This is the best Vegan Strawberry Cake ever! Made with plenty of fresh strawberries, it’s simply bursting with flavor. The pretty pink frosting is to die for!
This wonderful Vegan Strawberry Cake is adapted from my Vegan Vanilla Cake recipe. It’s incredibly moist, fluffy and made with plenty of fresh strawberries! I took a lot of tips from Sally’s Baking Addiction, and used reduced strawberry puree in the cake batter and freeze dried strawberries in the frosting.
If you’d rather use fresh strawberries in the frosting as well, you can easily make the frosting from these Vegan Strawberry Cupcakes instead. You can’t go wrong with either recipe!
Do you love strawberries as much as I do? If you do, make sure to check out my Vegan Strawberry Pie, Strawberry Rolls and Vegan Strawberry Shortcake.
How to make vegan strawberry cake
Find the complete recipe with measurements below in the recipe card.
First, prepare the reduced strawberry puree
The first step in making the cake is to prepare your reduced strawberry puree. You will need 1 pound of fresh, ripe red strawberries. Rinse and hull them, then add to a food processor or blender and blend. Transfer the puree to a small pot and simmer for 25-30 minutes. The mixture will thicken and reduce to just over 1/2 cup.
Why not just use strawberry puree that is not reduced? It’s too much liquid, and not enough flavor! By reducing, you get a very concentrated strawberry flavor without adding a ton of liquid to the cake batter. Perfection.
Mix the cake batter and bake
In a large bowl (I used my stand mixer), cream together the vegan butter, oil and sugar. Mix in the vanilla and food coloring, if using. In another medium sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
With the mixer on low speed, alternate adding the dry ingredients and the vegan buttermilk (this is simply soy milk mixed with apple cider vinegar) until combined each time. Do NOT over mix. Finally, mix in the reduced strawberry puree until just combined.
Pour the cake batter evenly into the greased and parchment lined pans.
Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the edges are golden and a toothpick comes out clean. Let the cakes cool completely before frosting.
Make vegan strawberry frosting and frost the cake
Why use freeze dried strawberries instead of fresh in the frosting? Fresh strawberries can cause the frosting to curdle, and freeze dried strawberries add a ton of concentrated flavor. You may also go make the frosting from my cupcakes recipe if desired.
Using a food processor or blender, blend freeze dried strawberries into a powder. Using a mixer, beat the vegan butter until creamy. Gradually add in the powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, until it’s all incorporated. Now add in the strawberry powder, then the vanilla and milk as needed.
Once the cakes are completely cooled, frost as desired and decorate with fresh whole strawberries. Enjoy!
Tips for success
- To prepare your pans, please use a small circle of parchment paper and place it in the bottom. Then spray or grease the pans all over, including the sides. Trust me, I’ve had many cakes ruined by not properly preparing my pans!
- Use both the vegan butter AND oil. This makes the cake super moist and fluffy, while giving it the best possible buttery flavor.
- Make sure to cool the cakes COMPLETELY before frosting. If it’s warm at all, you will have a big melty mess on your hands. Trust me, I’ve been there… If I’m in a rush, I’ll put the cakes in the refrigerator to speed up the cooling process.
- Let your reduced strawberry puree cool a bit before adding to the cake batter. I stuck mine in the refrigerator while I prepared the cake batter, and it was just fine.
- Use deep red, sweet and delicious strawberries for the best results! Frozen strawberries will work in a pinch, but fresh seasonal strawberries are best.
Frequently asked questions
- Can I turn this into a sheet cake or bake as cupcakes? Yes, for cupcakes, fill liners halfway full and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. For a 9×13 inch cake, bake for 40-45 minutes. Or make it a true sheet cake with an 11×17 inch pan, and bake for 20-25 minutes.
- Can I add strawberry extract for more flavor? Sure! It already has a lot of flavor, but you could add 1-2 teaspoons strawberry extract in the batter when you add the vanilla.
