Strawberry jam cake is sweet and fruity, with the prettiest shade of pink! Strawberry jam blended into the cake batter adds a deep strawberry flavor to the moist and tender cake, and a strawberry cream cheese frosting is the sweet and creamy finishing touch. This beautiful strawberry cake is perfect for any occasion!
Everyone needs a good strawberry cake in their life and we have a few strawberry cake recipes we love.
Our Strawberry Crunch Cake is a stunning layer cake that features fun textures and a sweet strawberry flavor inspired by a classic strawberry crunch ice cream bar.
This Strawberry Spoon Cake is simple and summery and the best way to enjoy fresh strawberries (that deliciously jammy center is heavenly).
But this strawberry jam cake is an all-seasons type of snack cake that is perfect for graduations, birthdays, Valentine’s Day, anniversaries, and more. There are no fresh strawberries needed to get the perfect flavor, just your favorite strawberry jam or strawberry preserves.
Why This Recipe Works
This delicious strawberry jam cake has lovely cake layers, a sweet strawberry glaze and a rich strawberry cream cheese frosting- all the elements for something truly spectacular!
It is:
- a simple cake recipe to follow
- sweet and fruity and full of strawberry flavor
- soft and tender with complementing textures
- a stunning centerpiece for any occasion.
Ingredients for Strawberry Jam Cake
The cake calls for your everyday dry ingredients that are probably in your pantry already. Add a few extras like jam and buttermilk, and you have what you need for this strawberry snack cake.
- All-purpose flour. There’s no need to pull out the cake flour- just your regular all-purpose flour will do.
- Leavening agents. The combination of baking soda and baking powder will give the cake the perfect amount of lift.
- Salt. Just a little bit is needed for flavor.
- Eggs. You’ll need three large eggs for this cake recipe.
- Sugar. Granulated sugar is required for the cake. Powdered sugar is what you’ll need for the frosting.
- Butter. Unsalted butter adds a richness flavor to the cake!
- Oil. You can use any sort of mild oil like canola or vegetable oil.
- Strawberry jam. Choose your favorite, whether it’s store-bought or homemade strawberry jam! This recipe calls for jam for the cake batter as well as the strawberry glaze.
- Flavor agents. Vanilla extract and strawberry extract for the cake, plus a little more vanilla for the frosting.
- Buttermilk. This gives the cake a moist texture and very subtle tanginess that pairs so well with strawberry.
- Water. For the glaze! You’ll thin down the jam and spread the glaze over the warm cake, similar to a poke cake.
- Cream cheese. Make sure it’s softened to room temperature so it combines well with the other frosting ingredients.
- Freeze dried strawberries. This adds bold strawberry flavor to the frosting and also gives it a lovely pink color.
Food color is optional but just a little bit will add some vibrant color to both the cake batter and the frosting. Feel free to omit if you prefer, but just keep in mind that your cake won’t be quite as pink as the cake seen in our photos.
How to Make Strawberry Jam Cake
Make the strawberry cake batter, bake the cake, spread on the jam glaze, cool the cake, add the frosting- that’s it!
We use a stand mixer for both the cake and frosting, but you can also use a large bowl with a hand mixer.
See the steps below and make sure to scroll down to the bottom of the page to view the printable recipe card.
Before you begin: Preheat the oven to 350°F and spray a 13 x 9-inch rectangular cake pan with a non-stick cooking spray or line it with parchment paper.
To make the strawberry jam glaze, you’ll mix the strawberry jam with water. Let the cake cool for 10 minutes, and poke holes in the top of the cake.
Spread the glaze and cool it again before covering it with the strawberry cream cheese frosting.
Once the cake is frosted, swirl a thin layer of strawberry jam into the frosting. This creates a pretty pattern and adds extra strawberry flavor to every bite!
? Tips for the Best Results
- Beat the eggs and sugar together on medium speed to high speed until they’re almost triple in volume. This helps the cake turn out extra fluffy.
- Freeze dried strawberries: You’ll need powdered freeze dried strawberries for the frosting. To make your own powder, process 1/2 ounce of freeze dried strawberries in a food processor until it turns into a fine powder. If you blend the strawberry powder with 1 tablespoon of sugar, the powder won’t clump.
- If you don’t have any freeze dried strawberries, you can substitute it with 1 teaspoon of strawberry extract. The strawberry powder adds a more natural strawberry flavor to the frosting but the extract will work if you don’t use too much.
- Frosting tip: Add the cream cheese last. Creaming the butter and sugar first ensures the sugar is completely coated in butterfat. This prevents it from drawing out water from the cream cheese and making a loose, runny frosting.
- Do not use cream cheese from a tub, or low-fat cream cheese. Make sure to choose full-fat, block style cream cheese for the best results.
