Strawberry Pound Cake

This strawberry pound cake recipe from scratch is the perfect spring dessert. With fresh strawberries folded into the sour cream pound cake and topped with a strawberry cream cheese glaze, it’s bound to be a hit at your next party!

One of my favorite memories growing up was heading to a local farm where you pick all the strawberries you could possibly carry. Now as a kid, that basically meant 1 in the bucket, 1 in my mouth. Needless to say I love my summer berry recipes .

And whatever we did end up taking home, meant strawberries went into everything. 

So this year, I decided to throw some into a pound cake. I’ve made a Blueberry Pound Cake version of this Old Fashioned Sour Cream Pound Cake, and Lemon Raspberry Bundt Cake version too. This time, strawberries were going to get their chance to shine.

I love this pound cake so much if you couldn’t tell. It’s made with sour cream and butter so you end up with a moist, tender pound cake that can’t be beat. This is a perfect summer treat – try serving with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

See Also:

• Layered with fresh strawberries and homemade whipped cream this vanilla sponge cake is a beautiful cake to make any time of year!
• If you’re looking for a showstopping cake, this Milk Bar cake is the perfect dessert to make for a birthday!
• Calling all peanut butter lovers with this super easy peanut butter cream cheese frosting to use on all your favorite cake recipes!
• This easy vanilla cupcake recipe uses melted butter so it comes together in minutes and no mixer is needed!
• When it’s summertime then you have to make these S’mores cupcakes with toasted meringue frosting and graham cracker bottom!

Why You Will Love This Fresh Strawberry Cake Recipe

• Perfect summer snack! – Made with fresh strawberries when they are in peak season giving this cake the best flavor.

What Do I Need To Make A Strawberry Pound Cake?

For The Cake: 

• Flour – I used all purpose flour for this fresh strawberry cake recipe. For best texture, be sure to measure your flour correctly by spooning into your measuring cup and leveling it off, or use a kitchen scale and weigh your flour.
• Salt – To help balance the sweetness. I like to use fine sea salt for best flavor and texture.
• Baking powder – To help the strawberry pound cake rise.
• Baking soda – Reacts with the sour cream to help the cake rise evenly.
• Unsalted butter – I prefer to use unsalted butter, but salted butter can also be used. You may want to reduce the salt a little bit. Be sure your butter is softened so it can be creamed together properly with the sugar.
• Granulated sugar – Adds sweetness, but also creates a tender cake. I know you may be tempted to reduce the sugar, but by reducing the sugar your cake may not come as tender.
• Eggs – You need room temperature eggs for baking so it does not seize up the butter. Place a in a bowl of warm water for 10 minutes before starting the recipe.
• Vanilla – For flavor. I prefer to use pure vanilla extract, but imitation vanilla would also work.
• Sour cream – You could also swap with full fat Greek yogurt. This adds richness and makes for a moist texture. I recommend using full fat.
• Fresh, chopped strawberries – If using frozen strawberries, then thaw first and drain any extra liquid.

For The Glaze:

• Cream cheese – Use full fat cream cheese for best texture. And be sure you are using softened cream cheese. Read this guide on how to soften cream cheese quickly.
• Powdered Sugar – Or confectioners sugar to sweeten the glaze. If you don’t have any, you can make your own powdered sugar in your food processor.
• Heavy Cream– To thin out the glaze, but milk or half-n-half can also be used.
• Vanilla – For flavor
• Freeze Dried Strawberries – I tried using fresh strawberries but it was too liquidy. If you don’t have freeze dried strawberries, then try adding in some strawberry jam, or pulse strawberries in a food processor until you make a strawberry puree and then cook down on the stovetop to reduce the strawberries to a thick puree. Or use mashed strawberries, but you may need to add additional powdered sugar.

How To Make Strawberry Pound Cake – Step By Step

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven. Preheat your oven to 350F. 

2. Sift Your Dry Ingredients.

This strawberry pound cake recipe starts by sifting your properly measured flour. Now I know sifting might no be your favorite thing. But in order to end up with a light and fluffy cake in the end that rises properly sifting is key. These are the sifters I use from Amazon. So add in your flour, baking powder, baking soda, and a little bit of salt and sift away.

3. Cream Your Butter And Sugar Together.

In your stand mixer you are going to want to cream softened butter (here are 4 easy ways to soften your butter in a pinch!) and sugar. You want to do this on medium speed for about 2-3 minutes.

Having properly softened butter is important so that the sugar can basically punch holes in the butter. Those little holes are going to be filled with air. Those pockets of air will expand, and be filled with the gasses created from our leavening agents helping expand those pockets and make your cake rise.

If your butter is not at room temperature and too cold, the sugar will not be able to punch through the butter properly and create those air pockets and your cake won’t rise properly.

