Gelatin-Free Fresh Strawberry Sheet Cake -

You'll love this fresh gelatin-free Strawberry Sheet Cake made from scratch!

It's a vintage, light dessert that features all-natural ingredients, with no boxed cake mix, gelatin or artificial sweeteners.

There are a million strawberry cake recipes out there and most of them contain Strawberry Jell-O™.

Now, don't get me wrong, I grew up on Jell-O™ as a kid, but now that I'm a big kid, I prefer the natural strawberry flavor minus the gelatin, which is actually derived from animal collagen...no thanks. Not in my fresh cake:)

Why you'll love this recipe!

Delicious, light flavor--not too sweet
All-natural ingredients -- no box mixes or weird ingredients
Pretty -- nice color and texture
The perfect for any occasion--picnics, birthdays, potlucks, Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day, wedding showers and baby showers!
Your guests will rave about the fresh, subtle fresh strawberry flavor!

What you'll need:

For the batter and icing, you'll need one pound of fresh strawberries (grab a few extra for garnish), cake flour, baking powder, milk, vanilla, butter, eggs, sugar, cream of tarter, cream cheese and powdered sugar.

Here's how you make it:

First things first: Get out the eggs, milk and butter and allow them to come to room temperature, preheat oven to 350ºF, and lightly oil or butter a 9 X 13 baking dish.

Make the fresh strawberry puree
Assemble the strawberry sheet cake ingredients. Use one big bowl for the dry ingredients and combine flour, baking powder and salt; use a smaller bowl for wet ingredients: milk and vanilla
In the stand mixer, cream butter and sugar together; gradually add in wet and dry ingredients in 3 increments; add puree; combine well and set aside
Use another large bowl and stand mixer to whip egg whites and cream of tartar to a soft peak; gradually add sugar to stabilize the egg whites
Fold egg whites into the flour mixture
Pour batter into a lightly oiled 9 X 13 baking dish
Bake 40 - 45 minutes, or until the center is done (test with toothpick)

While it's baking, make the icing:

Using the stand mixer, cream butter, cream cheese, vanilla and remaining puree together
Gradually add powdered sugar in increments; it's is at the right consistency when it lightly sticks to the paddle
Once its done in the center, allow to cool before applying to cooled fresh strawberry sheetcake

Expert tips:

Short on time?

Make the strawberry sheet cake in advance. Store it and extra puree in the refrigerator for up to three days. When you're ready to serve this dessert, remove it from the fridge and allow it to come to room temperature. While it's resting, make the icing.
Make the strawberry puree and icing in advance. You can store both in the fridge for up to three days. When it's time to serve, let the strawberry cream cheese icing come to room temperature first.

Fresh or frozen strawberries?

I love to serve this homemade dessert in the Spring, when strawberries are at their best, but if you don't have fresh berries, you can certainly use frozen strawberries. Just rinse and thaw!

Related recipes:

♥ If you make this recipe, please leave a comment and rating below! I love to hear from you!

Strawberry Sheet Cake

Fresh strawberries in a deliciously moist homemade strawberrry white cake.

5 from 2 votes

Print Rate

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 1 day 30 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Cook and cool strawberry puree: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 day 2 hours 10 minutes

Servings: slices +

Calories: 697kcal

Author: Anecia Hero

Equipment

Stand Mixer
Food Processor

Ingredients

Cake Batter Ingredients

1 lb. strawberries (pureed = 1¾ cup); 1 cup for batter; ¾ cup for icing
3½ cups sifted cake flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 sticks butter ,unsalted
2 cups sugar (1¾ cup for batter; ¼cup for egg whites)
8 egg whites
½ teaspoon cream of tartar

Icing Ingredients

½ stick unsalted butter
8 oz. cream cheese
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 cups powdered sugar
⅓ cup pureed strawberries

Instructions

Prep

Get eggs, butter, milk and cream cheese out and allow to come to room temperature
Preheat oven to 350ºF
Lightly oil or butter 9 X 13 baking dish
Clean and pull stems from strawberries
Make strawberry puree

Strawberry Puree

Place cleaned and stemmed strawberries in food processor and pulse 2-3 minutes until they are liquid
Pour pureed strawberries into saucepan on low heat and cook for 30 minutes; stir occasionally
Once strawberries have reduced down to about half, remove from stove and allow to cool (or put the strawberry puree in the fridge if you're in a hurry)

Make the Cake

In a large bowl, add cake flour, baking powder and salt; combine and set aside
In a smaller bowl, combine milk and vanilla; set aside
In a stand mixer, use a really big bowl and the paddle attachment; cream butter and sugar together; beat on low for 5 minutes until the mixture is light and creamy
Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter/sugar mixture while the mixer is on low; add the flour mixture in increments of 3; add the milk/vanilla mixture; add 1 cup of the strawberry puree; combine well; set aside
Using a clean mixing bowl with the whisk attachment, add egg whites and cream of tartar; whisk on medium until soft peaks form
Once soft peaks have formed, turn setting to high and gradually add in remaining ¼ cup sugar
Use a spatula and fold egg whites into cake batter
Pour batter into prepared pan
Bake 40 - 45 minutes, or until the center is firm and a toothpick comes out clean
Allow to cool before icing

Make the Icing

Use the stand mixer with a paddle and a large bowl
Combine butter, cream cheese and vanilla in stand mixer on medium speed
Add remaining strawberry puree; combine well
Gradually add powdered sugar in one cup increments; icing is done when it holds to the paddle
Use a spatula or off-set knife to apply the icing
Garnish with any remaining fresh strawberries

Notes

Strawberries:

Use fresh or frozen. This recipe calls for 1 lb.; however, you might want to pick up a few extra strawberries for garnish

Make Ahead:

Make the strawberry puree in advance and/or the icing. Both will hold in the fridge up to three days.

Nutrition

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