✅ Substitutions and Variations
- Substitute the frosting for:
- Garnish the cake with chocolate covered strawberries.
⭐️ Helpful Tools
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? More Recipes You Will Love:
Lemon Curd Cake is the lemon-lover’s dream dessert! The lemon layer cake hits the right balance of sweet and tart, with a fluffy meringue buttercream frosting and a lemon curd topping.
Our Raspberry Mousse recipe makes a deliciously thick and creamy dessert that also stands in as a cake filling! With a rich raspberry flavor, this is a delicious and decadent treat you can use a number of different ways.
Brownies with Cream Cheese Frosting are rich and chocolatey and the best way to up your brownie game! The frosting is slightly tangy and it pairs wonderfully with the intense chocolate flavor of homemade brownies.
For More Strawberry Recipes:
- strawberry crunch
- strawberry cookies
- strawberry protein smoothie
- the best strawberry popsicles
- blackberry strawberry smoothie
- strawberry rhubarb pie
- strawberry topping for cheesecake
- fig and strawberry jam
- no bake strawberry cheesecake
- strawberry goat cheese ice cream
- strawberry jello pie
- rhubarb strawberry crisp
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Strawberry Jam Cake
Ingredients
Strawberry Jam Cake
- 2-½ cups all purpose flour 300 grams
- 1-½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1-½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 3 eggs
- 1-½ cups sugar 300 grams
- 6 tablespoons butter melted (85 grams)
- ¼ cup oil (50 grams)
- ½ cup strawberry jam 166 grams
- 1 tablespoon strawberry extract
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon pink gel food coloring optional
- 1 cup buttermilk 237 grams
Strawberry Glaze
- 2 tablespoons strawberry jam
- 1 tablespoon water
Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1-½ cups powdered sugar
- ½ cup butter
- ¼ cup strawberry jam plus 2 tablespoons to swirl on top of the cake
- 3 tablespoons powdered freeze dried strawberries*
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
Instructions
For the Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and spray a 13 x 9 inch baking pan with non stick spray or line it with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Whisk the dry ingredients together and set aside for later.
- Add the eggs and sugar to a large mixing bowl. Beat on high speed for 5 to 7 minutes until the mixture gets light in color and nearly triples in volume. If you lift the beater and let the mixture fall back into the bowl, it should fall in a ribbon-like pattern. This step will help add volume and lightness to the cake.
- Stir in the melted butter, oil, strawberry jam, strawberry extract, vanilla extract, and pink food coloring (if using).
- Sift half of the flour mixture over the batter and stir it with a wide spatula.
- Stir in the buttermilk then sift the rest of the flour mixture over the batter and stir it until well combined.
- Spread the batter into the cake pan and bake for 34 to 38 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Strawberry Jam Glaze
- Combine 2 tablespoons of strawberry jam with 1 tablespoon of water.
- Let the cake cool for 10 minutes, then use a fork to poke holes in the top of the cake.
- Spread the strawberry jam glaze over the top of the warm cake. Let the cake cool completely before covering it with cream cheese frosting.
For the Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
- Add the powdered sugar and butter to a mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer until creamy and fluffy.
- Add ¼ cup of strawberry jam, powdered freeze-dried strawberries, vanilla extract, and salt. Beat until well combined. (Save the additional 2 tablespoons of jam to swirl into the top of the cake).
- Add the cream cheese and beat for 2 to 3 minutes until smooth and creamy.
- When the cake is completely cool, spread the frosting over the top, then swirl dollops of strawberry jam into the frosting.
Notes
- Beat the eggs and sugar together until they almost triple in volume. If you skip this step the cake will not be as fluffy.
- For the frosting: to make powdered freeze-dried strawberries, place ½ ounce of freeze-dried strawberries in a food processor and process with a blade until they turn into a fine powder. A half ounce of freeze-dried strawberries will make 3 tablespoons of powdered strawberries.
- If you blend the strawberry powder with a tablespoon of sugar, the strawberry powder will not clump up.
- If you don’t have any freeze-dried strawberries available, you can replace the strawberry powder with 1 teaspoon of strawberry extract. The strawberry powder will give the frosting a more natural strawberry flavor, but the extract works nicely as long as you don’t use too much.
- Make sure you add the cream cheese last. Creaming the butter and sugar first will allow the sugar to get completely coated in the butterfat. That will prevent the sugar from drawing the water out of the cream cheese and making a loose, runny frosting.
- Use block cream cheese. Do not use spreadable cream cheese or low fat cream cheese, both of which can make the frosting too soft and runny,
- If you want the frosting to have a brighter pink color, you can add a couple drops of red food coloring.
