Strawberry Lemon Cake is the recipe that Lucia makes every spring and every most vibrant early summer birthday when she wants to create the most completely extraordinary and the most genuinely show-stopping individual celebration cake that pairs the most classically beloved and the most brilliantly complementary individual fresh strawberry and lemon flavors in the most beautifully layered and the most properly impressive individual two-layer celebration cake format — because the most naturally bright and the most properly tart individual fresh lemon zest and juice woven throughout both the most moist and the most beautifully fine individual sour cream lemon cake layers.
AND the most luxuriously silky individual lemon cream cheese frosting creates the most vibrantly lemon-forward individual cake foundation that most perfectly showcases the most naturally sweet and the most brilliantly fragrant individual fresh strawberry pieces folded through the individual frosting for the most completely extraordinary and the most genuinely dreamy individual strawberry lemon celebration cake that is simultaneously the most elegantly sophisticated and the most universally appealing.
Strawberry Lemon Cake is the most easy and deeply extraordinary 1-hour moist lemon sour cream spring celebration cake made by creaming butter and sugar adding eggs lemon zest and juice alternating flour and sour cream baking at 350°F for 28 to 32 minutes frosting with lemon cream cheese strawberry buttercream. Come follow us on Pinterest where we share beautiful cake recipes and easy spring favorites from our kitchen every single week.
Why You Will Love This Strawberry Lemon Cake Recipe

This Strawberry Lemon Cake recipe is the most completely extraordinary and the most genuinely vibrant individual spring celebration cake that delivers the most beautifully bright and the most properly complementary individual strawberry-and-lemon individual flavor pairing through the most brilliantly designed double-lemon approach — fresh lemon zest for the most essential aromatic individual oil character AND freshly squeezed lemon juice for the most properly tart and the most vibrantly bright individual acidity — combined with the most naturally sweet individual fresh strawberry pieces folded through the individual cream cheese frosting for the most completely extraordinary and the most genuinely dreamy individual frosting.
The most individual fresh strawberry pieces in the individual cream cheese frosting rather than strawberry jam or preserves is the single most brilliantly transformative individual frosting decision — the most natural fresh individual strawberry pieces provide the most vibrantly bright and the most properly fragrant individual fresh fruit character that no most preserved individual alternative can replicate for the most genuinely extraordinary individual strawberry lemon cake frosting. Our Paula Deen Strawberry Cake makes a beautifully equally fresh strawberry and equally celebration-beautiful companion for a complete and wonderful strawberry celebration cake collection.
Ingredients Needed for This Strawberry Lemon Cake Recipe
For the Moist Lemon Sour Cream Cake Layers:
- 2½ cups All-Purpose Flour
- 2 tsp Baking Powder
- ½ tsp Salt
- 1 cup Unsalted Butter, softened
- 1¾ cups Granulated Sugar
- 4 large Eggs, room temperature
- 2 tsp Fresh Lemon Zest
- 3 tbsp Fresh Lemon Juice
- 1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
- ¾ cup Sour Cream, room temperature
For the Strawberry Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 16 oz Full-Fat Brick-Style Cream Cheese, room temperature
- ½ cup Unsalted Butter, room temperature
- 4 to 5 cups Powdered Sugar, sifted
- 2 tbsp Fresh Lemon Juice
- 1 tsp Fresh Lemon Zest
- ¾ cup Fresh Strawberries, finely diced and patted thoroughly dry
- Pink Gel Food Coloring (optional for the most vibrant individual pink)
For Decoration:
- Fresh Whole Strawberries, halved, for garnish
- Thin Lemon Rounds for garnish
How to Make This Strawberry Lemon Cake Recipe
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and line two 9-inch round cake pans.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
Beat the softened butter and sugar on medium-high for 2 to 3 minutes until the most light and the most beautifully fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating most thoroughly after each. Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla extract and mix until combined, cara mia.
Add the flour mixture alternating with the sour cream in two additions, beginning and ending with the flour. Mix just until combined.
Divide evenly between the two prepared pans and bake for 28 to 32 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pans then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
For the strawberry lemon cream cheese frosting, beat the room-temperature cream cheese and butter until the most silky smooth. Add sifted powdered sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Beat until the most fluffy. Gently fold in the most finely diced and the most thoroughly patted-dry fresh strawberries. Add optional pink gel food coloring for the most beautifully vibrant individual pink.
