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This Easy Strawberry Shortcake Recipe takes a favorite dessert and turns it into a simple, sturdy cake, keeping the classic taste and helping you get it into the oven in only 10 minutes! You can’t go wrong with a fluffy cake layered with strawberries, and a topping of homemade whipped cream.
I look forward to strawberry shortcake every year. It means warm weather is here, and strawberries are ripe for the picking. This has been one of my favorite desserts since childhood, and I’m excited to share this classic shortcake recipe with you. Don’t forget the whipped cream on top!
This is the perfect dessert for springtime, but it can be enjoyed year-round with fresh or frozen strawberries. It can also be tweaked and enjoyed with this Shortcake Biscuit recipe and as a Sheet Cake. Every version is delicious!
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Easy Strawberry Shortcake Recipe
- Quick & Easy: This recipe is perfect for a quick, delicious dessert. It requires just 10 minutes of prep time and 30 minutes to make.
- Basic Ingredients: It uses common pantry items and fresh strawberries, making it easy to whip up without a special trip to the store.
- Crowd-Pleaser: It’s a classic dessert that almost everyone loves. Whether it’s for a casual get-together or a special occasion, this dessert always gets rave reviews.
- Fresh & Seasonal: Using fresh strawberries makes it feel light and summery. It’s a great way to highlight in-season fruit and enjoy something that feels both nostalgic and fresh!
Recipe Ingredients
- Granulated Sugar
- Butter — If using unsalted butter you may want to add a pinch, up to 1/4 teaspoon, of salt to the recipe.
- Egg
- All-Purpose Flour
- Milk — I like to use whole milk to keep the cake from being too dry.
- Strawberries — Fresh is best, but you can use frozen in a pinch — see tips below.
- Whipped cream — I love freshly made whipped cream most of all!
See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities
How To Make Easy Strawberry Shortcake
Step 1: Prepare the strawberries ahead of time. Preheat the oven and prepare a baking dish. In a medium bowl, add the sugar and melted butter and stir to combine well.
Step 2: Add the egg and vanilla and mix to combine. Then add the other dry ingredients, and beat with a stand mixer on medium-high speed to combine. Add the milk and beat again until the mixture is smooth with no lumps. Place the batter in the prepared pan.
Step 3: Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the cake is lightly golden brown and springs back when lightly touched.
Step 4: Let cool for 30 minutes before serving. Split cake pieces in half and add berries and whipped topping, garnishing if desired.
Recipe FAQs
I like to add a tablespoon or two of sugar to my cut strawberries and let them sit while I make the shortcake. This gives the strawberries time to release their juices and makes a nice syrup to drizzle on top of the shortcakes. So good.
To make whipped cream, I add 1-2 cups of heavy whipping cream, 1/4 cup powdered sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla to the bowl of a stand mixer or electric mixer and whip the cream until soft peaks form. It’s so much better than anything pre-made from the store. It’s very worth the 5 minutes of prep if you ask me.
To serve strawberry shortcake, I slice the cake into nine pieces. Remove one piece from the pan and split it down the middle. Top half of the cake with strawberries and whipped cream, add the second half of the cake, and top with more whipped cream and strawberries.
Yes, you can use frozen strawberries. Just make sure to thaw them and drain any excess liquid before sweetening and using them in the recipe. This will prevent the cake from becoming too soggy.
Expert Tips
- Room Temp Ingredients: Ensure your butter, egg, and milk are at room temperature before mixing. This helps them blend smoothly into the batter, making a more even and tender cake texture.
- Smooth Batter: Use an electric mixer to combine the ingredients thoroughly, especially after adding the milk. This ensures a smooth batter without any lumps, creating a more consistent and light cake.
- Other Flavor Options: Of course strawberry shortcake is divine, but if you’re a fan of berries in general, then be sure to try mixing it up and use blueberries, blackberries, or raspberries!
