French Strawberry Cake

French strawberry cake is a delicious dessert cake with a custard-like center and a sugary, crackled crust. It's brimming with juicy strawberries and best of all, it only takes 10 minutes to mix up.

Course Cakes, Dessert

Cuisine Baking

Diet Gluten Free, Vegetarian

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 45

Total Time 55

Servings

Calories 181kcal

Author Colleen Milne

Equipment

Ingredients

½ cup unsalted butter softened
½ cup granulated sugar plus two tablespoons
2 large eggs
1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ⅓ cup all-purpose flour gluten-free if needed
1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup plain yogurt
1 lb fresh strawberries stemmed and sliced (16 ounces)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350° Lightly grease the bottom of a nine inch cake pan or springform pan, or line with parchment paper.
In the bowl of a stand mixer using the whisk attachment, or using an electric mixer on medium speed, in a large bowl, cream the butter and half cup of sugar together until fluffy.
Add the eggs and vanilla and continue on medium speed until well combined.
Add the baking powder, salt, and half the flour, beating on low speed until smooth.
Add half the yogurt and beat until smooth.
Repeat with the remaining flour, then the rest of the yogurt.
Fold in the strawberries.
Spread the batter into the prepared pan.
Evenly sprinkle the top of the cake with the remaining two tablespoons of white sugar.
Bake in the center of the oven for 40 minutes or until the cake is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Cool on a wire rack before slicing.

Notes

This recipe is adapted from Martha Stewart Living.

Strawberries. After washing the strawberries, dry them as much as possible with paper towels. Slice them at least in half, or if the berries are very large, in quarters.

Butter and eggs. For best results, have the butter and the eggs at room temperature before beginning to make the cake. If you forget to take them out of the fridge, you can soften the butter in 10 second intervals in the microwave, just don't let it melt. For the eggs, just submerge them in warm (not hot) water for five minutes to bring them to room temperature.

Sugar: If you prefer a sweeter cake, you can add up to a half cup more sugar.

Baking pan. This French strawberry cake recipe is made in a nine inch springform cake pan. If you use a smaller pan, the cake will be deeper and you may need to increase the baking time. I've made this cake in a pie plate and that works too, as long as it's a nine inch pan.

Baking times. The baking time can vary a lot. Keep an eye on the cake during the last 10 minutes. You may need to remove it from the oven sooner or leave it in longer. Use the toothpick method to check for doneness. If it's done, a toothpick should come out clean when inserted into the center of the cake.

Fruit. This cake recipe works equally well with other fruits and berries. Try raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, or sliced peaches, plums, apples or pears.

Storage. Store the strawberry cake, covered, at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the fridge for five days.

Nutrition