- Is the food coloring essential? You don’t have to add any food coloring, but your cake will not be pink. Make sure to look for a vegan friendly pink or red color. Or make your own DIY pink food dye!
- Can I make a gluten free strawberry cake? Try substituting an all purpose gluten free mix for the cake/regular flour. It won’t be quite the same, but it works pretty well.
How to store leftover cake + freezing
Store the cake at room temperature for about 4 days. Make sure to cover the cut parts to prevent the cake from drying out.
You can also keep it in the refrigerator if you prefer, but when served straight from the fridge, it will be a bit crumbly and dry. So try to let it sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before serving if possible.
The whole cake or individual slices can be frozen. Or prepare the cakes ahead of time, wrap and freeze, then later make the frosting, frost and serve.
Want more incredible vegan cakes?
- The Best Vegan Chocolate Cake
- Vegan Tres Leches Cake
- Vegan German Chocolate Cake
- Vegan Red Velvet Cake
- Vegan Carrot Cake
- Vegan Lemon Cake
Vegan Strawberry Cake
Ingredients
Strawberry Cake
- 1 pound fresh strawberries (1/2 cup reduced, see instructions)
- 1 1/4 cups soy milk
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup vegan butter, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup canola oil or other neutral flavored oil
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon pink food coloring optional
- 3 cups cake flour or all purpose flour, but cake flour is best
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Strawberry Frosting
- 1 cup freeze dried strawberries*
- 1 cup vegan butter, softened to room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2-3 tablespoons soy milk, as needed
Instructions
Make the Strawberry Cake
- Prepare the reduced strawberry puree: Rinse and hull the strawberries. Using a food processor or blender, puree them. Pour the puree into a small pot and simmer for 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it reduces to about 1/2 cup. You might have a little more than that; save for topping ice cream or waffles. Allow it to cool for several minutes before adding to cake batter.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and prepare 2 8-inch round cake pans by lining the bottom with a circle of parchment paper and spraying with oil.
- Make the vegan buttermilk: Combine the soy milk and apple cider vinegar. Stir a little, then set aside.
- In a large bowl with an electric hand mixer or the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, cream together the softened butter, oil and sugar until creamy. Mix in the vanilla and pink food coloring, if using.
- In a separate medium sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
- With the mixer on low speed, alternate adding the flour mixture and vegan buttermilk to the bowl with the butter/oil/sugar mixture, mixing until just combined each time.
- Now add in the reduced strawberry puree with the mixer on low and mix until combined, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- Pour the cake batter evenly into the prepared pans, and bake for 30-35 minutes, until the edges are golden brown, the surface looks and feels set and a toothpick inserted comes out mostly clean with no wet batter.
- Allow the cakes to cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then carefully invert them onto a cooling rack. Allow them to cool completely before frosting.
Prepare the Strawberry Frosting
- Using a food processor or blender, blend the freeze dried strawberries into a powder. Set aside.
- Using your hand mixer or stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the softened vegan butter until creamy. Gradually add the powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, until all the powdered sugar is mixed in.
- Now add in the strawberry powder and mix in. With the mixer on low speed, add in the vanilla and 2-3 tablespoons of soy milk as needed to thin the frosting to a desirable consistency. If it gets too thin, add more powdered sugar. If it's too thick, add more milk until it's just right.
- Once the cakes are completely cooled, frost, decorate with more strawberries and enjoy!
- The cake will keep at room temperature for up to 4 days. Make sure to cover the cut part to keep it from drying out. The whole cake or individual pieces also freeze well.
Video
Notes
- Flour – Cake flour is the best choice for a light and fluffy cake, but all purpose flour works pretty well. For gluten free, try substituting a gluten free all purpose flour.
- Milk – You can substitute any plant based milk for the soy milk.
- Different sized cakes/cupcakes – You can also make this cake as a 9 by 13 inch cake. It will need to bake more like 40-45 minutes though. Or to make cupcakes, fill liners 2/3 of the way full and bake for 20-25 minutes.
