Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake is the recipe that Lucia makes every time company is coming for summer and she needs something that feeds a crowd effortlessly, tastes completely extraordinary, and looks genuinely beautiful on the table without requiring any complicated layering or sophisticated decorating technique.
She bakes the most fragrant and perfectly tender vanilla sheet cake enriched with sour cream and a touch of almond extract that makes every person who smells it baking ask what is in there, allows it to cool completely while she whips the most cloud-like cream cheese frosting of full-fat cream cheese and powdered sugar and lemon zest beaten into cold heavy cream until gloriously stiff, spreads it generously across the entire surface, and arranges the most vibrant and fragrant sliced fresh strawberries tossed with a little strawberry jam across the top. The entire kitchen smells like the most perfect summer afternoon.
Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake is the most completely beautiful and easy crowd-feeding summer celebration sheet cake made with a tender sour cream vanilla cake base topped with a light and airy cream cheese whipped frosting and the most vibrant fresh sliced strawberries glazed with strawberry jam for the most perfectly fresh and deeply satisfying summer dessert. Come follow us on Pinterest where we share beautiful summer cake recipes and easy crowd-pleasing celebration baking favorites from our kitchen every single week.
Table of Contents
Why You Will Love This Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake Recipe
This Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake recipe is the summer entertaining dessert that solves every large-gathering dessert dilemma because it bakes in a single 9 by 13-inch pan, serves 16 people generously, requires no layer assembly or complicated decorating, and produces a result so completely beautiful and genuinely delicious that every person who sees it at the table immediately wants a piece before they have even finished their main course.
The cream cheese whipped frosting is the component that makes this sheet cake so completely extraordinary compared to a plain whipped cream topping. The cream cheese beaten through the heavy cream before the final whipping creates a frosting that is simultaneously as light and airy as pure whipped cream and as structurally stable as a buttercream, allowing it to hold beautifully under the strawberry topping without weeping or collapsing. Our Strawberry Pound Cake makes a beautifully dense and equally strawberry-forward companion for a complete and wonderful summer strawberry dessert collection.
Ingredients Needed for This Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake Recipe
For the Vanilla Sheet Cake:
- 2¾ cups All-Purpose Flour
- 3 tsp Baking Powder
- ½ tsp Salt
- 1¾ cups Granulated Sugar
- ½ cup Vegetable Oil
- 2 large Eggs, room temperature
- 2 Egg Whites, room temperature
- 3 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
- ¾ tsp Almond Extract
- ⅔ cup Full-Fat Sour Cream
- ¾ cup Whole Milk
For the Cream Cheese Whipped Frosting:
- 6 oz Full-Fat Cream Cheese, room temperature
- ¾ cup Powdered Sugar
- ¾ tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
- ½ tsp Fresh Lemon Zest
- 1½ cups Heavy Whipping Cream, very cold
For the Strawberry Topping:
- 5 cups Fresh Strawberries, hulled and sliced into ¼-inch pieces
- 2 tbsp Strawberry Jam
- 1 tbsp Fresh Mint, finely chopped (optional)
How to Make This Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake Recipe
Preheat the oven to 350°F with the rack in the center. Grease a 9 by 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. Ensure all eggs, egg whites, and sour cream are at room temperature before beginning.
In a stand mixer or large bowl, beat together the granulated sugar, vegetable oil, room-temperature eggs, room-temperature egg whites, vanilla extract, almond extract, and sour cream on medium-high speed for 2 to 3 minutes until the mixture is pale and well combined.
Reduce the mixer speed to low and alternate adding the flour mixture and the milk in additions of approximately one third of the flour, then half the milk, then another third of flour, then the remaining milk, then the final flour, mixing only until combined after each addition. Do not overmix, cara mia. Scrape down the bowl between additions to ensure everything is evenly incorporated.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan, spreading evenly with a spatula. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out completely clean and the top is golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on a wire rack, approximately 30 to 45 minutes. The cake must be completely cool before adding the frosting.
For the cream cheese whipped frosting, beat the room-temperature cream cheese and powdered sugar together on medium speed for 1 to 2 minutes until smooth. Add the vanilla extract and lemon zest and scrape down the bowl. With the mixer on medium speed, slowly pour the very cold heavy cream into the cream cheese mixture and continue beating until the frosting reaches stiff peaks, approximately 3 to 5 minutes.
Spread the frosting generously and evenly across the entire surface of the completely cooled cake. In a bowl, gently toss the sliced fresh strawberries with the strawberry jam to coat lightly and bring out their juices. Distribute the strawberries evenly across the frosted surface. Scatter the optional fresh mint over the top. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.
How to Serve This Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake Recipe
Serve this cake cold directly from the refrigerator for the most completely perfect and deeply refreshing summer dessert experience. The cold cream cheese frosting against the tender vanilla cake and the vibrant cool strawberries is genuinely extraordinary on a warm summer day.
Slice into 16 generous portions directly from the pan for the most effortless and completely beautiful serving experience. No plating or assembly required. Our Homemade Strawberry Shortcake makes a beautifully individual and equally strawberry-vibrant companion for a complete and lovely summer strawberry dessert collection.
How to Store This Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake Recipe
Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. The frosted unfrosted cake stores at room temperature for 1 day before the cream and berries should be added. The assembled cake is best within the first 1 to 2 days while the berries are most fresh and vibrant. The frosting alone stores refrigerated in an airtight container for 1 day.
Tips to Make This Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake Recipe
Do not open the oven door during the first 20 to 25 minutes of baking. Opening the door before the cake structure has fully set causes the center to sink from the sudden temperature change. Use the toothpick test only after at least 25 minutes have elapsed and the cake looks fully set across the entire surface.