4. Add The Eggs One At A Time.

Once it’s all light and fluffy, add in your room temperature eggs one at a time. Make sure your eggs are room temperature before adding the to the creamed butter mixture.

Place your eggs in a bowl of warm water for about 10 minutes before you add them into your bowl. If your eggs are too cold going in the bowl it will seize up all that butter you just creamed in the previous step. And just be sure to add them one at a time, so you don’t overwhelm the mixture.

4. Alternate Your Dry Ingredients And Sour cream

In a small mixing bowl, you want to mix together the sour cream and vanilla extract.

Then it’s time to alternate the sour cream (with a bit of vanilla stirred in) and your sifted ingredients. Sour cream is what makes this cake so darn moist.

Start by adding 1/3 of the dry mixture and beat just until combined. When you cream your butter and sugar together, you introduce air into the batter. This air that is introduced is what gives the cake a tender crumb. When you go to add the dry ingredients you want to introduce them gradually. If you introduce them gradually, you won’t deflate all that air you introduced during the creaming process. Basically a major bummer. 

Then add in 1/2 of the sour cream mixture and blend together.

Then repeat with 1/3 more of the dry ingredients, then remaining sour cream, and end with the last of the dry ingredients. Stop mixing when the last of the flour mixture has been mixed in.

Add The Strawberries

Start by dicing your fresh strawberries.  I used fresh strawberries in this cake. No artificial nothing for me thanks.

To ensure the strawberries don’t sink in the batter toss them first with a tablespoon of flour. It’s what I do to help keep my chocolate chips from sinking too.

Then go ahead and add the strawberries to the mixture. You want to make sure to not over mix. Just stir them in gently, and once mixed in stop stirring. 

Now your batter is done. So go ahead and grease that pan. I like to either use shortening a dusting of flour or I like using Baker’s Joy, a cooking spray with flour added.

Then you want to spoon the batter into your prepared pan. Because of the shape of a bundt pan, if you grease it too early the grease you use can fall down the sides of the pan. So wait until you grease your pan until right before you add your batter.

Then bake in the preheated oven for 50-60 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Then remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely before glazing.

Let the cake cool in the bundt pan for about 10 minutes before removing onto the cooling rack. If you remove the cake immediately it can fall apart on you. 

How To Make The Strawberry Glaze

Oh but wait, we aren’t done yet. We need to make the strawberry glaze. Oh this strawberry glaze. Be still my heart. I was dipping extra strawberries in this glaze. I just couldn’t help myself.

This glaze has some typical ingredients- cream cheese (for a bit of tanginess), powdered sugar (for sweetness of course), heavy cream (for richness and something to thin it out), and vanilla (for a bit of flavor)- but it also has a secret weapon. Yes my glazes come with secret weapons.

Freeze dried strawberries.

Use Freeze Dried Strawberries

I tried making the strawberry glaze with fresh strawberries and there was that whole seed and too much liquid thing going on. So how do you pack a punch of strawberry flavor without adding extra liquid? Freeze. Dried. Strawberries.

You can pulverize them in a food processor or simply place in a zip-loc bag and crush them with a rolling pin. I prefer the latter. No need to bust out my processor. No extra dishes to wash. I was able to crush every strawberry into a fine powder (my food processor wasn’t quite able to accomplish this), and it’s one heck of a way to get out any frustrations.

P.S. I found my strawberries in the organic/health food aisle. But if you can’t find any, you can always get them on Amazon of course.

So once the bundt cake has cooled go ahead and drizzle this over your cake. Then cut a slice. Eat. Repeat. Tell yourself you’re getting fresh strawberries and doing something good for yourself 😉 I won’t tell.

Recipe Variations

• Red Food Coloring – If you want a pink strawberry cake, then you can add a few drops of food coloring to the bundt cake batter before baking.
• Lemon zest – Add the zest of one lemon to the pound cake batter for a little tartness. Or add 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract for an even bolder lemon flavor.
• Strawberry extract – For more strawberry flavor, add 1/2 teaspoon strawberry extract to the batter or glaze.
• Almond extract – I love the taste of strawberry and almond! Try stirring in 1/2 teaspoon almond extract to the pound cake batter.
• Mashed strawberries – If you can’t find freeze dried strawberries, you can stir mashed strawberries into the sweet glaze, but it may make the glaze a bit more liquidy. You may need to stir in additional powdered sugar.

easy ways to soften your butter in a pinch!) and sugar. You want to do this on medium speed for about 2-3 minutes.

Recipe FAQ’s

More Cake Recipes

• Lemon Sour Cream Pound Cake
• Citrus Sour Cream Pound Cake Recipe
• Lemon Raspberry Bundt Cake
• Chocolate Strawberry Cupcakes
• Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting