mixture to be smoother, use an emulsion blender. Let the mixture reduce to 1/2 in size, which will take about 30 minutes. (If you’re prepping ahead of time, place it in the fridge overnight. Be sure to take it out of the fridge 1 hour before adding it to the rest of the steps of the recipe so that it comes to room temp.) As you’re making the puree, take the eggs, sour cream, and butter out of the fridge because these ingredients need to be at room temperature as well. Once the strawberries have reduced, take the pan off the heat and let it come to room temperature.

• Save

• Save

Step 3: Next, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Before preparing your cake pan, decide how you’re going to eat the cake. If you plan to take the cake out of the pan, line the entire cake pan with parchment paper and then spray that with non-stick spray. If you’re going to leave the cake in the pan, just spray the cake pan directly with non-stick spray.

Step 4: Whisk together the flour, baking soda, and baking powder in a bowl.

Step 5: Grab a mixer and beat the butter until smooth. Next, blend in the oil, and then add in the sugar and mix until smooth. Mix in the vanilla, and then add in the eggs one at a time. Make sure that you’re mixing in between each egg that you add. Then slowly add in the sour cream and strawberry reduction but do not overmix!

Step 6: Add the dry ingredients and mix – but not too much. Just mix until combined.

• Save

• Save

• Save

• Save

Step 7: To make the homemade strawberry buttercream frosting, beat the butter until it’s creamy, and then add the icing sugar. Once mixed, you’ll then add in the strawberry reduction and stir. Add however much you’d like until it’s the texture that you like.

• Save

• Save

Step 8: Pour the cake mixture into your prepared pan and then place it on the middle rack in the oven.

Step 9: Bake the cake for 25-30 minutes, and then let it cool before adding the frosting. (Depending on how you’re serving the cake is how you’ll want to frost it. If you’re going to add the frosting while the cake is in the pan, just let it cool and then frost. If you’re going to frost the cake after taking it out of the pan, chilling the cake first will make it easier to frost!)

• Save

• Save

STORAGE AND RE-HEATING NOTES

Leftovers of this moist cake recipe should be covered or stored in an airtight container and kept in the fridge. It will stay fresh for up to 3 days. You can also freeze this strawberry summer sheet cake for up to 3 months of time. It’s the perfect dessert to prep and save for later!

SUBSTITUTIONS AND VARIATIONS

Are you looking for the cake to be bright pink in color? I get it – pink cakes are so cute! To get a pinker color, add some pink gel food coloring right into the cake batter mix. This homemade cake won’t be as pink as other cake mix recipes since you’re making it from scratch.

Want a strawberry layer cake? Make it happen! You can split the batter into two 8-inch cake pans and then stack them once cooled. You’ll probably need to whip up some more frosting as well to have extra to put between the layers.

Don’t have sour cream? Use Greek yogurt instead! Just be sure that you’re using regular yogurt without any flavor – unless you want a hint of flavor in the batter!

• Save

How do you know when the strawberry reduction is ready?

Let your eyes tell you! It will become quite thick in texture and also be about 1/2 the size that you started with.

Do I have to use both butter and oil to make this cake from scratch?

I love using both because I think it adds a fluffy and moist texture. However, you can totally use one of them instead of using both if you’d like.

What should I do with any leftover strawberry reduction?

Keep it! You can store it in a container in the fridge for up to 5 days or you can freeze it for up to 5 months. Use it as a yummy topping over vanilla ice cream!

What are other options to use for frosting a cake?

Buttercream frosting is my favorite, but you can use chocolate ganache or any flavor of frosting that you’d like. I’ve even drizzled some fresh strawberry jam on top of this simple cake! You can use whatever you’d love as a topping for this homemade strawberry cake!

• Save

If you’ve made this recipe or any other recipe on my site, let me know in the comment section how they turned out. We love hearing from you! You can also follow along with me on FACEBOOK AND INSTAGRAM to see more colorful recipes!