- Can’t find freeze dried strawberries? Go make the fresh strawberry frosting from my Vegan Strawberry Cupcakes recipe instead.
Nutrition
*This cake was originally published July 2019 and has been updated with new photos. The original version called for half vegetable shortening/half vegan butter in the frosting, but I have since found I like using all vegan butter and no shortening.
Hi, do you know how many cupcakes this would make?
Hi Ashley. This recipe turned into cupcakes should make close to 24 cupcakes, Enjoy!
I’ve made this as an Easter Cake and put a layer of sliced strawberries in the middle too. I coated the outside of the cake with grated white chocolate and swirled of icing around the top each with a white chocolate dipped strawberry. Topped with a Happy Easter decoration. Looks really pretty. 😍
Hi Cathy. Thanks for sharing your beautiful cake idea with us! It sounds beautiful and delicious! I appreciate your stellar review! Wishing you lots of happy cooking!
Would beet juice work as an alternative to red dye?
Hi JB. The cake will be a slight pink color from the strawberry puree. Though I have not tried it, many bakers have indicated that adding beet juice did not really enhance the color. I hope this helps! Enjoy the cake!
I made this exactly as written except I used 9″ cake pans as I don’t have 8″ pans. It turned out perfectl: moist, beautiful, and so tasty. Of course it was shorter than a usual layer cake, but it made for nice portions of cake with good frosting/cake ratio. I’ll absolutely make this again and again.
Hi Nicholas. How fabulous the cake turned out perfect for you! Thanks for sharing your stellar review and feedback! Wishing you happy cooking!
My comment sent before I was finished…
Re: the 1 cup of freeze-dried strawberries, is that the measurement before grinding it into a powder?
Thank you!
Hi Karen. It’s 1 cup of freeze dried strawberries measured before they’re ground into a powder. I hope this helps! Happy baking!
Quick question – my daughter in law cannot consume canola oil which is in the vegan butter – is there a brand of butter you recommed that can replace the vegan butter in the cake? Can it be all avocado oil?
Well, you will need it for the frosting too, but do you have access to Miyoko’s vegan butter? I’m quite sure there is no canola oil in it.
Thank you!! I got some and it worked perfectly! The flavor was great! Much appreciated.
You bet! I’m thrilled you loved the cake! Thank you so much for sharing!
Hi Nora! Can I sub in coconut oil in equal parts for canola oil?
That should work okay. Coconut oil can make cakes a bit more dense in my experience though, so it’s not my favorite choice. I hope you enjoy the cake!
Hi. Can I use real butter and milk for this? I’m aware it won’t be truly vegan. Just wanted to make sure it wouldn’t mess up the texture
Hi. Can I use real butter and milk for this? I’m aware it won’t be truly vegan if I do… just wanted to make sure it didn’t mess up the texture if I used it. Thanks
Hi Jamie. I don’t think using dairy would have an adverse effect on the cake, but I haven’t tested it so I’m not totally sure. I believe others have used it with success. Enjoy, and happy cooking!
When mixing granulated sugar with oil and butter does the sugar have to completely dissolve?
No, it doesn’t have to completely dissolve when you are mixing it.
This is the most delicious strawberry cake I’ve ever tasted!!! I made this for my twin daughters’ 25 birthday and between the 4 of us we ate the entire cake in one day, AND I made another one the following weekend. It’s moist, light & has tastes of real strawberries. Amazing!!!
Hi Sharyn. Sounds like a fun birthday! I’m glad you all loved the cake! Thank you for your glowing 5 star review and wonderful feedback! Happy cooking!
