Go Back
–+ servings
a slice of a triple strawberry layer cake on a plate with a fork

Triple Strawberry Layer Cake

No artificial extracts, just real, fresh strawberries! Soft, tender strawberry cake layered with homemade strawberry filling and covered in silky strawberry Swiss meringue buttercream.
Print Recipe Save Pin Recipe
Prep Time: 1 hour
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Cooling/Rest Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 3 hours 45 minutes
Course: Dessert, Tea
Cuisine: American
Keyword: strawberry cake, strawberry layer cake, strawbery cake with real strawberries
Servings: 1 8-inch three-layer cake
Author: Ainseanlea @ The Stush Kitchen

Get this recipe in your email!

I'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it whenever you like!

Equipment

Ingredients

For the Strawberry Syrup & Filling

For the Strawberry Cake Layers

For the Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Instructions

Make the Strawberry Syrup

  • Add the whole, hulled strawberries and 110g (½ cup) of sugar to a large saucepan. Cover with lid over low-medium heat until a syrup with a consistency similar to hot maple syrup forms. This will take about 10-15 minutes. Ensure that the heat isn't too high to prevent the syrup boiling over.
  • Pour the strawberry syrup through a strainer to separate the syrup and the strawberry chunks. Set both aside.
  • Add the remaining 90g (6 TBSP) of the granulated sugar to the strawberry chunks. This will be reduced later to make the strawberry filling for the cake.

Make the Strawberry Cake Layers

  • Preheat the oven to 325°F.
  • Combine the all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and set aside.
  • Return 300mL (1¼ cups) of the strawberry syrup to the saucepan along with the dry milk, and oil. Stir til smooth and return to stove over low heat to keep the mixture hot until ready to be incorporated. Add any remaining or leftover strawberry syrup to the strawberry chunk mixture set aside earlier.
  • Add the egg whites to the bowl of your stand mixer affixed with a whisk attachment. Whip on high speed and once egg whites begin to get foamy gradually add in 110g (½ cup) of the granulated sugar. Whip the egg whites until they form soft peaks (peaks should flop over easily like a Santa's hat).
    Transfer to a separate bowl & set aside. No need to clean the bowl or whisk before the next step.
  • Add the egg yolks, 365g (1½ cups) of the granulated sugar for the cake layers & the vanilla extract to the bowl of the stand mixer. Whip on high speed until the mixture is a very pale yellow and fluffy (it should at least double in volume).
  • Turn the mixer down to low speed. Add the mixture of all-purpose flour, baking powder & salt set aside earlier to the whipped egg yolks and continue to mix on low speed just until the flour is completely incorporated. It will resemble clumpy sand at this point
  • Remove the strawberry syrup mixture from the stove. With the mixer turned to low speed, slowly stream the strawberry syrup mixture into the mixing bowl with the flour/egg yolk mixture. Add the red food coloring to the batter now if using.
  • Once all the strawberry syrup mixture has been added, stop the mixer and scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl. Mix again on low speed for about 10-20 seconds to ensure everything has been evenly incorporated.
  • Using a spatula, gently fold the whipped egg whites from earlier into the cake batter. Be sure to scrape along the bottom of the bowl and bring that batter up over the egg whites so that the batter is even. Be gentle to avoid beating out the air that has been incorporated.
  • Prepare 3 8-inch cake pans with baking spray and divide the strawberry cake batter among the 3 pans. Bake the strawberry cake layers for 22-26 at 325°F minutes or until a toothpick comes out with just a few crumbs.
  • Once the cakes are comfortable enough to handle cover or wrap the layers with cling wrap to lock in moisture and flavor. Keep wrapped until you are ready to decorate the cake.

Make the Strawberry Filling

  • Puree the strawberry chunk mixture set aside earlier and transfer to a saucepan. Allow to reduce over low-medium heat for 10-20 minutes until it reaches a deep red color but the mixture is still easily spreadable (similar to preserves).
    Do not allow heat to exceed low-medium. The sugar content will cause it to burn before it is properly reduced.
  • Once the strawberry filling is ready, transfer it to an airtight container and set aside until you are ready to assemble your cake. Refrigerate if not assembling the cake on the same day.

Make the Strawberry Swiss Meringue Buttercream

  • Add the meringue powder, water, granulated sugar and salt to the clean bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk over a double boiler until the sugar is completely dissolved (about 5 minutes).
    To test, rub a little of the mixture between 2 fingers. If it feels gritty, return it to the double boiler until it feels smooth.
  • Once all the sugar has dissolved, attach the bowl to a stand mixer with a whisk attachment. Whip the meringue on high speed until the bowl is no longer warm to touch.
    You can hold a bag of frozen vegetables to the side of the bowl to speed up the cooling process.
  • Once the bowl feels like room temperature, add all the cubed butter at once.
  • Add 225g (1 cup) of the strawberry reduction along with the confectioner's sugar and whip again until completely incorporated. Store the frosting in an airtight container until you are ready to assemble the cake.

Assembling Your Triple Strawberry Layer Cake

  • Using an offset spatula, spread a thin layer of the strawberry buttercream on top of a cake circle to help the cake stick and prevent it from sliding during decorating.
  • Place a cake layer down in the center of the cake circle. Spread a layer of buttercream on top whilst creating a small well in the middle to hold the strawberry filling in once added.
    Alternatively, you could use a piping bag to pipe a border around the edge of the cake on top of an even layer of buttercream.
  • Add the strawberry filling in the center of the well you created with the buttercream. Use about 3-4 tablespoons. Be careful not to overfill the well as this will affect the stability of the cake.
    The filling should not surpass the height of the lip of the well.
  • Add the second cake layer on top of the buttercream/strawberry filling layer. Ensure that you center the cake, aligning it with the edges of the base cake layer. Use the offset spatula to spread and gently press any buttercream along the edges into the gaps between both cake layers.
  • Repeat the last 2 steps again using the remaining strawberry filling and the last strawberry cake layer.
  • Crumb coat the cake by spreading a thin layer of strawberry frosting across the top of the layer cake and over any uncovered spots on the side.
  • Cover the cake using the rest of the buttercream and spread evenly using a cake scraper.
  • Arrange the fresh strawberries on the cake as desired. This cake can be kept at room temperature for up to 3 days - after that it should be refrigerated. For optimal taste enjoy within 5 days.

Notes

 
  1. For best results use a kitchen scale to measure the ingredients! Measuring with cups (particularly the flour) can throw off the texture and flavor of this cake. Although I've provided alternative measurements in cus please note that these are ESTIMATES and may not give the same results.
    If you insist on using measuring cups and measuring by volume, spoon the flour into your measuring cups to avoid packing the measuring cups and adding too much flour.
  2. Ensure your bowl and whisk are completely clean and free of any fat/oil when whipping the egg whites or in the beginning when making the Swiss meringue buttercream. Fat will prevent the the egg whites from whipping to maximum volume
  3. If you end up with strawberry cake layers that are not even in height use the thickest one as the base layer for the cake. It will give a stable foundation. Conversely, stacking a heavier layer on lighter ones can cause the cake to collapse on itself.
  4. Refrigerate the cake after the crumb coat for 15-20 minutes before doing the final coat of buttercream. This helps to "set" the crumb coat and the final layer of buttercream will be easier to spread and get a clean finish. You can also opt for a naked cake and decorate like this honey lemon layer cake
Don't be shy!Tag me on IG at @thestushkitchen & show off your cooking skills! I can't wait to see what you cook up!