Description
A delightful small-batch vegan strawberry cake bursting with fresh strawberry flavor, perfect for intimate gatherings or when you want a fresh homemade treat without the fuss. This cake combines strawberry puree in the batter and a luscious vegan strawberry frosting for a light, moist, and flavorful dessert.
Ingredients
Scale
Strawberry Puree
- ~2 cups (240g) fresh or frozen strawberries, room temperature and measured without stems
Dry ingredients
- 1 ½ cups (190g) all-purpose plain flour, spoon and leveled
- ⅔ cup (135g) granulated sugar
- 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Wet ingredients
- ¼ cup (65g) neutral flavored oil
- 2 ½ tablespoons (30g) dairy-free milk, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar, or lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ scant teaspoon pink gel food coloring, or around ½ scant teaspoon of liquid food coloring
To decorate
- 1 batch Vegan Strawberry Frosting
- ⅓ cup (110g) strawberry or raspberry preserves, thick not runny (optional)
- fresh strawberries, or other fresh berries
Instructions
- Prepare the fresh strawberry puree: Add the strawberries to a food processor or blender and blend until there are no chunks left. Set the smooth puree aside for use in the batter.
- Prepare for baking: Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F). Grease or line two 6-inch (15 cm) round cake pans with parchment paper for easy removal after baking.
- Mix dry ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt. Stir well to evenly distribute the ingredients.
- Add wet ingredients: Pour in the strawberry puree along with the oil, dairy-free milk, apple cider vinegar (or lemon juice), vanilla extract, and pink food coloring. Stir gently until just combined. Avoid overmixing; small lumps in the batter are okay as long as there’s no dry flour left.
- Divide and smooth batter: Evenly divide the batter between the two prepared cake pans and smooth the surfaces with a spatula to ensure even baking.
- Bake the cakes: Place the pans in the preheated oven and bake for about 20–23 minutes. Check doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center; it should come out clean. Once done, let the cakes cool in their pans for around 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Trim and assemble: When the cakes are completely cool, slice off the dome tops from both cakes for flat stacking. Place one cake layer on your serving plate.
- Frost and fill: Spread or pipe approximately ¾ cup of vegan strawberry frosting onto the bottom cake layer. If using fruit preserves, pipe a dam of frosting around the edge to contain the preserves, then spoon about ⅓ cup of preserves in the center.
- Add the second layer and frost: Place the second cake layer on top and spread or pipe the remaining frosting evenly around the top and sides of the cake.
- Decorate: Garnish the assembled cake with fresh strawberries or other fresh berries as desired.
- Storage: Store the cake in an airtight container at room temperature until serving. Leftovers can be refrigerated for 2-3 days; allow the cake to come to room temperature for 1-2 hours before enjoying.
Notes
- Measure flour accurately using the spoon and level method to avoid a dry, dense cake. Fluff flour, spoon it into your measuring cup, then level with a knife.
- You can decorate the cake alternatively with strawberry cream cheese frosting or lemon buttercream; you may have leftover frosting.
- To make quick homemade jam: Simmer ¾ cup (95g) fresh or frozen berries with 1 ½ tablespoons (25g) sugar, 1 tablespoon (8g) cornstarch, and a dash of water for 10 minutes while mashing the berries. Adjust water for consistency and let cool before using.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (1/6 of cake)
- Calories: 280
- Sugar: 22g
- Sodium: 180mg
- Fat: 13g
- Saturated Fat: 1.2g
- Unsaturated Fat: 11g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 38g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 3g
- Cholesterol: 0mg