Add the strawberry topping just before serving rather than hours in advance. Fresh strawberries begin releasing their juices almost immediately once cut and tossed, and extended contact with the frosting can make the surface slightly watery and the cake appear less fresh and beautiful.
Helpful Notes for This Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake Recipe
The almond extract is a small quantity ingredient that produces a disproportionately large and completely beautiful effect on the overall flavor of the cake. It adds a warm and fragrant depth that makes every person who tastes the cake ask what the secret ingredient is. If almond extract is not available or not preferred, increase the vanilla extract by half a teaspoon for a purely vanilla version that is equally delicious.
The heavy cream must be genuinely very cold before whipping into the cream cheese frosting. Warm heavy cream does not whip properly and produces a flat and unstable frosting. Refrigerate the heavy cream until the very last moment before using for the most efficiently whipped and most stable cream cheese frosting.
Variation of This Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake Recipe
Maria made a version using fresh raspberries in place of strawberries for a raspberry shortcake sheet cake that was deeply vibrant and beautifully tart against the cream cheese frosting. Teresa tried adding fresh blueberries alongside the strawberries for a mixed berry shortcake sheet cake that was perfectly patriotic and completely beautiful at a Fourth of July gathering.
For a lemon strawberry version, add the zest of one whole lemon to the cake batter alongside the vanilla for the most fragrant and bright lemon strawberry shortcake sheet cake that is completely extraordinary and deeply beloved at any spring or summer celebration. Our Strawberry Layer Cake makes a beautifully layered and equally strawberry-forward companion for a complete and stunning summer celebration cake collection.
FAQs About This Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake Recipe
Can I make this cake ahead of time for a party?
Yes. The vanilla sheet cake can be baked the night before and refrigerated tightly covered after cooling. The cream cheese frosting can be made the night before and refrigerated. On the day of serving, spread the frosting over the cake and add the strawberry topping just before guests arrive for the most fresh and beautiful presentation.
Why does the cream cheese whipped frosting use cold heavy cream?
Cold heavy cream whips into a more stable and voluminous foam than warm cream. Adding cold heavy cream to the cream cheese mixture and whipping to stiff peaks creates a frosting that is simultaneously light and airy from the whipped cream and structurally stable from the cream cheese, allowing it to hold its shape under the strawberry topping without weeping.
Can I use frozen strawberries for the topping?
Fresh strawberries are strongly preferred for the most vibrant flavor and the most beautiful presentation. Frozen strawberries can work if fresh are unavailable, but they must be thoroughly thawed and very thoroughly drained and patted dry before using. Excess liquid from inadequately drained frozen strawberries will make the frosting watery and the cake surface soggy.
Conclusion
This Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake is the most completely easy and genuinely beautiful summer gathering dessert that makes every crowd feel generously and personally celebrated through the most effortless and deeply satisfying combination of tender vanilla cake, airy cream cheese frosting, and vibrant fresh strawberries in the most completely perfect and crowd-pleasing sheet cake format imaginable. We hope it brings the same deeply joyful summer table and the same completely satisfied crowd 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.
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Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake The Most Easy and Beautiful Crowd Pleasing Summer Cake You Will Make
- Total Time: 1 hour including cooling
- Yield: 16 slices 1x
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
The most easy and beautiful Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake made with a tender sour cream vanilla cake of flour baking powder salt sugar oil eggs egg whites vanilla almond extract sour cream and milk baked at 350°F for 25 to 30 minutes topped with a light airy cream cheese whipped frosting of cream cheese powdered sugar vanilla lemon zest and cold heavy cream beaten to stiff peaks and finished with fresh strawberries tossed in strawberry jam. A completely perfect crowd-pleasing summer dessert.
Ingredients
2 3/4 cups All-Purpose Flour
3 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
1 3/4 cups Granulated Sugar
1/2 cup Vegetable Oil
2 large Eggs room temperature
2 Egg Whites room temperature
3 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
3/4 tsp Almond Extract
2/3 cup Full-Fat Sour Cream
3/4 cup Whole Milk
6 oz Full-Fat Cream Cheese room temperature
3/4 cup Powdered Sugar
3/4 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract for frosting
1/2 tsp Fresh Lemon Zest
1 1/2 cups Heavy Whipping Cream very cold
5 cups Fresh Strawberries hulled and sliced 1/4-inch
2 tbsp Strawberry Jam
1 tbsp Fresh Mint finely chopped optional
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease 9×13-inch pan.
2. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. Beat sugar, oil, room temperature eggs, egg whites, vanilla, almond extract, and sour cream 2 to 3 minutes until pale and combined.
4. Alternate adding flour and milk in thirds on low speed. Scrape bowl. Do not overmix.
5. Pour into prepared pan. Spread evenly.
6. Bake 25 to 30 minutes until toothpick clean and top golden.
7. Cool completely on wire rack 30 to 45 minutes.
8. Beat cream cheese and powdered sugar smooth 1 to 2 minutes. Add vanilla and lemon zest.
9. With mixer running add very cold heavy cream on medium. Beat to stiff peaks 3 to 5 minutes.
10. Spread frosting generously over completely cooled cake.
11. Toss sliced strawberries with strawberry jam.
12. Distribute strawberries evenly over frosting.
13. Add optional fresh mint. Refrigerate at least 1 hour. Serve cold.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Dessert, Cake
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 245
- Sugar: 22g
- Sodium: 125mg
- Fat: 11g
- Saturated Fat: 6g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 34g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 4g
- Cholesterol: 52mg
Keywords: strawberry shortcake sheet cake, easy strawberry shortcake sheet cake recipe, strawberry sheet cake with cream cheese whipped frosting, summer sheet cake strawberries
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