This Strawberry Pound Cake is moist, buttery laced with fresh strawberries and topped with a strawberry glaze. A twist on my award winning vanilla pound cake, it can’t be beat!
Recipe Must Haves
The ingredients for this strawberry pound cake are pretty straightforward and simple… but with fresh strawberries! A full list of ingredients with measurements for this recipe is available in the printable recipe card below.
- Unsalted Butter– Salt dries things out and brands can vary on salt content. Always bake with unsalted and then add salt as needed. Also, don’t skimp with cheap butter- it is the base for the is cake. Use a good grade A butter.
- Strawberries– Fresh strawberries are best because they will melt and caramelizing during the baking process. Frozen strawberries tend to be a little more watery to start with. If you do use frozen, make sure they are thawed and as dry as possible. Add another 2 tablespoons of flour to the mix to counteract the water content.
- Sugar
- Eggs
- Vanilla extract
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Milk
- Powdered sugar
Perfect Pairings
To serve, cut with a serrated knife. Top with homemade whipped cream or serve alongside a scoop of vanilla ice cream or strawberry ice cream.
Of course, you can also serve it with a variety of desserts and other pound cakes.
Strawberry Pound Cake Recipe
Ingredients
Strawberry Cake:
- 3 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter , softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 5 large eggs
- 1 cup whole or 2% milk
- 2 cups fresh strawberries , chopped and blotted dry
Strawberry Glaze:
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup fresh strawberries , chopped
- Milk , to consistency
Instructions
Cake:
- Heat the oven to 350°F. Grease and lightly flour two 9×5-inch loaf pans.
- In a medium bowl, sift together the 3 cups flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon salt; set aside.
- In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the 2 1/2 cups sugar and 1 cup unsalted butter until light and fluffy. Add the 1 teaspoon vanilla and 5 large eggs, beating on high speed for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the flour mixture into sugar mixture alternately with the 1 cup whole or 2% milk on low speed, beating just until smooth after each addition. Fold in the chopped 2 cups fresh strawberries by hand.
- Pour into the prepared pans.
- Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 20 minutes; remove from pan(s) to wire rack. Cool completely, about 2 hours.
Strawberry Glaze:
- When cakes are cooled, make glaze. Start by muddling the chopped 1/2 cup fresh strawberries.
- Add to the 2 cups powdered sugar and mix. Add 1-2 tablespoons of milk very sparingly until a pourable consistency (usually only about 1-2 teaspoons but it largely depends on how juicy the strawberries are).
- Place the cake on cooling rack with aluminum foil or parchment underneath. Spoon glaze over cakes and let excess drip below. Let glaze set and then transfer to serving tray.
- If you’ve tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was in the comments and ratings!
Video
Nutrition
Storage and Freezing
Like most baked items, good pound cake is best enjoyed within a day of baking. The good news is that the strawberry glaze helps to keep it moist. Store at room temperature in an airtight container or cover with plastic wrap.
It can be frozen, but freeze just the cake and add the icing after it thaws.
Whole Cake: To freeze the entire pound cake, first allow it to cool completely. Wrap it tightly in multiple layers of plastic wrap or aluminum foil to prevent freezer burn and moisture loss. Place the wrapped cake in a resealable freezer bag for extra protection. Label the bag with the date. Frozen pound cake can be stored for up to three months.
Slices or Portions: Alternatively, you can slice the pound cake into individual portions before freezing. Place parchment paper between slices to prevent sticking. Wrap each portion in plastic wrap or aluminum foil and store them in an airtight container or freezer-safe bag. This allows you to thaw and enjoy single servings as needed without thawing the entire cake.
FAQs
Cakes can become too dry when the flour isn’t measured properly and there is too much. This can happen when you scoop the measuring cup into the flour versus lightly spooning it on and leveling.
Dry cake can also be a result of over mixing. Too much air is incorporated into the batter, making it dry out.
Lastly, over cooking. Many cakes are done a few minutes before they start browning, so keep a watchful eye.
A gummy pound cake be the result of undercooking. Make sure it passes the toothpick test!