This cake was soooo good! I used frozen strawberries to make the strawberry puree, which turned out great! I made this cake pretty last minute and did not have powdered sugar for the frosting, so I instead made a chocolate ganache for the frosting, which was delicious; the strawberry cake with chocolate–excellent! (I kept the ganache super simple, 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips with 1/4 cup almond milk, microwave for 1 minute). In the middle layer of the 2 cakes I spread the leftover strawberry puree over the ganache before putting the 2nd cake on top of it. Will def make this again!
Made this for my daughter’s one year birthday. It was delicious! The cake turned out a bit crumbly (only obvious after sliced and when eating) but I didn’t mind, it was very tender. Icing was delicious.
I wish I could rate this 10 stars! I was looking for a cake for my vegan son’s birthday last year and found your recipe. He LOVED it, and so did the rest of my family. I’ve made it several times since, and a few times for work and it was a big hit. I’ve also made a blueberry cake with fresh blueberries and freeze dried for the frosting. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!
You bet, Heather! I am thrilled that your son loved the cake! Thanks for your awesome review and feedback! Isn’t it fun sharing cakes!? Wishing you happy baking!
Made this cake for my daughter’s birthday last year. Delicious, moist, and a family favorite! This year she asked for a pear cake. I’m wondering if I could use this recipe but replace strawberries with pears. I know pears are more liquid filled. Any recommendations for adjustments?
I’m so glad you enjoyed the strawberry cake! I’m not sure about the pears, I’ve never tried it personally. You’re right, I don’t think cooking the pears down will work the same as strawberries. You’d probably just have to test it out and see if it works! I almost think I would shred the pears instead of cooking them into mush, but I’m not sure without testing.
Delicious cake! Everyone at the party loved it and had no idea it was vegan. I used dragonfruit powder in lieu of food coloring and it gave it a beautiful pink hue. Thanks for the recipe!
This was absolutely fabulous. Served this at a lunch and my friend said it was her favourite dessert I’ve ever served (and I’ve done many.) The strawberry flavour is terrific – the concentrated puree was a brilliant way of making sure the strawberry flavour was distributed evenly. I made a strawberry cream cheeze icing (I had a tub of Daiya strawberry cream cheeze lying around), and it was perfect with this cake.
That’s great to hear Laura, and that frosting sounds incredible!
Could you also guide me on the measurements for the frosting for a cake of this size? I am actually making 1-2 layer as per the recipe but also want to make a larger 11 inch single layer.
Thanks
Ohhhh, well if you are making BOTH the cake as written PLUS an 11-inch cake, you will likely need to double the recipe. You will probably not quite need to double the frosting, perhaps just 1.5 times the normal amount will work.
Hi Nora! I absolutely love your recipes. They never disappoint my sweet tooth foodies😊. I need to make this an 11 inch single layer cake in a round pan. What should I do? Do I double the recipe and how long would it bake for?
That’s so good to hear, thanks for loving my recipes! 🙂 Hmmm let’s see. I’ve never used an 11 inch round pan, but I would probably just make the batter as written (no need to double) and fill the cake pan about half full. You will likely have some batter leftover, unless you are going for a very tall cake. I’m not sure on baking times exactly, but probably somewhere around 40-50 minutes, but I would check with a toothpick rather often after 35 minutes. Hope that helps!
Thank you! I really appreciate your quick response. I was thinking that the recipe as is in the 11 inch would be a flat cake that’s why I considered doubling. Not really looking for a tall cake but a reasonable height. If I’m making sense.
The cake is super flat coming out of the oven. I’m thinking it isn’t going to be fluffy I’m quite concerned about the texture.
Did you over mix the cake batter? Or make any substitutions at all?
The cake was delicious and moist! Thank you for sharing your recipe. ❤️
You bet! Thanks for your wonderful feedback!
Hi – when I hit 2x for the recipe it still says to use 1/2 cup of the puree? Is that accurate as it matches the 1x amount. I don’t want to mess up. Thank you!
Sorry, when you hit the 2x button it just can’t change that particular text that says 1/2 cup. It would be 1 cup. Doubling cakes can be a little tricky but I hope it works out for you!