Assemble with a generous layer of strawberry lemon cream cheese frosting between the individual layers. Frost the exterior. Garnish with fresh halved strawberries and thin lemon rounds arranged over the top immediately before serving.
How to Serve This Strawberry Lemon Cake Recipe
Serve chilled or at room temperature — allow 20 minutes out of the refrigerator for the most properly softened individual cream cheese frosting. The most vibrant individual fresh strawberry and individual lemon garnish should be added within 2 hours of serving for the most freshly beautiful and the most properly vibrant individual appearance.
For the most completely extraordinary individual spring presentation, arrange the most whole individual halved strawberries and the most thin individual lemon rounds in the most beautiful overlapping individual fan pattern over the most entire frosted top surface of the individual assembled cake for the most completely show-stopping and the most genuinely extraordinary individual spring cake centerpiece. Our Strawberry Delight makes a beautifully equally fresh strawberry and equally spring-vibrant companion for a complete and wonderful fresh strawberry dessert collection.
How to Store This Strawberry Lemon Cake Recipe
Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 4 days due to the fresh strawberries in the individual frosting. Add fresh strawberry and lemon garnish immediately before serving. Allow 20 minutes at room temperature before serving from the refrigerator for the most properly softened individual frosting.
Tips to Make This Strawberry Lemon Cake Recipe

Pat the most finely diced fresh individual strawberries the most completely dry with paper towels before folding into the individual cream cheese frosting — even the most minimal excess individual strawberry moisture can thin the most carefully whipped individual cream cheese frosting and prevent the most proper individual structure for the most beautifully piped and the most cleanly spread individual frosting application.
Use the most freshly squeezed individual lemon juice and the most freshly grated individual lemon zest throughout every individual component for the most vibrantly bright and the most properly fresh individual lemon character — both in the most individual cake layers and the most individual frosting simultaneously for the most completely lemon-forward individual spring cake.
Helpful Notes for This Strawberry Lemon Cake Recipe
For the most beautifully vibrant individual pink strawberry lemon cream cheese frosting, add one to two drops of pink gel food coloring alongside the fresh diced individual strawberries — the most natural individual strawberry pieces alone may not produce the most sufficiently vibrant individual pink for the most dramatically beautiful individual cake exterior without the most minimal individual gel food coloring enhancement.
This individual strawberry lemon cake tastes the most extraordinarily developed when made one full day before serving — the most overnight individual refrigerator rest allows the most vibrant individual lemon character to the most fully permeate every individual crumb layer and the most individual fresh strawberry flavor to the most completely meld with the individual cream cheese frosting.
Variation of This Strawberry Lemon Cake Recipe
Maria made a version adding a most thin individual layer of strawberry jam between the cake layers and the individual cream cheese frosting for the most completely extraordinary and the most properly double-strawberry individual lemon cake. Teresa tried a blueberry lemon version — substituting fresh blueberries in the same most finely diced and the most thoroughly dried quantity — for the most completely extraordinary and the most beautifully different individual blueberry lemon cream cheese cake.
For a three-layer version, divide the individual batter between three 8-inch pans and bake for approximately 22 to 25 minutes for the most completely extraordinary and the most dramatically tall individual three-layer strawberry lemon celebration cake. Our Lemon Blueberry Muffins make a beautifully equally bright lemon and equally fresh berry companion for a complete and wonderful lemon spring collection.
FAQs About This Strawberry Lemon Cake Recipe
Can I use frozen strawberries in the frosting?
Fresh individual strawberries are the most specifically recommended for the individual frosting — the most naturally vibrant individual color, the most firm individual texture, and the most fragrant individual fresh strawberry character that defines the most properly extraordinary individual strawberry lemon cream cheese frosting cannot be replicated by thawed individual frozen strawberries that become the most mushy and the most excessively moist for the most proper individual frosting integration.
How do I prevent the strawberry frosting from being too runny?
Three most effective individual techniques are patting the most individual diced strawberries the most completely dry before folding in, starting with the most lesser quantity of lemon juice in the individual frosting to allow for the most individual strawberry moisture addition, and refrigerating the assembled individual frosting for 20 minutes before applying to the individual cake if it appears the most too soft after folding in the individual strawberries.
Can I make this as a sheet cake?
