Summer is all about strawberries, right? How about using those perfect strawberries for this lovely Roasted Strawberry Cake With Lime Buttercream?
What Makes This Cake So Good?
Well, aside from the fact that strawberries and lime are one of my very favorite combos, ever. There are many other good things about this cake!
It is light fluffy and just what you are looking for in a good cake. It is a 9×13 size, making it perfect for feeding a crowd.
The strawberries are roasted. If you have not roasted strawberries yet, let me tell you this, you need to! It caramelizes the sugars in the berries and intensifies the flavor!
It is also a healthier version. I changed this up a bit by adding whole wheat flour and reducing the sugar. I think these changes make an awesome cake even better.
The cake still remains very tender and just sweet enough!
If you have always felt intimidated by making your cake, don’t be! I want to help you be successful and this is a great recipe to start with.
Ingredients
- Strawberries
- Granulated sugar
- Cake Flour- You can use all-purpose flour, but the cake flour makes this cake so tender!
- Whole Wheat Pastry Flour– I do recommend using whole wheat pastry flour. It is a lower protein flour that adds a healthy rouch without weighing down the cake.
- Baking powder
- salt
- Butter
- Oil
- Milk
- Egg whites
- Red Food coloring- optional. I didn’t use it, but I know some people like to in strawberry cake to enhance the color.
- Lime zest and juice
- Powdered sugar
- Vanilla
How Do You Roast Strawberries
I love the flavor of fresh strawberries, but I also love the difference in the flavor of a roasted strawberry. It caramelizes the sugars and adds a depth of flavor I just love!
Start by cleaning your berries, cutting off the tops, and cutting in half. Place the berries on your baking sheet. Sprinkle with the sugar and mix gently.
Bake them at 350 degrees. The time it takes depends on your berries. What size they are, how ripe they are, etc. Mine took about 15 minutes.
Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool. Then blend them and any liquid that escaped. This is what you will use for flavoring on the cake.
Step-By-Step How To Make The Roasted Strawberry Cake With Lime Buttercream
- Roast Strawberries.
- Blend them and allow them to cool before using.
- Mix your cake flour, whole wheat flour, baking powder, and salt.
- In another medium-sized bowl, add your softened butter, oil, and granulated sugar.
- When they are well mixed, add in the egg whites, strawberries, and vanilla. Mix again to combine.
- Now, we are going to alternate the flour mixture and the milk. I like to start with the milk. Add in about 1/3 of your milk, mix a few times. Then add in about 1/3 of the flour mixture. You don’t need to mix it completely in with each addition, just mostly. You should end with the flour mixture. With the last addition, make sure all the ingredients are combined.
- I remove my cake from it’s pan, so I like to line it with parchment paper, then pour the batter in. If you are planning on serving right from the pan, don’t worry about the parchment. Butter your pan well and pour the batter in.
- Bake until the toothpick comes out almost clean, I will explain more about this below.
- Allow the cake to cool completely.
- MIx your lime buttercream.
- Spread it across the top. I find an offset spatula works best.
- Sprinkle more lime zest on top.
- That it is. Now, sit back and enjoy. You deserve it!
Baking With Whole Wheat Flour
I know baking with whole wheat flour can feel intimidating, but don’t let it. Let me share tips with you that I have learned over the past several years of working with it. I promise you are going to knock out some killer baked goods soon!
The biggest complaint people have with whole wheat baked goods is a lot of times they are dry. Let me share 3 tips that will help combat this issue.
Use the right flour for the right job. All whole wheat flours have different protein levels and this matters in baking. For cakes, cookies, even muffins, I love to use whole wheat pastry flour. It is a lower protein flour that makes perfectly tender cakes.
Do not overmix your dough. This is really important with any cake recipe, but especially important when you are working with wheat flour. Only mix to combine.
The next thing to know is DO NOT OVERBAKE. There is a process in cooking and baking called carry-over cooking.
What this means is the residual heat from a baked good will continue to bake even after it is removed from the heat source.
I like to pull it out when the cake is just SLIGHTLY underbaked. So if you are checking with a toothpick, you don’t want it to come out completely dry.