- Frozen Berries: If using frozen berries, be sure to thaw them and drain any excess liquid before sweetening and using them in the recipe. This will prevent the cake from becoming too soggy.
Our Favorite Strawberry Cake Recipes
There are so many variations of classic strawberry shortcake, and you should probably try them all!
- Easy Strawberry Shortcake Cake: The perfect treat when you want something sweet and impressive without the hassle.
- Homemade Strawberry Cake: A combination of fluffy cake layers, velvety strawberry frosting, and fresh strawberries!
- Biscuit Recipe for Strawberry Shortcake: And if you like the traditional biscuits for your shortcake, this one is a lightly sweet biscuit.
More Yummy Cake Recipes to Consider
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Easy Strawberry Shortcake Recipe
Equipment
- medium bowl Love these because they have lids and double as serving bowls.
- parchment paper The precut pieces are easy to use and cut as needed.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup melted butter
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1-2 pounds fresh strawberries, hulled, sliced, and sweetened to your liking
- 2-4 cups freshly whipped cream, sweetened if you like
Instructions
- Prepare the strawberries by cutting or slicing and placing in a bowl with a little sugar on top and a dash of lemon juice. Place in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes before making the shortcake.
- Preheat the oven to 350° and grease a 9-inch square baking dish (or line it with parchment).
- In a medium bowl, add the sugar and melted butter and stir to combine well.
- Add the egg and vanilla and stir to combine.
- Add the flour, baking powder, and salt, and beat with a stand mixer on medium-high speed to combine.
- Add the milk and beat again until the mixture is smooth with no lumps. Place the batter in the prepared pan.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the cake is lightly golden brown and springs back when lightly touched.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool at least 30 minutes before serving.
- To serve, slice the cake into 9 pieces. Remove one piece from the pan and split it down the middle. Top half of the cake with strawberries and whipped cream, add the second half of cake, and top with more whipped cream and strawberries.
- Serve right away.
- Store any leftover cake covered at room temperature, separate from any leftover strawberries or whipped cream.
Notes
- Using an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer for this cake is best. I’ve made it a few times, stirring it all by hand, and I was left with little flour chunks in my batter and cake. Incorporating the milk with an electric mixture helped ensure no flour chunks in my cake.
- Ensure butter, egg, and milk are at room temperature before mixing. This helps them blend smoothly into the batter, making a more even and tender cake texture.
- Be sure to let the cake cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing it in half to prevent it from splitting.
- Keep a close eye on the cake while baking. It should be lightly golden and spring back when touched lightly in the center. Overbaking can dry out the cake, so aim to remove it from the oven as soon as it’s done.
It is an easy recipe, but rather tasteless.
Simple vanilla cake that’s meant to have strawberries and whipped cream, not sure what your goal was besides that?
Cake was so easy to make and smelled wonderful. The cake itself was only about an inch high. Should Sandiit be taller? Txs for sharing. Can’t wait to put strawberries over it tonight
It’s about 2 inches high normally.
Delicious and so easy to make. Better than a similar cottage cake my mom made years ago. Will definitely make ake for any fruit topping. Thank you!!
Made this tonight for a family gathering, exactly as printed, and my family loved it! I doubled the recipe and baked in a 9×13. Thank you for the recipe!
Ohhh lucky family Nikki! So excited you made this!
Easy, tasty shortcake recipe. We cut each piece into two layers for better strawberry shortcake layering. So much better than dessert shells!
I totally agree Laura, so much better!
The batter was really sticky, and the shortcake did not rise as high as i expected. The taste was okay, but I will try other recipes in the future.
Hmmm, I wonder if something got missed?
Nice, light shortcake. Easy and quick, with all ingredients you have at home.
I’ll never made shortcake a different way again!! Thank you for this easy and yummy recipe!
So glad you liked it Megan!!
I’ve made this before and it was a hit! I want to make it for a larger amount of people and wonder if the batter can be used as cupcakes?