Yes — pour the entire individual batter into a greased and lined 9 by 13-inch baking pan and bake at 350°F for approximately 35 to 38 minutes. Frost with the same most extraordinary individual strawberry lemon cream cheese frosting for the most conveniently crowd-feeding and the most easily portioned individual sheet cake format.
Conclusion
This Strawberry Lemon Cake is the most completely extraordinary and the most genuinely vibrant fresh spring celebration cake that makes every birthday and every spring gathering feel genuinely and completely special through the most bright lemon sour cream crumb and the most beautifully silky strawberry lemon cream cheese frosting and the most gorgeous fresh strawberry and lemon garnish in every single individually beautiful and completely irresistible strawberry lemon cake slice.
We hope it brings the same deeply joyful spring strawberry lemon cake celebration and the same completely delighted table to your kitchen that it has always brought to ours. Make it, share it, and come back to tell us all about it. With all our love, Maria, Lucia, and Teresa.
Print
Strawberry Lemon Cake The Most Easy Moist Lemon Zest Sour Cream Fresh Strawberry Lemon Cream Cheese Strawberry Buttercream Cake
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes including cooling
- Yield: 12 to 14 servings 1x
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
The most extraordinary moist Strawberry Lemon Cake made by preheating oven to 350°F greasing and lining two 9-inch pans whisking 2 1/2 cups flour 2 tsp baking powder and 1/2 tsp salt beating 1 cup softened butter and 1 3/4 cups sugar medium-high 2 to 3 minutes light and fluffy adding 4 room temperature eggs one at a time then 2 tsp lemon zest 3 tbsp lemon juice and vanilla alternating flour with 3/4 cup room temperature sour cream beginning and ending with flour just combined dividing between pans baking 28 to 32 minutes until toothpick clean cooling 10 minutes then on racks completely then beating 16 oz room temperature cream cheese and 1/2 cup room temperature butter silky smooth adding 4 to 5 cups sifted powdered sugar 2 tbsp lemon juice and 1 tsp lemon zest beating fluffy gently folding 3/4 cup finely diced patted-dry fresh strawberries adding optional pink gel coloring assembling with frosting between and over layers garnishing with fresh halved strawberries and lemon rounds immediately before serving. A completely perfect moist lemon sour cream fresh strawberry cream cheese frosting spring birthday cake recipe.
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
2 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
1 cup Unsalted Butter softened
1 3/4 cups Granulated Sugar
4 large Eggs room temperature
2 tsp Fresh Lemon Zest
3 tbsp Fresh Lemon Juice
1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
3/4 cup Sour Cream room temperature
16 oz Full-Fat Brick-Style Cream Cheese room temperature
1/2 cup Unsalted Butter room temperature for frosting
4 to 5 cups Powdered Sugar sifted
2 tbsp Fresh Lemon Juice for frosting
1 tsp Fresh Lemon Zest for frosting
3/4 cup Fresh Strawberries finely diced and patted dry
Pink Gel Food Coloring optional
Fresh Whole Strawberries halved for garnish
Thin Lemon Rounds for garnish
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350°F 175°C. Grease and line two 9-inch pans.
2. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. Beat softened butter and sugar medium-high 2 to 3 minutes light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time. Add lemon zest, juice, and vanilla.
4. Alternate flour with sour cream beginning and ending with flour. Mix just combined.
5. Divide between pans. Bake 28 to 32 minutes until toothpick clean.
6. Cool 10 minutes. Transfer to racks. Cool completely.
7. Beat cream cheese and butter silky smooth. Add powdered sugar, lemon juice, and zest. Beat fluffy.
8. Fold in finely diced patted-dry strawberries. Add optional pink coloring.
9. Assemble with frosting between and over layers.
10. Garnish with fresh strawberries and lemon rounds immediately before serving.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 32 minutes
- Category: Dessert, Cake, Spring, Strawberry, Lemon
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 510
- Sugar: 52g
- Sodium: 270mg
- Fat: 26g
- Saturated Fat: 16g
- Unsaturated Fat: 9g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 64g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 7g
- Cholesterol: 120mg
Keywords: strawberry lemon cake, easy moist strawberry lemon cake recipe lemon sour cream fresh strawberry cream cheese frosting, best spring strawberry lemon layer cake, moist lemon sour cream fresh strawberry cream cheese frosting spring birthday cake
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