Gluten Free Strawberry Cake

This soft and fluffy Gluten Free Strawberry Cake is loaded with fresh strawberries and topped with a beautiful luscious strawberry buttercream. This fresh strawberry layer cake recipe is packed with real strawberry flavor with no artificial flavoring or colorings.

Prep Time20

Cook Time30

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: international

Diet: Gluten Free

Servings: Servings

Calories: 486kcal

Equipment

2 9" round cake pans
Stand mixer or electric whisk

Ingredients

Ingredients for gluten free strawberry cake

300 grams Unsalted Butter Room temperature
300 grams Fine Sugar I used caster sugar
4 Large Eggs Room temperature
300 grams Gluten free All purpose Flour Also known as gluten free plain flour in the UK.
2.5 teaspoons Baking Powder Be sure to check the baking powder is gluten free as some brands may contain gluten.
¼ teaspoon Xanthan Gum Omit if the flour blend already contains xanthan gum.
⅛ teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
300 grams Fresh Strawberries

Ingredients for Strawberry Buttercream

500 grams Unsalted Butter Room temperature
600 grams Powdered Sugar Also known as Icing sugar
4 tablespoons Heavy cream Also known as double cream
⅛ teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
30 grams Freeze-dried Strawberry powder You can also blend freeze-dried whole strawberries to a powder consistency if needed.
Fresh strawberries Optional to decorate finished cake.

Instructions

How to make gluten free Strawberry cake

Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°F/Gas Mark 3. Grease and line two 9 inch cake pans with parchment paper.
Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and xanthan gum in a medium-sized bowl and leave it aside.
In a large bowl with a hand held mixer or using a stand mixer, whip the sugar and butter together until they become smooth and fluffy. Scraping the sides of the bowl as needed to ensure that it is all fully incorporated. (Creaming the butter and sugar will take around 3-5 minutes on high speed) it's ready when the mixture is pale in color and it looks light and fluffy.
Add the eggs and vanilla extract into the creamed butter and sugar mix until they are fully blended.
Add the flour mixture into the stand mixer and on a lower speed mix in until it's thoroughly incorporated.
Hull and dice the strawberries into small pieces and gently fold them into the cake batter.
Divide the strawberry cake batter between the two prepared cake pans.
Place the cake pans in the oven and bake for approximately 30-35 minutes. Insert a skewer into a cake after this time if it comes out clean it's ready if not leave it in slightly longer. Transfer to a cooling rack and leave to cool.

How to make Strawberry buttercream

Using an electric beater or a stand mixer, beat the butter on high speed until it becomes fluffy and lightens in color for approximately 5 minutes.
Sift powdered sugar into a bowl, and gradually incorporate it into the butter a few tablespoons at a time until it's fully blended.
Pour in the cream, add a pinch of salt, and include the vanilla into the buttercream, then beat thoroughly until it becomes smooth and glossy.
Add in the freeze-dried strawberry powder until it's completely integrated, resulting in a uniformly pink-colored buttercream.

How to assemble the strawberry cake

Wait until the cakes have fully cooled before assembling.
If your cake happens to have prominent domes, you can use a serrated knife to trim them down, ensuring a flat top. However, in the case of these cakes, there's typically no significant dome, or it requires minimal to no leveling.
Position the first layer of strawberry cake on your cake stand or plate, and evenly spread about a quarter of the frosting layer. Next, delicately place the second strawberry cake on top.
Use the remaining frosting to coat both the top and sides of the cake with the strawberry buttercream frosting. If you prefer, you can use the back of a spoon or a spatula to craft a creative design or maintain a smooth finish.
I also place the strawberry buttercream in a piping bag with a star piping tip to add additional decoration to the cake and then topped with fresh strawberries.

Notes

For a dairy-free option, substitute dairy-free butter when preparing the cakes and finish them with your chosen dairy-free frosting.

You can prepare the Strawberry cakes up to three days ahead, but they are at their peak freshness on the day of baking. The strawberry buttercream can be prepared a few days in advance and stored in the refrigerator.

Storage, The gluten free strawberry cake is best stored in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Remove from the fridge for a couple of hours and let it come to room temperature before serving.

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