Strawberry Funfetti Cake with Strawberry Buttercream

This homemade strawberry funfetti cake with strawberry buttercream is a fluffy vanilla cake filled with homemade strawberry cake filling and topped with the best strawberry frosting! This funfetti strawberry cake is so fun and festive—it would make a perfect Mother’s Day dessert, birthday cake or baby shower cake!

Sprinkles make everything better (true fact) so you pretty much can’t go wrong with this super fun Strawberry Funfetti Cake with Strawberry Buttercream! 

Have you seen those new Amazon commercials where there’s some great dramatic 80s song playing while the people are imagining themselves with the item they’re looking at?

I’ve been straight loving those commercials.

It’s such a simple concept, yet it’s so genius. Not only is it entirely relatable (major Amazon junkie over here), stick an 80s jam on anything and you can rest assured I’ll be into it.

There’s just something about 80s music, you know? How can you hear a power ballad and not immediately join in? (Tell me that’s not just me…) I don’t really karaoke, but if I did, it would be an 80s song for sure.

Even though I’m a 90s babe (and it was THE decade), I gotta give credit to 80s. They not only gave us amazing music (that gives us amazing commercials today), they also brought us the cake of cakes: Funfetti.

I think we can collectively agree that sprinkles make everything better. Similarly to 80s music, there’s just something about sprinkles, right?? They’re fun and brightly colored and oh-so-festive for any occasion. I mean, just look at this Chocolate Chip Funfetti Cookie Cake! Fun.

Strawberry cake (a lot like this Strawberry Bundt Cake) was my jam as a kid, but funfetti was a close second (what kid didn’t love a colorful cake?!).

So today, I bring you the marriage of my two childhood favorites: Strawberry Funfetti Cake.

And it’s a marriage that is sure to last a lifetime.

All right, so let’s talk about this cake.

The recipe calls for both butter and oil, which yields a flavorful cake that is also incredibly moist and fluffy in texture. Basically, butter = flavor and oil = moisture. While I do love a good butter cake recipe (take these Funfetti Vanilla Cupcakes), I was looking for a nice light texture with this cake (all butter cakes are slightly denser in texture).

This Strawberry Funfetti Cake also calls for beaten egg whites. There are two reasons for this:

1. Removing the yolks keeps the color of the cake nice and white.
2. The beaten whites add volume and air to the cake, adding to the nice lighter texture.

How to Make Homemade Strawberry Buttercream:

Homemade strawberry buttercream (aka strawberry frosting) is rich, creamy and perfectly pink! I’m kind of in love with it (if there was a theme song to go with this, it would definitely be along the lines of “Taaaaake my breath awaaaayyyy…”).

The biggest thing to note when making strawberry buttercream from scratch is that you need freeze dried strawberries. They add flavor, color and do not change the texture/consistency of the buttercream.

I have found that using fresh strawberries will add too much liquid to the frosting, which will lead to the frosting breaking down/looking curdled (not appetizing).

How to Make Homemade Strawberry Cake Filling:

This strawberry filling for cupcakes and cakes is made with fresh strawberries. The sugar, strawberries flour and lemon juice will cook down and thicken up, making this a bit of a strawberry jam cake filling (it will be a bit looser than a jam, however).

This is a strawberry filling without cornstarch, as the strawberry sauce will thicken up as it cooks. The addition of flour also helps it thicken.

While you are adding sugar to this filling, it is best to use sweet, flavorful strawberries. I know this might seem like a no brainer, but the tarter the strawberry, the tarter your strawberry cake filling will be.

Tips & Tricks for this Strawberry Funfetti Cake with Strawberry Buttercream:

• Make sure to use jimmies (cylinder shaped sprinkles) in this funfetti cake. They do not melt or bleed as quickly in the batter as other types of sprinkles.
• You will need to spread a thin layer of frosting on the bottom cake layer, as well as pipe a frosting border around the top edge, before adding the strawberry filling. This keeps the filling in the center of the cake rather than having it soak into the bottom layer of the cake or seep out the sides of the cake.
• Because this cake has a fresh filling, leftovers will need to be refrigerated. Personally, I don’t like cold cake so I’d definitely suggest letting leftovers come to room temperature again before eating (but that’s totally up to you—if you like cold cake, by all means, enjoy it cold!).

