Strawberry Velvet Cake (Printable)

Moist velvet cake layered with fresh strawberry purée and creamy cream cheese frosting

# What You’ll Need:

→ Strawberry Velvet Cake

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→ Strawberry Purée

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→ Cream Cheese Frosting

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→ Decoration

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# How To Make It:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line two 8-inch round cake pans with parchment paper.
02 - Blend strawberries and sugar in a blender or food processor until smooth. Reserve 1/2 cup for the cake batter and 1/4 cup for the frosting.
03 - Sift together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
04 - Beat butter, oil, and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
05 - Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in vanilla extract, strawberry purée, and food coloring if using.
06 - Alternately add dry ingredients and buttermilk to the wet mixture, starting and ending with dry ingredients. Mix until just combined; do not overmix.
07 - Divide batter evenly between prepared pans. Smooth tops. Bake for 28-32 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
08 - Let cakes cool in pans for 10 minutes, then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely.
09 - Beat cream cheese and butter together until smooth. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating until fluffy. Mix in vanilla and strawberry purée until well combined.
10 - Place one cake layer on a serving plate. Spread a layer of frosting on top. Add second cake layer and coat top and sides with remaining frosting.
11 - Decorate with fresh strawberries. Chill for 30 minutes before slicing for clean layers.

# Expert Advice:

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  • The cake stays impossibly moist for days, thanks to the secret combination of butter and oil
  • Fresh strawberry purée gives it an authentic fruit flavor that extracts just cannot match
  • The cream cheese frosting strikes that perfect balance between tangy and sweet
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  • Room temperature ingredients are not optional here. Cold eggs or butter will cause your batter to curdle and seize up.
  • Overmixing after adding flour develops gluten and turns velvet cake into rubber. Stop the mixer the moment you see the last streak of flour disappear.
  • The chilling step before slicing seems like torture, but it is the difference between ragged edges and picture perfect layers.
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  • When measuring flour, fluff it with a spoon before spooning into your measuring cup and leveling off. This prevents packing too much flour into the cake, which makes it dry.
  • Place a strip of parchment paper under the bottom cake layer on your serving plate. Pull it out after frosting to keep your plate perfectly clean.

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