Many times the cake batter is exactly the same and many bundt cakes are pound cakes. It just depends on the shape of the pan it is being cooked in. A bundt pan is a circle with hollow center.
Pound cake can be kept moist by using a glaze or simple syrup baste, which this one already has. You can also microwave it on 50% power for 10 seconds to reactivate the gluten, making it soften a bit.
More Cake Ideas…
Let them eat cake! Here are some of our other favorite cake recipes. Make sure to check out our top pound cake mistakes before you get started!
More Delicious Desserts
Welcome to the 4th Annual #SummerDessertWeek event hosted by Angie from Big Bear’s Wife. We’re celebrating all things summer with a week-long event that is absolutely filled with some of the best summer dessert recipes! Follow the hashtag #SummerDessertWeek on social media to find recipes and make sure to check out the bottom of this post for even more summer desserts!
Check out the amazing #SummerDessertWeek recipes from our bloggers today!
Ice Cream & Chilled Desserts:
- Caramelized Pineapple No-Churn Ice Cream from Love and Confections
- Chocolate Covered Frozen Strawberries from Our Sutton Place
- Coffee Panna Cotta from Pastry Chef Online
- Strawberry Margarita Popsicles from Cheese Curd In Paradise
- Pineapple-Orange Sherbet Popsicles from Palatable Pastime
- Strawberry Rhubarb Ice Pops from Jolene’s Recipe Journal
- Southern Pineapple Sunshine Cake from Big Bear’s Wife
- Strawberries and Cream Cupcakes from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
- Strawberry Pound Cake from Savory Experiments
- Blueberry Lemon Dump Cake from Sweet ReciPEAs
- Key Lime Sheet Cake from It’s Shanaka
- Fruity Watermelon Pizza from Blogghetti
- Chocolate Chess Pie from Back To My Southern Roots
- Bourbon Peach Empanadas from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
- Rhubarb Thumbprints from A Day in the Life on the Farm
- Easy Caramel Banana Sauce from Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
Made it yesterday! Directions were perfect and it was delicious! Loved that it made two loaves and I could share one with a neighbor. This recipe is going into my book. It’s a keeper!
Thank you! That is what we love to hear!
If I bake one at a time and refrigerate the batter while waiting, can it go straight into the oven cooled or does it need to sit a bit? Looking forward to making this!
I’d let it sit a few minutes before popping it in.
Can I use buttermilk instead of regular milk in this recipe?
Hi! Buttermilk will be a tad tangy, but also thicker. Maybe do half buttermilk, half water? Or a 25/75 split?
Wonderful even without the glaze … save a few calories!!!
Thanks for coming back to let us know!
Easy to make pound cake! I was worried with all the eggs and flour that the strawberry flavour wouldn`t come across. No need to worry! The strawberry flavour was obvious and so yummy! Only a 4 star because I didn`t try the glaze. I wasn’t sure about the chunky glaze.
It’s pretty good- you should give it a whirl 🙂
Cake was delicious, kids loved it but I had a problem with the glaze. Also, what is muddling?
Muddling is basically smashing the strawberries so they release juice. I’ll edit the post to include that. What was the issue you had with the glaze so we can troubleshoot?
I made this and it was delicious! My home definitely enjoyed will make again!! ❤️
Thank you!
This is so good! I didn’t glaze it, we liked it so much before I got that far. I used gluten-free flour and it was wonderful.
Thanks for the feedback, Debbie. So glad you loved it!
I made this cake today and it turned out amazingly well. Even my husband, who claimed the entire time he was devouring a slice, that he isn’t a ‘cake person’, loved it. The recipe is easy to follow and it turned out perfectly. Thank you so much!!
My husband is the same way and he loves it too. So glad you enjoyed it!
I wanted to comment again because this is my absolute favorite pound cake recipe. It cant be any better! I make it often. I had my last crop of strawberries and decide to make huge pound cake muffins. They were a hit. I cooked sane temp for 40 minutes. My husband loved them! Just wanted to say how versatile and amazing this recipe is!
Thank you, Anna! That makes me heart happy!