Mini Strawberry Sheet Cake

Is there anything cuter than pink cake? I think not. This Mini Strawberry Sheet Cake is the perfect small batch cake. It has a deliciously fluffy texture and tastes EXACTLY like a fresh, sweet strawberry.

Why Strawberry Cake is Amazing

First of all, in the looks department this cake is a true winner. Beautifully, bright pink with pretty pink frosting. What’s not to love.

In terms of flavor, it really does taste like strawberries. The strawberry flavor is VERY strong and present. The texture of this cake is like a white fluffy cake but with a big smack of strawberry flavor.

How to Make Mini Strawberry Sheet Cake

1. Roast the strawberries. I like to do this because it concentrates the strawberry flavor. Puree it up and this is what we’re using to add to the cake.
2. Whisk up your dry ingredients. For this cake we’re using all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt. Admittedly, the flour measurement is annoying. I tried to round it up and it turned out dry. So here we are.
3. Whisk up your wet ingredients. Since this is a white cake, we’re using egg whites ONLY, mixed with milk and the strawberry puree. It will look beautiful. Don’t drink it lol.
4. Beat your room temperature butter and sugar until fluffy. I like to add vanilla to this step because it really infuses and takes hold to the fat in this cake.
5. Rotating between the two, add the wet ingredients and the dry ingredients. Why do cake recipes call for this? It’s the slowly hydrate the cake. And making sure it’s an even hydration.
6. Transfer it to a 8×8-inch baking pan (see below for more alternatives). And bake!
7. Take freeze-dried strawberries and pulse it in a food processor spice grinder. This is the strawberry powder we’re going to add to the frosting.
8. Beat the cream cheese smooth. And then add the butter. Next, add the rest of the ingredients and beat until smooth. YUM.

Where to Buy Freeze-Dried Strawberries

People tend to think freeze-dried strawberries are an exotic ingredient but they’re actually widely available in all sorts of grocery stores. Look for them in the dried fruit and nut aisle. They’re typically there.

Tips and Tricks

• What else can I make with freeze-dried strawberries? These strawberry and cream cookies are an all-time favorite of mine.
• How should I store this cake? You can store it in the baking pan in which you baked it in and cover it with plastic wrap. OR you can store it on a plate and cover it with a colander.
• If you have any extra strawberry puree, make these margaritas with them. Yum.

8×8-INCH CAKE PAN ALTERNATIVES

Some of you have said you don’t have an 8×8-inch square cake pan–no problem! Here are some other pans you can use:

• Option #1: You can use a single 9-inch round cake pan that’s 2-inches in height. Bake time will be about 5 minutes less. I would check it at the 25 minute mark.
• Option #2: 9×5-inch loaf pan. Obviously it’ll now be a loaf cake vs. looking like a cake! Bake time will likely be longer. I would check it at the 25 minute mark.
• Option #3: Cupcakes! You can bake these as cupcakes. It’ll yield 6 cupcakes. Bake time will likely be shorter. I would check it at the 15 minute mark.

If you make this mini strawberry sheet cake, let me know on Instagram!

Looking for more recipes to make? Here are some favorites:

• Strawberry and Cream Cake
• Pink and Black Cookies
• Berry Crinkle Cookies

4.97 from 59 votes

Print Recipe

Mini Strawberry Cake

Author: Adrianna Adarme

his strawberry mini sheet cake is the perfect small batch cake. It has a deliciously fluffy texture and tastes EXACTLY like a fresh, sweet strawberry. 

Course: Cake, Dessert

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 30 minutes mins

Cook Time: 32 minutes mins

Cooling Time for Cake: 1 hour hr

Total Time: 2 hours hrs 2 minutes mins

Serving Size: 10

Ingredients

Roasted Strawberry Puree:

• ▢ 3/4 cup sliced strawberries from about 4 strawberries
• ▢ 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
• ▢ Pinch of kosher salt
• ▢ 2 drops red food coloring gel optional

Strawberry Mini Cake:

• ▢ 1 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• ▢ 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• ▢ 1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
• ▢ 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• ▢ 1/3 cup milk
• ▢ 3 large egg whites
• ▢ 1/4 cup reserved strawberry puree

Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting:

• ▢ 5 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
• ▢ 5 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
• ▢ 2 cups powdered sugar
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• ▢ Pinch kosher salt
• ▢ 1 tablespoon heavy cream optional
• ▢ 1/4 cup freeze-dried strawberries

Instructions

To Make the Roasted Strawberry Puree:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a small baking dish, combine the strawberries, sugar and a salt. Transfer to the oven to roast for 10 minutes. Remove it from the oven and transfer it to a food processor. Blend until completely smooth. Measure out 1/4 cup and set aside. (Any extra can be added to cocktails, milk for drinking, etc.)

