Fluffy Strawberry Sheet Cake
This delicious strawberry cake with fresh strawberries is soft and fluffy, and at the same time super fruity. I add strawberries to the cake batter AND as topping, which makes a perfect summer cake.
Yield: 18 small pices (9x13 pan)*
Ingredients
- 500 g (or roughly a bit more than a pound) strawberries
- 4 eggs (large eggs in the US, medium in Europe)
- 7 tablespoons (100 g) softened unsalted butter
- ¼ teaspoon fine salt
- 3/4 cup + 1 tablespoon (180 g) sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Zest of 1 organic lemon
- 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons (150 g/5.3 oz) sour cream
- 6 ½ tablespoons (100 g) milk (2% or whole)
- 300 g (about 2 ½ cups) all-purpose flour (if you have cake flour on hand, use it for an even softer crumb)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
To finish:
- Powdered sugar for dusting or vanilla ice cream to serve (both optional)
Instructions
- Line a 9x13-inch pan (23x33 cm)* with parchment paper or grease it with butter. Wash strawberries, remove green hulls and let dry on paper towels (or gently pat dry). Cut strawberries into small pieces.
- Separate egg white and yolks. Using an electric hand mixer or stand mixer, beat egg whites and salt to stiff peaks. Set aside.
- In a second bowl, beat softened butter, sugar, egg yolk, vanilla extract, and finely grated lemon zest. Mix until pale and creamy, about 5 minutes.
- Add sour cream and milk and mix briefly. Preheat oven to 350 °F (175 °C) top and bottom heat.
- Add flour and baking powder and mix until combined. Fold in half of the beaten egg whites to lighten the batter. Then add the rest of the beaten egg whites together with about 1/3 to 1/2 of the strawberries. Fold into batter.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared cake pan and smooth the batter with a spatula. Top with remaining strawberries and bake at 350 °F (175 °C) until golden and a wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out clean or with a few crumbs, for about 35-40 minutes. If using a larger sheet, the cake will be finished baking a few minutes earlier.
- Let cool and enjoy the cake plain, dusted with powdered sugar, or serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. I prefer it plain as is. Fruit cakes like this taste best on the day of baking.
Notes
*Cake pan:
You can also use a larger pan (half sheet pan with 13x18-inch) but the cake layer will turn out flatter and you will probably need more strawberries for topping the cake.