Lime Buttercream
The lime buttercream is simple to make. The one recommendation I have to give is to whip it for several ingredients once everything is in. I love it when it is light and fluffy.
Also, do not skimp on the lime zest. This is really important. If you want that good lime flavor, you need plenty of lime zest. Yes, it comes from the juice as well, but the best flavor is in the zest.
FAQ Roasted Strawberry Cake With Lime Buttercream
You do not have to use it, you can always sub in all-purpose flour. I like to use cake flour because it is a low-protein flour. In cakes like this, cake flour is great to use, but not necessary.
Yes, you can. What you can do is blend the strawberries up, just like you do with the roasted berries.
Yes, you can. It is a little drier when you thaw it, but still good!
This cake holds for about 4 days in the fridge. Just make sure it is wrapped well with saran wrap or stored in an airtight container.
Other Whole Wheat Bakes
- Pumpkin donuts with maple syrup
- Layered Apple and Cinnamon Loaf
- Simple Pie Pops
- Multigrain Bread
- Healthier fruit Pizza
- Strawberry Sugar Cokie Bars
- Simple Carrot Cake Cookies
Strawberry cake with lime buttercream
Equipment
- 9×13 pan
- Hand mixer
Ingredients
Strawberry cake
- 2 cups fresh strawberries, tops removed and cut in half
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar this is for roasting the strawberries
- 1 3/4 cup cake flour It's important to use a low protein flour, like cake flour for a tender cake.
- 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1/2 cup canola oil or other neutral oil
- 1 1/4 cup granulated sugar You can reduce this to 1 cup if you prefer
- 3/4 cup milk I used a nonfat vanilla almond milk.
- 5 egg whites
- 2 teaspoons red food coloring optional if you want a brighter color. I did not use this, as I like the natural color, but the option is there.
Lime buttercream
- 10 tablespoons butter, softened
- 4 tablespoons lime zest, divided I use about 3 tablespoons in the icing, then the last tablespoon sprinkled on top.
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- lime juice The amount of this will depend on how thick or thin you want your icing to be. I used about 1/4 cup
Instructions
Strawberry cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.Combine the strawberries and 1 tablespoon. Mix to distribute the sugar. Pour onto baking sheet.Bake for about 10-25 minutes. This will depend on how thick your berries are and how ripe. You will know when they are done, the strawberries will be soft and will have released plenty of liquid.Remove from oven. Place the roasted berries in food processor or blender. Pour onto a plate. I like to pour this out, as this will give you more surface area and it will cool more quickly. Now, let's start on our cake. Leave your oven on 350 degrees. Prepare your 9×13 pan. I lined mine with parchment paper with an overhang. This is optional, but it makes it so much easier to remove the cake from the pan once it is done baking.Mix your flours, baking powder and salt in a small bowl and set aside, Mix the butter, oil and 1 1/4 cup granulated sugar in a medium bowl. I used a hand mixer, but this can be done by hand as well. Once these are well blended, and in your eggs. Mix to combine. Next is your strawberries and vanilla. Now, alternate your milk and dry ingredients. Do this by adding in 1/2 you milk and mix lightly. Next, add in half your dry ingredients. Repeat the process until everything is incorporated. Pour batter into your prepared pan and place in the oven.Bake for 20-30 minutes. The variation in time is dependent upon your actual baking temp and pan. Check on doneness with a toothpick. When it is inserted, it should come out almost totally clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool at least 10-20 minutes before removing. If you have used parchment, the removal is simple. Place on cooling rack. If not, invert and flip again. Top side up on cooling rack. Once it has cooled, you are ready for icing!
Lime buttercream icing
- Combine butter, powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons lime zest, vanilla and at least 2 tablespoons lime juice. Mix well with hand mixer on high. Now, from here you will determine how thick or thin you want your icing to be. I wound up using about 1/4 cup lime juice in mine. If you want more or less, do this. Spread evenly across cake. Sprinkle with the remaining tablespoon lime zest.
1 3/4 cup cake flour It’s important to use a low protein
–> Type 00 flour has about 9% protein. Does that work here?
Thanks!
yes! Should work. Cake flour is usually about 8%. Sorry for the delay in responding, we were camping and out of service for the weekend.