To Make the Mini Sheet Cake:

• Keep the oven at 350 degrees F (as it was for roasting the strawberries). And grease and line a 8x8-inch baking pan. (See below in “NOTES” section for other baking pan alternatives).
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand-up mixer with the paddle attachment (alternatively you can do this in a large bowl with an electric mixer), add the butter, sugar and vanilla. Beat until light and fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes. In a measuring cup, pour in the milk, egg whites, and reserved 1/4 cup strawberry puree and whisk until combined.
• Turn the mixer to low speed and, alternating between the dry ingredients and the liquid ingredients (the strawberry/egg white mixture), add the them butter/sugar mixture until the batter is relatively smooth.
• Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and smooth it out until it reaches the sides. Transfer to the oven to bake for 25 to 32 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
• Allow the cake to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes and then invert onto a cooling rack and cool to room temperature. It’ll probably take a good hour.

To Make the Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting:

• Using a food processor OR a spice grinder, add the 1/4 cup freeze-dried strawberries. Pulse for about 1 minute until it resembles a powder. Measure out 1 tablespoon. (See below in NOTES section on other recipes to make using freeze-dried strawberries.)
• In the bowl of a stand-up mixer with the paddle attachment (or a medium bowl using an electric hand mixer), add the cream cheese and beat it until smooth. I like to do this or else the cream cheese frosting will have little clumps of cream cheese. Next, add the butter and beat it until smooth, about 15 seconds.
• Add the powdered sugar, salt, vanilla extract and heavy cream. Beat for a full 2 minutes to ensure fluffy, delicious frosting.
• If you want to make little strawberries, here’s what you need to do: add about 1/4 cup of frosting to one bowl. And then add a few tablespoons to a second bowl. We’re going to add food coloring to both of those frostings.
• Then, add the reserved strawberry powder to the frosting and beat it one last time until combined. Add red food coloring if you want it be more pink. I added a small drop.
• If you don’t want to make the strawberries, you can obviously skip removing some of the frosting and just proceed with adding the powder, etc.

To Make the Strawberries for Decoration:

• Add a drop or two of red food coloring to the 1/4 cup of frosting. This is going to be for our strawberries. Mix it together until smooth. Transfer it to a piping bag fitted with a #3 round piping tip.
• Add a drop of green food coloring to the 2 tablespoons of frosting. This is going to be our strawberry tops. Mix it together until smooth. Transfer it to a piping bag fitted with a #1 round piping tip.

To Decorate the Cake:

• Add the frosting to the top of the cake and smooth it out into an even layer. Make it cute with some swoops.
• If you didn’t do the strawberries above, no biggie. Top it with some sprinkles OR leave it as is. It’s cute.
• To add the strawberries, pipe on hearts; they’ll end up looking like strawberries once we add the tops. Add as many as you like. Make them any size you like, too.
• Pipe on two little dots at the top of the hearts to transform them from hearts to strawberries. Do mine look like tomatoes? MAYBE. LOL.

To Store Cake:

• I keep this cake at room temperature on my counter. I don’t own a glass cake cover so I use a colander. This cake is delicious for about 2 to 3 days. If my way leaves you unsettled, you can always place the cake back into the 8x8-inch baking dish and cover it with plastic wrap.

Notes

Tips and Tricks:

• Where to find freeze-dried strawberries? You can find them in the dried fruit and/or nuts section of the grocery store. They are sold in most supermarkets. 
• What else can I make with freeze-dried strawberries? These strawberry and cream cookies are an all-time favorite of mine. 
• How should I store this cake? You can store it in the baking pan in which you baked it in and cover it with plastic wrap. OR you can store it on a plate and cover it with a colander. 

Equipment: 

 

8x8-inch baking pan | KitchenAid Stand-Up Mixer | Silicon Spatulas | Piping Bags | Piping Tip Kit | AmeriColor Food Gel | 

 

Nutrition

Calories: 409kcal (20%) | Carbohydrates: 56g (19%) | Protein: 1g (2%) | Fat: 21g (32%) | Saturated Fat: 13g (81%) | Cholesterol: 58mg (19%) | Sodium: 169mg (7%) | Potassium: 160mg (5%) | Fiber: 1g (4%) | Sugar: 54g (60%) | Vitamin A: 684IU (14%) | Vitamin C: 72mg (87%) | Calcium: 50mg (5%) | Iron: 1mg (6%)

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