This cake is my everything.

5 from 6 votes

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Strawberry Funfetti Cake with Strawberry Buttercream

Prep Time

45 mins

Cook Time

20 mins

Total Time

1 hr 5 mins

 

This homemade strawberry funfetti cake with strawberry buttercream is a fluffy vanilla cake filled with homemade strawberry cake filling and topped with the best strawberry frosting! This funfetti strawberry cake is so fun and festive—it would make a perfect Mother’s Day dessert, birthday cake or baby shower cake!

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: strawberry funfetti cake

Servings: 10 slices

Author: Michelle

Ingredients

Strawberry Funfetti Cake

• 4 egg whites
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3 Tbsp canola oil (or vegetable oil)
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 cups all purpose flour*
• 1/4 cup cornstarch*
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1 cup milk (whole milk is best)
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp almond extract (optional, but adds a lot of flavor)
• 1 cup colored jimmies (cylindrical sprinkles)

Strawberry Filling

• 1 cup strawberries, chopped
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp all purpose flour

Strawberry Buttercream

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 3 - 4 cups powdered sugar
• 1 cup crushed freeze dried strawberries
• 3-4 Tbsp heavy cream
• salt, to taste

Topping:

• Strawberries
• Jimmies

Instructions

Strawberry Funfetti Cake

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease two 8” or 9” circular cake pans.
2. With a standing or hand mixer, whip egg whites until they reach stiff peaks. Set aside.
3. Cream butter with a standing or hand mixer until light and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes. Add in oil and granulated sugar and beat for another 1-2 minutes (this really creates a light texture). Set aside.
4. Sift flour, cornstarch, salt and baking powder together.
5. Alternately add flour mixture and milk to the butter mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Mix until just combined.
6. Add in vanilla extract, almond extract and sprinkles and stir until just combined.
7. Fold egg whites into the cake batter, gently mixing until the whites are combined.
8. Divide batter evenly between the two cake pans and spread in an even layer.
9. Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Allow to cool.

Strawberry Filling

1. Mix strawberries, sugar, lemon juice and flour in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Once it reaches a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and allow the mixture to continue cooking until it has reduced and thickened up (about 10-12 minutes).
2. Allow to cool completely.

Strawberry Buttercream

1. Beat butter with a standing or hand mixer for 3-4 minutes (this makes the frosting extra fluffy).
2. Gradually add in powdered sugar, a half cup at a time, beginning with 3 cups.
3. Add in 3 Tbsp of heavy cream, beating until combined. If the frosting seems too thin, add in remaining powdered sugar. If the frosting seems too thick, add in remaining heavy cream.
4. Add in crushed freeze dried strawberries and mix until combined.
5. If desired, add in a pinch of salt, as this helps cut down the sweetness in the frosting.

Assembling the Cake

1. Place one funfetti cake layer on a cake stand or serving plate.
2. Spread a thin layer of strawberry frosting over the top of the cake layer.
3. Place some of the frosting (about 1/3 of the frosting) in a piping bag (you can use a large tip, but you don’t need one) and pipe a thick border around the edge of the cake (this creates a dam effect and keeps the filling from seeping out of the center of the cake).
4. Spoon strawberry filling in the center of the cake.
5. Pipe a thin layer of frosting over the top of filling and with a knife or offset spatula, carefully spread the frosting in an even layer (this keeps the filling from seeping into the top layer of the cake).
6. Place the second cake layer on top and press down gently.
7. Spread remaining frosting on top and around the edge of the cake.
8. Top with strawberries and sprinkles, if desired.
9. Serve and enjoy!
10. Leftovers should be refrigerated (because of the fresh fruit filling), but cake is best eaten at room temperature (it comes to room temperature from the fridge in about 30-60 minutes; individual slices come to room temp much more quickly).

Recipe Notes

*Instead of using all purpose flour and cornstarch, you can substitute 2 1/4 cups cake flour. 

Here are some other recipes you might love:

Strawberries & Cream Cupcakes

Chocolate Pound Cake

Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes